The Mastabat el-Fara'un ("Pharaoh's Bench") at South Saqqara is the tomb of Shepseskaf, the last king of the 4th Dynasty (c. 2510 BCE) — and it is deliberately not a pyramid. This massive sarcophagus-shaped structure, 100 meters long and 74 meters wide, resembles a giant stone coffin with sloping walls and a rounded roof. Shepseskaf's radical rejection of pyramid form — after his father Menkaure and grandfather Khafre had built two of the three great Giza pyramids — may reflect a theological break with the solar cult of Ra that drove pyramid construction, or political tensions with the powerful priesthood at Heliopolis. At Giza bearing 334.95° and 17.7 km from the Great Pyramid, the Mastabat el-Fara'un stands as an architectural manifesto: the one 4th Dynasty king who said no to pyramids. His successor Userkaf founded the 5th Dynasty and returned to pyramid building — but also built sun temples, suggesting the religious conflict Shepseskaf's tomb may represent.
Wikipedia| Star ▴ | Rise Az ▴ | Rise Δ ▴ | Set Az ▴ | Set Δ ▴ | Tradition ▴ |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pleiades (Alcyone) | 86.8° | — | 273.2° | — | |
| Orion's Belt (Alnilam) | 106.8° | — | 253.2° | — | |
| Sirius | 114.1° | — | 245.9° | — | |
| Thuban | — | — | — | — | |
| Vega | 38.6° | — | 321.4° | — | |
| Regulus | 62.1° | — | 297.9° | — | |
| Aldebaran | 92.2° | — | 267.8° | — | |
| Antares | 98.1° | — | 261.9° | — | |
| Fomalhaut | 143.5° | — | 216.5° | — | |
| Arcturus | 35.0° | — | 325.0° | — | |
| Galactic Center (Sgr A*) | 107.0° | — | 253.1° | — | |
| Galactic Anti-Center | 73.1° | — | 286.9° | — | |
| Deneb | 46.7° | — | 313.3° | — | |
| Capella | 56.0° | — | 304.0° | — | |
| Castor | 58.4° | — | 301.6° | — | |
| Pollux | 61.1° | — | 298.9° | — | |
| Procyon | 84.7° | — | 275.3° | — | |
| Betelgeuse | 95.6° | — | 264.4° | — | |
| Rigel | 116.7° | — | 243.3° | — | |
| Bellatrix | 99.6° | — | 260.4° | — | |
| Achernar | — | — | — | — | |
| Acrux | 138.2° | — | 221.8° | — | |
| Mimosa | 133.3° | — | 226.7° | — | |
| Altair | 80.2° | — | 279.8° | — | |
| Kochab | — | — | — | — | |
| Dubhe | — | — | — | — | |
| Alkaid | — | — | — | — | |
| Mizar | — | — | — | — | |
| Hamal | 90.2° | — | 269.8° | — | |
| Zubenelgenubi | 81.7° | — | 278.3° | — | |
| Alnitak | 107.2° | — | 252.8° | — | |
| Mintaka | 106.3° | — | 253.8° | — | |
| Saiph | 114.9° | — | 245.1° | — | |
| Peacock | 155.9° | — | 204.1° | — | |
| Miaplacidus | 159.4° | — | 200.6° | — | |
| Rigil Kentaurus | 135.8° | — | 224.2° | — | |
| Hadar | 133.3° | — | 226.7° | — | |
| Gacrux | 130.2° | — | 229.8° | — | |
| Naos | 131.8° | — | 228.2° | — | |
| Suhail | 128.4° | — | 231.6° | — | |
| Avior | 151.9° | — | 208.1° | — | |
| Atria | 149.6° | — | 210.4° | — | |
