Serapeum of Saqqara

The Apis cult dates back to very early times, possibly founded by pharaoh Menes, around 3,000 BC.[4]

The most ancient burials at the Serapeum, found in isolated tombs, date back to the reign of Amenhotep III of the Eighteenth Dynasty in the 14th century BC.

Khaemweset, working as an administrator during the reign of his father Ramesses II (1279–1213 BC) in the Nineteenth Dynasty, ordered a tunnel with side chambers – now known as the "Lesser Vaults" – to be excavated, for the burial of the Apis bulls.

A second gallery of chambers, now called the "Greater Vaults", was commenced under Psamtik I (664–610 BC) of the Twenty-sixth Dynasty and extended during the Ptolemaic dynasty to approximately 350 m (1,150 ft) in length, 5 m (16 ft) tall and 3 m (9.8 ft) wide, along with a parallel service tunnel. From Amasis II to the end of the Ptolemaic dynasty, the sarcophagi for the Apis bulls were made from hard stone, weighing as much as 62 tonnes (68 short tons) each, including the lid.[5]

A long avenue, flanked by 370-380 sphinxes,[6] likely was built under Nectanebo I, (379/8–361/0 BC) the founder of the Thirtieth Dynasty (the last native one).

Stones piled on a sarcophagus

The Serapeum was abandoned at the beginning of the Roman Period, shortly after 30 BC.[7] Strabo (64 BC–30 AD) noted that some of the Sphinxes of the dromos had been covered in sand by the wind.[8] Apis continued to be buried elsewhere in the Saqqara-Abusir region until the 3rd century AD.[9][10] Arnobius, around 300 AD, stated that the Egyptians penalized anyone who revealed the places in which Apis lay hidden.[11]

The looting of the Serapeum started at a time when hieroglyphs could still be read, as the names of the bulls were scratched out on many of the stelae. All tombs, except two, were plundered and desecrated. The bull mummies were torn to pieces, and stones were piled on the sarcophagi as a sign of contempt.[12][13]

The temple was discovered by Auguste Mariette,[14] who had gone to Egypt to collect Coptic-language manuscripts, but later grew interested in the remains of the Saqqara necropolis.[15]

In 1850, Mariette found the head of one sphinx sticking out of the shifting desert dunes, cleared the sand and followed the avenue to the site. In November the following year he entered the catacombs for the first time.[8]

Unfortunately, Mariette left most of his notes unpublished. Many of them got destroyed when the Nile flooded the Museum of Egyptian Antiquities at Boulaq in 1878,[16][17] and the original diary of the excavations was borrowed by Eugène Grébaut but never returned.[18] Gaston Maspero released one volume of Le Sérapeum de Memphis based on the surviving manuscripts in 1882, a year after Mariette's death.[19]

Drawing of the "Greater Vaults" lit by candles, shortly after excavation.

The Serapeum was open to visitors shortly after excavations, in the second half of the 19th century, Yet sands quickly made all parts but the Greater Vaults inaccessible.[20]

For guests, prior to the installation of electric lamps, a series of candles on wooden stands lightly illuminated the vaults, and bright magnesium light was used from time to time. When the then Prince of Wales, Edward VII visited the Serapeum, he had luncheon with his party in one of the sarcophagi.[21]

The 1992 Cairo earthquake caused cracks to appear on the tunnel walls, and the Serapeum was closed to the public.[22] In 2001 conservation work started, stabilizing the roofs and walls, which lasted until 2012.[23][24]

The majority of the Greater Vaults is accessible to tourists nowadays.

