So what were Herodotus's mysterious "pyramids in the lake"? Likely the Pedestals of Biahmu — two colossal seated statues built by Amenemhat III, roughly 60 ft tall, sitting on stone bases about 6 miles (10 km) from Hawara. A mirage may have made them appear to rise from water, and Egyptian guides reportedly exaggerated their height tenfold. The statues survived into the 13th century before treasure hunters and quarrying destroyed them. By the late 1600s they were gone entirely. 19th-century archaeologists found only the pedestals plus fragments — including a nose piece now in Oxford's Ashmolean Museum. The pharaoh "Moeris" is identified with Amenemhat III, who expanded a natural lake into the one bearing his name.
Pedestals of Biamu identified as source of lost pyramids legend
Key facts
- From Hawara, Herodotus would have seen two colossal seated statues about 10 miles (16 km) away on stone bases
- The statues were constructed by Amenemhat III and are today known as the Pedestals of Biamu
- The statues are estimated to have been 60 ft (about 10 m) in height
- The best explanation for the misidentification as pyramids is that a mirage on a hot day extended the apparent water level to the statues, and Herodotus relied on Egyptian guides who reported them as 10 times their actual height
- The statues survived at least in some form into the 13th century, after which they were partially destroyed by treasure hunters and later quarried away
- By the late 1600s, the statues were completely gone
- 19th-century archaeologists found only the pedestals and small fragments of what had sat upon them
- Several dozen fragments are held in the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, including a portion of one statue's nose
- The pharaoh known to the Greeks and Romans as 'Moeris' is now identified with Amenemhat III; the lake was named Moeris after the pharaoh dug an irrigation canal expanding a natural lake rather than creating an artificial one
Site mentioned
📍 Pedestals of Biamu
Sources
Pedestals of Biahmu - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org
The Pedestals of Biahmu (also spelled Biyahmū) are the basal remnants of two colossal statues erected by the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Amenemhat III.
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