El Lahun

El Lahun
اللاهون
ⲗⲉϩⲱⲛⲉ
Village
Pyramid of Senusret II at Lahun
El Lahun is located in Egypt
El Lahun
El Lahun
Location in Egypt
Coordinates: 29°14′N 30°58′E / 29.233°N 30.967°E / 29.233; 30.967
CountryEgypt
CityFaiyum

El Lahun (Arabic: اللاهون El Lāhūn, Coptic: ⲗⲉϩⲱⲛⲉ alt. Illahun, Lahun, or Kahun (the latter being a neologism coined by archaeologist William Matthew Flinders Petrie) is a town and pyramid complex in Faiyum, Egypt founded by Senusret II. The Pyramid of Senusret II (Greek: Sesostris II) is located near the modern town, and is often called the Pyramid of Lahun. The site was occupied during the Middle Kingdom into the late Thirteenth Dynasty, and then again in the New Kingdom. The ancient name of the site was rꜣ-ḥn.t, literally, "Mouth (or Opening) of the Canal"). It was known as Ptolemais Hormos (Ancient Greek: Πτολεμαῒς ὅρμος, romanizedport of Ptolemy) in Ptolemaic Egypt.[1] There are multiple areas at El Lahun including the Pyramid of Senwosret II, cemeteries, the Valley temple, and the town of Kahun. It contains many artifacts of daily life like pottery from the Middle Kingdom and evidence of administrative procedures seen on papyri and seals.[2]

  1. ^ Peust, Carsten. "Die Toponyme vorarabischen Ursprungs im modernen Ägypten" (PDF). p. 57.
  2. ^ Moeller, Nadine (2018). The archaeology of urbanism in ancient Egypt: from the predynastic period to the end of the Middle Kingdom. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. p. 271. ISBN 978-1-107-43908-5.