| Regor | 139.3° | — | 220.8° | — | |
| Alsephina | 143.5° | — | 216.5° | — | |
| Shaula | 114.8° | — | 245.2° | — | |
| Ankaa | — | — | — | — | |
| Menkent | 103.8° | — | 256.2° | — | |
| Alpheratz | 81.1° | — | 278.9° | — | |
| Eltanin | 14.0° | — | 346.0° | — | |
| Kornephoros | 43.6° | — | 316.4° | — | |
| Rasalhague | 60.1° | — | 299.9° | — | |
| Denebola | 49.2° | — | 310.8° | — | |
| Alhena | 81.4° | — | 278.6° | — | |
| Alphard | 88.9° | — | 271.1° | — | |
| Bharani | 93.3° | — | 266.6° | — | |
| Pushya | 64.8° | — | 295.2° | — | |
| Adhara | 127.8° | — | 232.2° | — | |
| Wezen | 123.8° | — | 236.3° | — | |
| Navi | 45.6° | — | 314.4° | — | |
| Schedar | 50.4° | — | 309.6° | — | |
| Nunki | 110.8° | — | 249.2° | — | |
| Canopus | 161.8° | — | 198.2° | — | |
| Kaus Australis | 116.3° | — | 243.7° | — | |
| Sabik | 89.5° | — | 270.5° | — | |
| Scheat | 78.8° | — | 281.2° | — | |
| Enif | 91.5° | — | 268.5° | — | |
| Diphda | 138.3° | — | 221.7° | — | |
| Alphecca | 31.3° | — | 328.7° | — | |
| Rasalgethi | 56.4° | — | 303.6° | — | |
| Spica | 75.6° | — | 284.4° | — | |
| Zubeneschamali | 75.0° | — | 285.0° | — | |
| Unukalhai | 58.0° | — | 302.0° | — | |
| Murzim | 120.1° | — | 239.9° | — | |
| Phact | 143.8° | — | 216.2° | — | |
| Mirfak | 58.1° | — | 301.9° | — | |
| Vindemiatrix | 49.8° | — | 310.2° | — | |
| Markab | 92.9° | — | 267.1° | — | |
| Algol | 69.1° | — | 290.9° | — | |
| Sadalmelik | 104.8° | — | 255.3° | — | |
| Sadalsuud | 106.8° | — | 253.2° | — | |
| Sun (Summer Solstice) | 62.7° | — | 297.3° | — | |
| Sun (Winter Solstice) | 117.3° | — | 242.7° | — | |
| Sun (Equinox) | 90.0° | — | 270.0° | — | |
| Sun (Northern Cross-Quarter) | 70.9° | — | 289.1° | — | |
| Sun (Southern Cross-Quarter) | 109.1° | — | 250.9° | — | |
| Moon (N Major Standstill) | 56.4° | — | 303.6° | — | |
| Moon (S Major Standstill) | 123.6° | — | 236.4° | — | |
| Moon (N Minor Standstill) | 68.3° | — | 291.7° | — | |
| Moon (S Minor Standstill) | 111.7° | — | 248.3° | — |
| Landmark | Bearing | Distance |
|---|---|---|
| giza | 334.95° | 18 km |
| angkor wat | 86.49° | 7,614 km |
| nazca | 264.69° | 12,359 km |
| teotihuacan | 309.49° | 12,340 km |
| stonehenge | 320.49° | 3,613 km |
| gobekli tepe | 38.95° | 1,088 km |
| machu picchu | 265.02° | 12,044 km |
| easter island | 264.61° | 16,167 km |
| cahokia | 318.09° | 10,268 km |
| sedona | 328.99° | 11,841 km |
| mecca | 135.34° | 1,272 km |
| jerusalem | 59.63° | 438 km |
| vatican | 313.70° | 2,150 km |
| lhasa | 74.22° | 5,713 km |
| kailash | 75.14° | 4,763 km |
| uluru | 108.31° | 12,263 km |
| tiwanaku | 260.07° | 11,846 km |
| chaco canyon | 327.04° | 11,537 km |
| mt shasta | 339.74° | 11,649 km |
| levis stadium | 337.83° | 12,034 km |