A serdab ( fa, سرداب, d=Sardāb), literally meaning "cold water", which became a loanword in Arabic for 'cellar' is an

ancient Egyptian tomb The ancient Egyptians had an elaborate set of funerary practices that they believed were necessary to ensure their immortality after death. These rituals included mummifying the body, casting magic spells, and burials with specific grave good ...

structure that served as a chamber for the

Ka statue A ka statue is a type of ancient Egyptian statue intended to provide a resting place for the '' ka'' (life-force or spirit) of the person after death. The ancient Egyptians believed the ''ka'', along with the physical body, the name, the '' ba'' ...

of a deceased individual. Used during the

Old Kingdom In ancient Egyptian history, the Old Kingdom is the period spanning c. 2700–2200 BC. It is also known as the "Age of the Pyramids" or the "Age of the Pyramid Builders", as it encompasses the reigns of the great pyramid-builders of the Fourth ...

, the serdab was a sealed chamber with a small slit or hole to allow the soul of the deceased to move about freely. These holes also let in the smells of the offerings presented to the statue. The term ''serdab'' is also used for a type of undecorated chamber found in many pyramids. Due to the lack of inscriptions, it has been impossible to determine the ritual function of this chamber, but many Egyptologists view it as a storage space, akin with the underground storehouses in private and royal tombs of the

Second Dynasty The Second Dynasty of ancient Egypt (or Dynasty II, c. 2890 – c. 2686 BC) is the latter of the two dynasties of the Egyptian Archaic Period, when the seat of government was centred at Thinis. It is most known for its last ruler, K ...

.Ägypten Die Welt der Pharaonen, 1998. Pages 68 It is easiest recognized by its position in the east end of the pyramid's internal chamber system and the three niches in its outer wall. The earliest serdab of this type is found in the

pyramid of Menkaure The pyramid of Menkaure is the smallest of the three main pyramids of the Giza pyramid complex, located on the Giza Plateau in the southwestern outskirts of Cairo, Egypt. It is thought to have been built to serve as the tomb of the Fourth Dynast ...

, but it was during the reign of

Djedkare Isesi Djedkare Isesi (known in Greek as Tancheres) was a pharaoh, the eighth and penultimate ruler of the Fifth Dynasty of Egypt in the late 25th century to mid- 24th century BC, during the Old Kingdom. Djedkare succeeded Menkauhor Kaiu and was in ...

that it became a part of the standard pyramid layout.

References

{{reflist Ancient Egyptian architecture Persian words and phrases