Saqqara - Mastaba el-Faraun

South-southeast of the Pyramid of Phiops II is the Mastaba el-Faraun, the most important monument in the southern group. Originally 330ft/100m long and 240ft/73.5m wide, it is in the form of a gigantic coffin with a barrel roof, built of massive blocks 2-2.5ft/1.5-2m thick and faced with Tura limestone. It is the Tomb of Shepseskaf, last King of the fourth Dynasty.

The layout of the passages in the interior is similar to that of the pyramids of Unas and his successors. From the entrance, on the north side, a very narrow passage, only 4.5ft/1.30m high and 65ft/20m long, originally faced with granite slabs, descends to the chambers 23ft/7m below the base of the mastaba. Built entirely of granite, these were closed off by three stone