Abu Rowash

As one heads south through the flat Nile Delta, imposing limestone outcrops loom in the distance, marking the beginning of the Nile Valley. That on the left (east) includes the Tura and Muqattam hills, from which the fine limestone for casing the pyramids and mastabas of the Old and Middle Kingdoms was extracted. That on the right (west) is the mountain of Abu Rowash. On its summit was erected one king’s pyramid, while two other royal tombs were built around its foot, all clearly intended to be seen from a great distance by anyone beginning a journey up the Nile. Today, all are heavily denuded, and have received little attention from Egyptologists. Yet the three royal tombs mark important