New archaeological investigation in the sun temple of Niuserra in Abu Ghurab

The article presents the results of the first field-works in the temple of Niuserra at Abu Ghurab more than one hundred years from the discovery and publication of the temple by Borchardt. The sun temple built by Niuserra is the only one, out of the six temples known from the epigraphic sources, greatly preserved and whose structures are still recognizable. This new investigation is not based on new excavations of the temple but rather on a re-evaluation of the archaeological data still available on the site as well as an attempt to clarify the architectural and functional features of some of the structures and to suggest a new, revisited plan of the temple itself by means of the modern topographical and technological instruments. In this sense, attention has been particularly focused on the general measurements of the temple made by Borchardt and on some specific areas like, above all, the obelisk and the so-called “magazines” whose architectural layout and symbolical value seem to have been sometimes misinterpreted by the German scholar. After two archaeological campaigns it was possible to ascertain that, although Borchardt’s work in the temple still remains a key-point in the understanding and comprehension of the architectural features of such kind of religious buildings, many interesting archaeological data still need further, accurate investigation.