Due to the collapsed ceiling of the Lesser Vaults, Mariette left several tens of meters unexplored. In the mid 1980s, Mohamed Ibrahim Ali was the first to work there again, but he also had to give up because of the danger of collapse. In 2020 a mission began to remove the sands above the Lesser Vaults and to stabilize the bedrock, so that excavation work could be finally carried out.[25][26]

After the previous Apis had died the priests then sought out the young bull the soul of Osiris had migrated to, by identifying certain bodily marks. Herodotus reported that it needed to be black, with a three-cornered white spot on its forehead, the likeness of an eagle on its back, double tail-hairs and a knot under its tongue.[29] According to Aelian each of these marks had a specific meaning; They symbolized, for example, the stars, the shape of the crescent moon and universe, and when the Nile would rise.[30]

When the newly born Apis was found, the people stopped mourning. The calf it was kept at Nilopolis for forty days, after which a barge with a gilded stall brought it to the Temple of Ptah[31] (later Hephaestus) at Memphis. For the next forty days only women were allowed to look at the Apis, who revealed their generative parts to it. But at all other times women were forbidden in its presence.[32]

The mother-cows were said to have been made pregnant by the light of heaven or the moonlight, and could never conceive again. They were kept with the Apis at Memphis and buried in their own catacomb, the Iseum, under a kilometre (0.6 mi) north-east of the Serapeum.[33]

When an Apis died in the early days of the Serapeum, it was at least partially consumed and the remains conserved in a bituminous mass prior to interment.[34] In the Late Period, the time of the first large sarcophagi in the Greater Vaults, the burial ceremonies lasted for 70 days. According to the Apis Papyrus, the bulls were embalmed for 68 days, and in the last two days a series of funerary precession were held, the final one terminating in the Serapeum.[31]

The bulls were buried in splendor, reportedly 100 talents (2.6 tonnes (5,700 lb) of silver) were spent by the caretakers for the obsequies at the time of Diodorus, in the first century BC.[32]

Linant de Bellefonds calculated one of the large sarcophagi of the Greater Vaults to have a total mass of 62 tonnes (137,000 lb) at most: 37.6 tonnes (83,000 lb) for the body and 24.4 tonnes (54,000 lb) for the lid. The stone had external dimensions of 2.32 metres (7.6 ft) in height and width, and 3.85 metres (12.6 ft) in length. Internally, the rectangular hollow was 1.73 metres (5.7 ft) high, 1.46 metres (4.8 ft) wide and 3.17 metres (10.4 ft) long. The lid had a height of 98 centimetres (3.22 ft).[5]

Dimensions of a sarcophagus

Dimensions of a lid

Mariette recognized traces of rollers on the floor of the galleries, and found two wooden horizontal winches, each operated with eight levers, in one of the niches.[41] Heinrich Brugsch, visiting the Serapeum in 1853, noted that the "double-rails", on which the sarcophagi were rolled in, were still clearly preserved on the floor of the Ptolemaic service tunnel and the following passages.[42]

The floors of the burial chambers lie 2–3 metres (6.6–9.8 ft) below that of the hallway, thus the sarcophagi had to be lowered to their final positions. Mariette describes that the rooms would be filled with sand to the level of the hallway so that the sarcophagi could be moved in horizontally, then the sand would be gradually removed to gently lower them. For further protection, the ancient Egyptians cut recesses into the bedrock, about 1 metre (3.3 ft) deep, with the exact width and length of the sarcophagi. A special niche on each side allowed workers to remove the sand under the stones. Mariette found one sarcophagus that had only partially been let down into its recess, and conducted an experiment to test the aforementioned method. He was able to lower it with perfect regularity, even though its hollow was filled with rubble.[41]

According to a stela found in the Serapeum, it took 28 working days to transport one of the sarcophagi and its lid into its burial chamber, in the 37th year of Ptolemy II, circa 247 BC.[43]

Three of the 24 sarcophagi that remain in the Greater Vaults bear dedications by Amasis II, Cambyses II, and Khabash respectively; a fourth, inscribed with cartouches left empty, possibly dates to Ptolemy XII or Cleopatra.[44][7][45][46]

