Over half a century after its excavation, the Bent Pyramid of Dahshur has been opened to the public after extensive restoration works were completed. As of last weekend, the public can can visit the massive 4,600-year-old, 101-metre marvel and climb through its 79-metre narrow tunnel, which leads to two chambers.

During its opening ceremony, a team of archaeologists led by Minister of Antiquities, Khaled El-Anany, also exhibited late-period mummies, masks, tools and coffins that were uncovered during on-going excavation work near the pyramid.

Lying 28KM south of Cairo in Dahshur's open desert, the Bent Pyramid was built during the Old Kingdom, considered the 'golden age of pyramid construction', for Fourth Dynasty Pharaoh, Sneferu. The Dahshur Pyramid served as a precursor to Sneferu's magnum opus, the Red Pyramid, was later built 1.8KM away from the Bent Pyramid site as the first successfully completed smooth sided pyramid and the third largest pyramid in Egypt after Khufu and Khafre's pyramids, who were directly next in line to rule Egypt.

The first 49 metres from the ground up is cased in smooth limestone at a steep 54 degree angle before narrowing, resulting in itsodd, bent shape.

Historically the Bent Pyramid has given fundamental insight into pyramid construction as one of the earliest pyramids to be built. With its unusual shape, it gives understanding into how Ancient Egyptian Architects experimented and trialed, attempting to reach the perfect pyramidical shape.

Images courtesy of Mohamed Abd El Ghany