No burial chamber, no passages, no sarcophagus came out of Seila. A looting trench on the north side shows later robbers assumed a chamber was inside. What excavators did find looks ritual instead: a small mud brick porch or chapel on a prepared surface with floor traces and fragments of a little stone statue, plus a libation altar found in 1987 pointing to liquid offerings. Plant remains nearby turned out to be sedge tubers, possibly food. Most archaeologists now read Seila as a monument of royal authority or local cult rather than a tomb, though absence of a chamber can't be proven. 🕯️
No burial chamber at Seila, but a looting trench and ritual installations were found
EgyptArchitecture
Site mentioned
Key facts
- Excavators found no burial chamber, no passage system, no sarcophagus and no identified burial apparatus at Seila.
- Based on excavated evidence, Seila does not appear to have functioned as a conventional royal tomb, though the video notes archaeology cannot yet prove a chamber never existed.
- A looting trench was cut into the north side of the pyramid, presumably by later robbers assuming an inner chamber existed.
- On the north side excavators identified a small porch or chapel area with mud brick on a prepared surface, traces of a floor and fragments of a small stone statue.
- A libation altar was found in 1987 on the north side, indicating liquid offerings rather than tomb activity.
- Plant remains near the ritual features were later identified as likely sedge tubers of the Cyperus family, possibly part of a food offering.
- Travertine fragments found near the eastern stelae resemble the material of the northern libation altar, suggesting a second altar may have stood on the east side.
- The video reports that most archaeologists read Seila as a symbolic monument of royal authority or a local cult site rather than a tomb.
Sources
Excavations at the Seila Pyramid and Ritual Ramificationsscholarsarchive.byu.edu
by K Muhlestein · 2019 · Cited by 4 — Petrie estimated the height to be about 25 feet, which is less than a third of what it originally was. He also thought it was most likely a 12th dynasty tomb. A…
The BYU Egypt Excavation Project - Religious Studies Centerrsc.byu.edu
The Seila pyramid had a ritual structure on the north side, with evidence of an altar for solid offerings and an altar for liquid offerings, as well as a small ...
Excavations at the Seila Pyramid and Ritual Ramificationsacademia.edu
4 Petrie estimated the height to be about 25 feet, which is less than a third of what it originally was. He also thought it was most likely a 12th dynasty tomb.
Seila Pyramidfayoumegypt.com
The pyramid at Seila (Silah or Sila) is located to the North Eastern part of the Fayoum city. It is sit to the south of Kom el-Hammam on the east of the ...
Excavations at the Seila Pyramid and Fag el-Gamous ...nmec.gov.eg
Excavations at Fag el-Gamous and the Seila Pyramid The Brigham Young University (BYU) Egypt Excavation Project covers an area on the eastern edge of the ...
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