Sarcophagus for Apis bull that died in the 23rd year of Amasis II

Lid for Apis-sarcophagus of Amasis II, relocated to the main entrance

A red granite sarcophagus was dedicated by Amasis II (c. 550 BC). It is very well crafted, with the exterior of the body being embellished with panelling and a spell of the pyramid texts running round close to the upper edge. The symbols were coloured green, except the white-black Apis sign.
The lid was separated from the coffer and now rests near the entrance ramp. It also bears an inscription, though no colour remains.[47][48]

Blocking the original entrance to the Greater Vaults is the "grey granite" sarcophagus dedicated by Cambyses II (c. 530 BC), first Persian ruler of Egypt. Only its lid is inscribed.[49]

Apis-sarcophagus of Khabash

A smaller sarcophagus stands at the entrance of an otherwise unused tunnel. A short text on its lid dates it to year 2 of Khabash (c. 336 BC), who had led a rebellion against the second Persian occupation. Its lid was found on the floor nearby. Brugsch argued that the two had never been brought together to enclose the deceased Apis. The lid was, however, put on top of the sarcophagus during past restoration works.[50]

Inscribed Apis-sarcophagus in the Ptolemaic section of the Greater Vaults

Only one of the sarcophagi of the Ptolematic section is inscribed. The polished exterior is contrasted by the inscriptions and decorations which are merely scratched on and crudely formed. The cover is plain. Each side of the coffer bears a representation of a sarcophagus with a curved cornice and torus, of the Menkaure type. Panelling is found on all but the south side, which displays a house facade with a small bolted door. Along the torus, and between the double framing on each side are three lines of inscription, spells of the pyramid texts. The cartouches for the royal names were left empty. According to Gunn, because it remained to be seen under which king the Apis would die, which may point to the reign of Cleopatra and Ptolemy XIII (55-30 BC).[51] On the basis of the position of the coffer, towards the end of the Ptolemaic tunnel, it might date to year 7 of Ptolemy XII (73 BC).[7]

Working as an administrator during the reign of his father, Khaemweset, a son of Ramesses II (1279–1213 BC) of the Nineteenth Dynasty, ordered that a tunnel be excavated at the site, and a catacomb of galleries – now known as the "Lesser Vaults" – be designed with side chambers to contain the sarcophagi for the mummified remains of the bulls. But for one, all chambers were found emptied of their contents except for a disarray of dedication stelae.[57][58][59]

• Gold mask and jewelry from tomb attributed to Khaemweset, in the Lesser Vaults
• 
• 
• 
• 

Two Apis died under Shoshenq V of the late 22nd Dynasty. The first one, installed in regnal year 2 of Pami, died and was buried in Shoshenq V's year 11. Its replacement in turn died and was buried in year 37. The latter's death was commemorated on several stelae, especially on the Stela of Pasenhor:[60]

When the Apis died around 612 BC, the Serapeum was in a state of decay. Pharaoh Psamtik I renovated the temple, and started a second underground gallery of burial chambers, now known as the "Greater Vaults".[36]

A stela, now located in the Louvre, attests the renovation of the Serapeum and its expansion:[62]

A sarcophagus dedicated by Cambyses II obstructs the original entrance way to the Greater Vaults.[62]

According to Herodotus, when Cambyses II returned to Memphis, the people were celebrating. Cambyses asked the local rulers why they had not done so on his previous arrival, they explained that the Egyptians rejoiced not because of him, but a god—the Apis—that had revealed himself. Judging this to be a lie, he put them all to death. Next, the priests were summoned before him, who gave the same account. Thus he ordered the Apis to be brought. On its arrival, Cambyses drew his dagger and stabbed the calf in the stomach and smote its thigh. He laughed: "Wretched wights, are these your gods, creatures of flesh and blood that can feel weapons of iron? That is a god worthy of the Egyptians. But for you, you shall suffer for making me your laughing-stock." The priests were punished and the festival ended. The Apis died of the leg wound and was buried without Cambyses' knowledge.[29]

Depuydt argues that the aforementioned sarcophagus was that for the predecessor of the Apis Cambyses allegedly slew, giving several reasons to corroborate Herodotus' story:[27]

• Herodotus speaks of a calf, whereas the bull attested would have been quite old.
• That the people celebrated the installation of the new calf, one of the few reasons for an Apis to appear before the people.
• That the calf was buried in secrecy, thus no sarcophagus would be expected for it in the vaults.

