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# The Oldest Pyramid in Egypt Reopens to the Public
- URL: https://hyperallergic.com/step-pyramid/
- Published: 2020-03-12T22:01:43.000Z
- Updated: 2025-11-24T16:39:01.000Z
- Description: The pyramid of Djoser, designed by Imhotep, was nearly crumbling when a restoration began in 2006.
- Author: Valentina Di Liscia
- Tags: In Brief, Egypt, #wp, #wp-post, #image-position-hidden, #Import 2025-11-24 07:41 (2019, 2020, part 2)

![](https://storage.ghost.io/c/51/f8/51f871d8-b6be-4a73-b958-0ca4fff0110a/content/images/hyperallergic-newspack-s3-amazonaws-com/uploads/2020/03/48539142002_be6927d428_k-e1584030700531.jpg)

The pyramid of Djoser, Third Dynasty, ca. 2630-2611 BCE (photo by Vincent Brown via Flickr)

After nearly 14 years of closure and a [$6.6 million restoration](https://www.reuters.com/article/us-egypt-archaeology-pyramid/egypt-reopens-its-oldest-pyramid-after-14-year-restoration-idUSKBN20S1ZS?ref=hyperallergic.com), Egypt’s oldest standing pyramid is now open to the public again. The 200-feet-high pyramid of Djoser, located south of Cairo in the Saqqara necropolis, was built around 4,700 years ago as a tomb for the third dynasty pharaoh Djoser.

When renovations began in 2006, with a hiatus between 2011 and 2013 during the Egyptian revolution, the structure was practically crumbling due to neglect, environmental wear, and damage from a 1992 earthquake. According to the [Smithsonian](https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/egypts-oldest-pyramid-reopens-public-after-14-year-hiatus-180974393/?ref=hyperallergic.com), in addition to stable ceilings and walkable corridors for its three miles of internal passages, the pyramid now has a number of new, modern-day features: a lighting system and access for people to disabilities.

Known as the Step Pyramid for its stacked, six-step design, the grandiose tomb claims a lot of “firsts” in the history of art: it was the first-ever large-scale, stone construction and the largest pyramidal funerary complex, and its architect, Imhotep, can claim the first recorded name of an artist in history. After his death, Imhotep was revered as a god by the Egyptians; now, we can bask in one of his most legendary accomplishments again.