Pepi II's pyramid complex (originally known as…

Pepi II's pyramid complex (originally known as Pepi's Life is Enduring) is located in Saqqarah, close to many other Old Kingdom pharaohs.

His pyramid is a modest affair compared to the great pyramid builders of the Fourth Dynasty, but was comparable to earlier pharaohs from his own dynasty. (It was originally 78.5 meters high, but erosion and relatively poor construction has reduced it fifty-two meters.)

The pyramid is the center of a sizable funerary complex, complete with a separate mortuary complex, a small, eastern satellite pyramid.

This is flanked by two of his wives' pyramids to the north and northwest (Neith (A) and Iput II respectively), and one to the southeast (Udjebten), each with their own mortuary complexes.

Perhaps reflecting the decline at the end of his rule, the fourth wife, Ankhenespepy IV is not given her own pyramid but is instead buried in a store room of the Iput's mortuary chapel.

Similarly, Prince Ptahshepses, who likely died near the end of Pepi II's reign, is buried in the funerary complex of a previous pharaoh, Unas, within a "recycled" sarcophagus dating to the Fourth Dynasty.

The ceiling of the burial chamber is decorated with stars, and the walls are lined with passages from the Pyramid texts.

An empty black sarcophagus bearing the names and titles of Pepi II was discovered inside.

Following in the tradition of the final pharaoh of the Fifth Dynasty, Unas and of his more immediate predecessors Teti, Pepi I and Merenre, the interior of Pepi II's pyramid is decorated with what has become known as the pyramid texts, magical spells designed to protect the dead.

Well over eight hundred individual texts (known as "utterances") are known to exist, and Pepi II's contains six hundred and seventy-five such utterances, the most in any one place.

It is thought that this pyramid complex was completed no later than the thirtieth year of Pepi II's reign.

No notable funerary constructions of note would happen again for at least thirty, and possibly as long as sixty years, due indirectly to the king's incredibly long reign.

This means there is a significant generational break for the trained stonecutters, masons, and engineers who have no major state project to work on and to pass along their practical skills.

This may help explain why no major pyramid projects would be undertaken by the subsequent regional kings of Herakleopolis during the First Intermediate Period.