Three Apis bulls were buried during the reign of Darius the Great. Since the entry way was essentially blocked by Cambyses' sarcophagus, a new makeshift entrance was cut closeby, that was used for the first two burials.

30 years later, for the burial of the third Apis, a considerably larger approach into the Greater Vaults was cut by extending the main ramp westwards beyond the old entrance stairway to a door in the bedrock, where a corridor was excavated to the south until it joined the Psamtik I gallery.

A corridor was dug southwards, from the bottom of Darius' new entrance ramp, perhaps intended for a new set of tombs, though it was not used. One smaller sarcophagus was placed at its entrance, dating to year 2 of Khabash.[62]

The cult continued to bury Apis bulls throughout the Ptolemaic dynasty, 305 to 30 BC. The main corridor of the Greater Vaults was enlarged and extended, ultimately totalling over 200 metres (660 ft) in length. Additionally, a "service tunnel" was dug, which bypassed earlier galleries. The votive stelae, previously fixed to the outside of the masonry that closed each burial chamber, were now put up collectively on the walls of the entrance and the new tunnel leading to the Ptolemaic section.[64]

The thirteen niches of the Ptolemaic gallery correspond to the thirteen bulls attested during this period, from the one that died in year 6 of Ptolemy I Soter to the bull Augustus refused to visit.[65] The presumably final sarcophagus was not transported all the way to its burial chamber but was abandoned in the "service tunnel".[7] The Serapeum fell into disuse shortly after and was swallowed by the sands.[8]

After this [Augustus] viewed the body of Alexander and actually touched it, whereupon, it is said, a piece of the nose was broken off. But he declined to view the remains of the Ptolemies, though the Alexandrians were extremely eager to show them, remarking, "I wished to see a king, not corpses." For this same reason he would not enter the presence of Apis, either, declaring that he was accustomed to worship gods, not cattle.[66]
— Cassius Dio, Roman History

• 
  Tunnel to the Ptolemaic section
• 
  Niches in the "service tunnel" that once held stelae
• 
  Serapeum stelae at the Louvre

• 
  Sarcophagus in the Ptolemaic section with displaced lid
• 
  Roughly inscribed sarcophagus
• 
  Abandoned sarcophagus
• 
  Lid of abandoned sarcophagus near the entrance

The main temple enclosure was supplemented by shrines, workshops, housing and administrative quarters.[2]

A dromos led from the temple of Nectanebo I to the main entrance gate of the Serapeum. It was bordered by low walls of dressed stone and flanked by a number of smaller structures.[67] Under the pavement, hundreds of bronze statuettes were found buried, representing all the deities of the Egyptian pantheon.[68]

Semicircle of philosophers today

An exedra (a semicircular platform) of eleven life-sized statues of Greek poets and philosophers adjoined the dromos. The limestone sculptures that could still be identified depicted Pindar, Protagoras, Plato and Homer.[69][70]

Drawing of the eleven statues of the semicircle as they appeared in the 1850s

In front of the precinct, a Greek Temple stood besides an Egyptian-style chapel.

• 
  Dromos during excavations in 1851. Apis statue being removed from a chapel.
• 
  Apis statue now at the Louvre
• 
  The crypt of the Louvre

A long avenue flanked by 370-380 sphinxes was the main approach to the dromos of the Serapeum.[6] It was likely built under Nectanebo I, (379/8–361/0 BC) the founder of the Thirtieth Dynasty (the last native one).

• 
  Sphinxes of the avenue, now at the Louvre
• 
  Frontal view of a sphinx of the avenue
• 
  The Seated Scribe, found near the avenue