 Unas’s pyramid
 The pyramid built by Unas, the last of the fifth
dynasty pharaohs, is the smallest Old Kingdom pyramid known to us. Located on the Saqqara
plateau between the complexes of Djoser and Sekhemkhet, it was only about 141 ft (43 m)
tall.
The entrance was at ground level on the north side, and was
probably enclosed by a small chapel. Upon entering the pyramid, one descends a passage
until one reaches a corridor with three granite portcullis slabs (designed to protect the
king’s burial). Past these slabs lies the burial chamber, oriented east-west. A few
skeleton fragments were found within the basalt sarcophagus – these are now in Cairo
museum.
The inner chambers of Unas’s pyramid are notable for having
had spells inscribed on the walls. These were the so-called "Pyramid Texts",
which were designed to ensure that the king travelled to the Netherworld unimpeded.
Presumably, men at court had noticed that the priesthood could not be relied upon to chant
these spells regularly, and so decided to have them indelibly inscribed on the inside of
the king’s pyramid.
By the New Kingdom, the pyramid lay in
ruins. During the reign of Ramesses II, though, one of the king’s many sons,
Khaemwaset, High Priest of Memphis, oversaw the restoration of the complex, as
commemorated by an inscription on the south side of the pyramid.
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