Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site
Middle Kingdom Amenemhat III (1855–1808 BCE) + Labyrinth temple Herodotus description·12th Dynasty (Hawara)·🇪🇬 Fayum, Hawara, Fayum southern, near Arsinoe/Crocodilopolis, entrance to Fayum, Egypt
About
About Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site
Hawara excavated by Petrie 1888–89, Labyrinth lost Herodotus-Strabonic description, quartzite chamber with 110 t lid lowered on sand. Recorded context — Period: Middle Kingdom Amenemhat III (1855–1808 BCE) + Labyrinth temple Herodotus description; Culture: 12th Dynasty (Hawara); Field status: excavated; Materials: mudbrick, limestone casing, quartzite chamber, granite; Condition: heavily eroded pyramid core — Labyrinth quarried to foundations.
Why it mattersKey 12th Dynasty (Hawara) pyramid with stratified sequence and regional typology.
Open questions
Mysteries & theories
Mysteries
- 01Trade network extent
- 02Construction labor organization
Theories
- 01Observatory
Theories are interpretations, not findings. The seal above tells you how much scholarly weight the place carries.
History
How it came to be
- Built
- c. 1850 BCE pyramid; Labyrinth temple compound 300 m × 250 m
- Period
- Middle Kingdom Amenemhat III (1855–1808 BCE) + Labyrinth temple Herodotus description
- Culture
- 12th Dynasty (Hawara)
- Purpose
- Mudbrick pyramid (105 m base, 58 m high) with quartzite burial chamber (110 t) and Herodotus Labyrinth temple with 3000 rooms
- Rediscovered
- Modern excavation 1962
- Excavation
- Excavated
c. 1850 BCE pyramid; Labyrinth temple compound 300 m × 250 m
Initial construction / first occupation at Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site
2005 excavation
Modern rediscovery and scientific excavation of Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site
On the ground
Structures & features
29.2750° N · 30.8970° E · -15 m · 3 mapped features
- Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — Principal Pyramidpyramidpyramid at Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — subsidiary complex29.2769° N · 30.8967° E
- Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — Chamber Annex 2chamberchamber at Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — primary structure29.2749° N · 30.8959° E
- Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — Causeway Annex 3causewaycauseway at Hawara Pyramid — Amenemhat III Labyrinth Site — hydraulic feature29.2734° N · 30.8965° E