THE SURPRISING DISCOVERY OF THE ABUSIR BLOCKS
In 1996, Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities decided to open the site of Abusir to visitors. Me began the project by clearing the causeway and restoring the columns of the upper temple belonging to Sahure's funerary complex.
Some 30m of wind-blown sand had accumulated over the causeway since 1907-8 when Ludwig Borchardt excavated here. The workman assigned the difficult task of removing the sand made a surprising discovery: 20 blocks. carved with delicate relief.
One scene spread over several blocks portrays men dragging a pyramidion to cap Sahure's pyramid. Despite the fact that we are missing the portion depicting the pyramidion, we have the accompanying inscription which says, "bringing the pyramidion covered with white gold to the pyramid."
The surviving blocks portray the wooden sled on which the pyramidion was dragged. A man bends in front of the sled and pours water on the ground to ease its passage. Behind him stands the overseer who holds a sceptre shaped like a human arm. In later ancient times, a visitor to Abusir defaced the image of the man pouring water by sketching over top an archer shooting at the pyramidion.
Other blocks depict male courtiers holding batons and bending in homage to the king while group of young female dancers, members of the hnr royal dancers perform to their right. A similar scene depicts men bent in homage but carrying long objects that may be rolls of linen with, a group of young male dancers. The inscriptions identify the men as members of two different crews.
Perhaps the most evocative scene captures the image of a group of men bending in the direction of the pyramid. To the right of the vertical line, courtiers and high officials fill the space. Then there are men with their hands placed on their knees or raising their hands in a begging gesture. These are Bedouins, weakened by hunger. The inscription written above them reads, "pyramidion in three great halls." This scene is a prototype for one found in the causeway of Unas at Saqqara that is known as "the famine scene" even though a famine did not starve Egypt during Unas' reign.
These reliefs, found under surprising circumstances, are unique. Nothing like them exist at any other Old Kingdom pyramid complex.
