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Saqqara was not only a royal necropolis, state dignitaries and other important personalities were also buried here. One of the tombs that you can see from inside is the Kagemni (KA - GMNI) mastaba, dated to 2340 B.C. This beautiful ancient Egypt tomb located near Teti's pyramids has labyrinth of rooms.
Kagemni was a chief justice and vizier, who lived at the beginning of the Sixth Dynasty (reign of King Teti). Wife of Kagemni, Nebtynubkhet Sesheshet, was probably the daughter of the pharaoh Teti.
Kagemni had many titles. He was the overseer of two golden houses, and the overseer of two treasuries. He also held religious positions, he was the high priest of Re and Stolist of Min, among others. There were other duties that he held related to the royal palace: the overseer of the two chambers of the royal ornaments, the director of the Residences of the White and Red Crowns and the overseer of head ornaments. As a high official, Kagemni also served as overseer of scribes over royal documents, overseer of all the pharaoh's works, and overseer of six great courts.
Kagemni was buried in the largest mastaba (a type of monumental tomb in the shape of a low-cut pyramid on a rectangular plan) at the Teti cemetery in Saqqara. The tomb is in the shape of a square with a side that's 32 meters long.
The tomb was built from large blocks of limestone. Part of the tomb consists of a chapel with six rooms, a pillared hall, five warehouses, two chambers for boats, a serdab and a staircase leading to the roof. The walls of the chapel are decorated, as are the walls of the burial chamber, which was located at the bottom of the shaft. In the burial chamber there was a carved stone sarcophagus found with a wooden coffin inside.
The mastaba consists of a hall outside the entrance, leading into a hall with columns, and then a set of rooms found north of the columned hall. There are scenes from everyday life in the entrance hall, as well as a scene with dancers. The hall with columns shows scenes of vizier Kagemni on a boat accompanied by a small papyrus skiff carrying three men. There are fishing and wildlife scenes with frogs, dragonflies, and crocodiles. Other scenes in the columned hall depict cattle, showing a cow being milked, and a man carrying a calf.
Kagemni is shown in a carrying chair with attendants in the rooms by the columned hall, and this scene includes some of his titles. Other scenes in this room show birds, including one where the geese are force-fed. Another shows force-fed hyenas in a way very similar to that seen in Mereruka's tomb.
You can explore the interior of this tomb while visiting the necropolis of Saqqara during our luxury Egypt tours. Go on, visit Egypt with us!