Monument sights in Africa
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Serdab
A stone structure right in front of the pyramid, the serdab (a small room containing a statue of the deceased to which offerings were presented) contains a slightly tilted wooden box with two holes drilled into its north face. Look through these and you'll have the eerie experience of coming face to face with Zoser himself. Inside is a near-life-size, lifelike painted statue of the long-dead pharaoh, gazing stonily out towards the stars.
It's worth noting that this statue is only a copy - the original statue is in Cairo's Egyptian Museum. The original entrance to the Step Pyramid is directly behind the serdab, and leads down to a maze of subterranean tunnels and chambers…
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Tomb of Akhethotep & Ptahhotep
Akhethotep and his son Ptahhotep were senior royal officials during the reigns of Djedkare (2414-2375 BC) and Unas at the end of the 5th dynasty. Akhethotep served as vizier, judge, supervisor of pyramid cities and supervisor of priests, though his titles were eventually inherited by Ptahhotep, along with his tomb. The joint mastaba has two burial chambers, two chapels and a pillared hall.
The painted reliefs in Ptahhotep's section are particularly beautiful, and portray a wide range of animals, from lions and hedgehogs to the domesticated cattle and fowl, that were brought as offerings to the deceased. Ptahhotep himself is portrayed resplendent in a panther-skin robe…
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Saite & Persian Tombs
Around the sides of the Pyramid of Unas are several large shaft tombs of the Saite (664-525 BC) and Persian (525-404 BC) eras. These are some of the deepest tombs in Egypt, although the precaution against grave robbers failed. However, the sheer size of the tombs and the great stone sarcophagi within, combined with their sophisticated decoration, demonstrate that the technical achievements of the later part of Egyptian history were equal to those of earlier times.
To the north of the pyramid is the enormous tomb shaft of the Saite general Amun-Tefnakht. On the south side of the pyramid is a group of three Persian tombs - the entrance is covered by a small wooden hut to…
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Pyramid of Sahure
Sahure (2487-2475 BC) was the first of the 5th-dynasty pharaohs to be buried at Abu Sir, although his pyramid, originally 50m high, is now badly damaged. The entrance corridor is only half a metre high, and slopes down to a small room. From there, you can then walk through a 75m-long corridor before crawling 2m on your stomach through Pharaonic dust and spider webs to reach the burial chamber.
The better-preserved remains of Sahure's funerary temple complex stand east of the pyramid. This must have been an impressive temple, with black basalt-paved floors, red granite date-palm columns and walls decorated with 10,000 sq metres of superbly detailed reliefs (some of these…
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Citadel
The city's stronghold, the Citadel dominates the Casbah and the port and was, from the 16th century, the guarantor of peace and a safe haven in times of war. Although there was a Berber stronghold here from early times, the present massive structure was begun in 1516 by Aroudj, the brother of Kheireddin Barbarossa. With its walls lined with batteries of canon, 188m above sea level, it dominated the port, the lower town and the surrounding countryside.
Canons were placed facing inland as well as out to sea, for the ruler of Algiers was never free of threats from Berber and Bedouin tribes. The citadel was little more than military barracks until 1816, when the British…
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Gudit Stelae Field
Though less immediately arresting than those found in town, the stelae in the Gudit Stelae Field, are still worth a visit. Named after Queen Gudit, most stelae in this field are small, undressed and lie on the ground. Locals suggest the largest stele marks the Queen of Sheba's grave. Despite excavations in the 1970s and 1990s, little is known about the field.
Though some mark graves, neither rock-hewn nor constructed tombs have been found. Finds here did include a set of fine 3rd-century glass goblets, which has led scholars to suggest the area was the burial site of Aksumite society's lesser nobles. Taking an official guide with you is recommended.
The walk to the complex…
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Royal Sun Temples of Abu Ghorab
Just northwest of the Abu Sir pyramids lies the site of Abu Ghorab, which is home to two royal sun temples dedicated to the worship of Ra, the sun god of Heliopolis. The Abu Sir Papyri describe six such temples, but only two, built for Pharaohs Userkaf (2494-2487 BC) and Nyuserra, have ever been discovered.
Both of these temples follow the traditional plan of a valley temple, and contain a causeway and a large stone enclosure. This enclosure contains a large limestone obelisk standing some 37m tall on a 20m-high base. In front of the obelisk, the enormous alabaster altar can still be seen. Made in the form of a solar disc flanked by four 'hotep' signs (the hieroglyphic…
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Temple of Speos Artemidos
If the police allow it, a cliffside track leads southeast for about 2.5km from the Tomb of Khnumhotep, then some 500m into a wadi to the rock-cut Temple of Speos Artemidos. Known locally as Istabl Antar (the Stable of Antar, an Arab warrior-poet and folk hero), it deserves neither its Greek nor Arab names for it dates back to the 18th dynasty. Started by Hatshepsut (1473-58 BC) and completed by Tuthmosis III (1479-25 BC), it was dedicated to the lion-goddess Pakht.
