THE STEP PYRAMID
The Egyptians did not get pyramid building right away. Their early tombs were large square structures known in the Arabic as "mastabas" (the word means "bench" and those early tombs resemble a large, square bench). The first pyramid to be constructed was the Step Pyramid of Djoser.
The Pyramid of Djoser
The Step Pyramid of Djoser was built as Saqqara near Memphis. It consisted of a giant mastaba with another on top of it and another on top of that one. It rose like a layerd cake.
Prior to this time, most large structures had been constructed of wood. This was the first large structure to be built of stone. The adjoining temple was also built of stone, but when you look at the columns, they are shaped to resemble logs of wood. It is as though the builder wanted to give the familiar shape of wooden logs to these stone pillars.