There is a small hall with roughly hewn Hathor-headed columns and an unfinished sanctuary. On the walls are scenes of Hatshepsut making offerings and, on its upper façade, an inscription describing how she…
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Pyramid of Sekhemket
Closed to the public because of its dangerous condition, the unfinished Pyramid of Sekhemket of Zoser's successor Sekhemket (2648-2640 BC) is a short distance west of the ruined monastery. The project was abandoned for unknown reasons when the great limestone enclosure wall was only 3m high, despite the fact that the architects had already constructed the underground chambers in the rock beneath the pyramid as well as the deep shaft of the south tomb.
An unused travertine sarcophagus was found in the sealed burial chamber, and a quantity of gold, jewellery and a child's body were discovered in the south tomb. Recent surveys have also revealed another mysterious large…
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Rhodes Memorial
Modelled after the arch at London’s Hyde Park Corner, the impressive granite memorial to the mining magnate and former prime minister stands on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain. Rhodes bought all this land in 1895 for £9000 as part of a plan to preserve a relatively untouched section of the mountain for future generations.
Despite there being a sweeping view from the memorial to the Cape Flats and the mountain ranges beyond – and, by implication, right into the heart of Africa – the statue of Rhodes himself has the man looking rather grumpy. Behind the memorial there’s a pleasant tearoom, the Rhodes Memorial Restaurant, in an old stone cottage. The exit for the…
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Giza Plateau
It can be a bit of a shock to visit the Giza Plateau and realise that the sandy mound that’s home to the Pyramids is actually plonked in the middle of the congested city suburb of Giza. There are two entrances: one via a continuation of Pyramids Rd (Sharia al-Haram) at the foot of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, and another below the Sphinx, in the village of Nazlet as-Samaan. Most independent visitors enter from Pyramids Rd, as this is where the bus and minibus from Downtown stop. Follow the road up from the roundabout towards the Pyramids and firmly ignore anyone who tries to distract you. Continue along the tarmacked road, up to the temporary ticket office (an…
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King Bazen's Tomb
Despite being the crudest of tombs, roughly hewn into solid rock instead of constructed with fine masonry, King Bazen's Tomb has a slightly magical feel about it. Stand in its dark depths and look up its rock-hewn stairs through its arched entranceway and you'll see why. It's even better if explored by candlelight.
According to local tradition, King Bazen is thought to have reigned at Christ's birth. The style of the tomb is likely consistent with that period.
Near the tomb's entrance there's a rectangular pit containing a row of smaller burial chambers (including a few which appear to be unfinished). Judging from the number of tombs and stelae found nearby, the burial…
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Lioness of Gobedra
It was here that the Archangel Mikael fought a tremendous battle with a fierce lioness. The fight ended when the saint mustered all his strength and hurled the lion into a massive boulder. The impact had such force that the outline of the beast is still visible today. If it sounds like a story that legends are made of, you're right. It's only a legend! Who's responsible for the work or when it was created is still anyone's guess.
It's often overlooked by visitors, but is worth the visit, especially since it's so close to the ancient quarries of Aksum. It's quite a rough walk from the road over boulders and through scrub, and you'll need a guide or one of the - all too…
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Bab Zuweila
Built at the same time as the northern gates (10th century), beautiful Bab Zuweila is the only remaining southern gate of medieval Al-Qahira. Visitors may climb the ramparts, where some intriguing exhibits about the gate’s history are in place. The two minarets atop the gate, also open to visitors, offer one of the best available views of the area. In Mamluk times, the space in front of the gate was the site of executions, a popular form of street theatre, with some victims being sawn in half or crucified. The spirit of a healing saint was (and still is) said to reside behind one towering wooden door, which supplicants have studded with nails and teeth as offerings over…
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Pyramid of Neferirkare
The Pyramid of Neferirkare (2475-2455 BC), the third pharaoh of the 5th dynasty and Sahure's brother, resembles the Step Pyramid at Saqqara. However, the present-day complex is only the core as the original outer casing has been stripped away, reducing the pyramid from its original planned height of 72m to today's 45m.
In the early 20th century in Neferirkare's funerary temple, archaeologists found the so-called Abu Sir Papyri, a highly important archive of Old Kingdom documents written in hieratic, a shorthand form of hieroglyphs. They relate to the cult of the pharaohs buried at the site, recording important details of ritual ceremonies, temple equipment, priests' work…
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King Ezana's Inscription
On the way up to the tombs of Kings Kaleb and Gebre Meskel, you'll pass a little shack containing a remarkable find stumbled upon by a farmer in 1981. Inside is King Ezana's Inscription, an Ethiopian version of the Rosetta stone, a pillar inscribed in Sabaean, Ge'ez and Greek. It dates between AD 330 and AD 350 and records King Ezana's Christian military campaigns in Ethiopia and southern Arabia, as well as his quest to return the Ark to Aksum from Lake Tana.
The inscription apparently contains a curse: 'the person who should dare to move the tablet will meet an untimely death'. Needless to say, the tablet remains exactly where it was found! You should tip the guardian…
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Kasbah
The ruined old Kasbah, on a hill 7km to the northwest of the town, commands good views over the port. It was built in 1540 by the Saadian Sultan Mohammed ech-Cheikh, and restored and regarrisoned in 1752 by the Alawite Sultan Moulay Abdallah, who was responsible for the demise of Agadir as a trade depot. Abandoned to the inhabitants of Agadir, the garrison provided housing for nearly 300 people, and traces of these dwellings can still be made out.
The grassy area below the kasbah, Ancienne Talborjt, covers the remains of Agadir's medina and constitutes a mass grave for all those who died in the 1960 earthquake. The walk up to the kasbah is long and hot - get a taxi up and…
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Zoo Park
The centrepiece of Zoo Park, a former zoo turned park, is a column designed by Namibian sculptor Dörthe Berner, which commemorates a Stone Age elephant hunt that occurred here some 5000 years ago. In 1962 the remains of two elephants and several quartz tools used to cut up the carcasses were unearthed. The fossils and tools were displayed in situ under glass, but in 1990 they were transferred to the State Museum.
The rather anachronistic Kriegerdenkmal (War Memorial), topped by a golden imperial eagle, was dedicated in 1987 to the memory of the Schutztruppe soldiers who died fighting the troops of Nama leader Hendrik Witbooi in the Nama wars of 1893-94.
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Pompey’s Pillar
The massive 30m column that looms over the debris of the glorious ancient settlement of Rhakotis, the original township from which Alexandria grew, is known as Pompey’s Pillar. For centuries the column, hewn from red Aswan granite, has been one of the city’s prime sights, a single, tapered shaft, 2.7m at its base and capped by a fine Corinthian capital. The column was named by travellers who remembered the murder of the Roman general Pompey by Cleopatra’s brother, but an inscription on the base (presumably once covered with rubble) announces that it was erected in AD 291 to support a statue of the emperor Diocletian.
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Pyramid of Raneferef
On a diagonal, just west of Neferirkare's pyramid, are the remains of the unfinished Pyramid of Raneferef (also known as Neferefre), who reigned for seven years before Nyuserra. However, work was so little advanced at the time of his death that the tomb was only completed as a mastaba (mud-brick structure in the shape of a bench above tombs that was the basis for later pyramids).
In the adjoining mud-brick cult building, Czech archaeologists found fragments of statuary, including a superb limestone figurine of Raneferef protected by Horus (now in the Egyptian Museum) along with papyrus fragments relating to the Abu Sir temple archives.
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Praça dos Heróis Moçambicanos
The large Praça dos Heróis Moçambicanos, along Av Acordos de Lusaka near the airport, is notable for its 95m-long mural commemorating the revolution. The star-shaped white marble structure in its centre holds the remains of Mozambique's revolutionary and post-independence heroes, including Eduardo Mondlane and Samora Machel, as well as those of national poet José Craveirinha.
Photographs are prohibited. Except on 3 February, when it's open to the public, you'll need to get permission to visit (including to walk across the praça) from the Bureau de Informação Pública (Public Information Bureau).
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Pyramid of Teti
The avenue of sphinxes excavated by Mariette in the 1850s has again been hidden by desert sands, but it once extended to the much earlier Pyramid of Teti. Teti (2345-2323 BC) was the first pharaoh of the 6th dynasty, and his pyramid was built in step form and cased in limestone. Unfortunately, the pyramid was robbed for its treasure and its stone, and today only a modest mound remains.
However, the interior fared better, and is similar in appearance to that of the Pyramid of Unas. Within the intact burial chamber, Teti's basalt sarcophagus is well preserved, and represents the first example of a sarcophagus with inscriptions on it.
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Khemenu
Little remains of the wealthy ancient city of Khemenu, the most striking ruins being two colossal 14th-century BC quartzite statues of Thoth as a baboon. These supported part of Thoth's temple, which was rebuilt throughout antiquity.
A Middle Kingdom temple gateway and a pylon of Ramses II, using stone plundered from nearby Tell al-Amarna, also survive. The most interesting ruins are from the Coptic basilica, which reused columns and even the baboon statues, though first removing their giant phalluses. The 'open-air museum' is officially free, but if you arrive with a police escort you will be expected to pay baksheesh.
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Freedom Park
One of the most exciting undertakings in Gauteng is Freedom Park. The site chosen for this massive project, on a kopje facing the Voortrekker Monument, provoked an outcry from those who saw this as politically motivated, but this is hardly a self-important ode to nationalism. Rather, it’s a sombre memorial to those people, local and international, who have sacrificed their lives in the name of freedom. At the time of writing you could only visit Hlapho, where the names of heroes have been inscribed, and the peaceful Isivivane Garden of Remembrance. It was scheduled to be completed sometime in 2009.
Visitor numbers to the park are strictly controlled, so calling…
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Old Railway Station
From the Villa Melotti, take the road on the western side of Taulud and head north, passing by the causeway leading to the mainland. Look out for birds in the mud flats around the causeway. Pelicans are quite common visitors. Continuing north, you'll pass the Old Railway Station, built during the Italian occupation, with its columns and elegant façade.
There is access to the sambuk (dhow) docks just south of the train station, and it's worth taking a look at these beautiful traditional boats. There are always at least a couple around; the boats require a lot of maintenance.
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