In the last century, excavations went on at Saqqara, artifacts, stelae and blocks with reliefs found were send to all over the Western world, often with no more classification that that they came from Saqqara. Many tombs have since been sanded over and are now lost. But even beneath these ones, there might dwell other tombs, which we have no knowledge of. The tombs we know of today, are hardly visible above the sand and unfortunately we don´t know the names of the owners of many of them. However, from stelae and reliefs some of them have been identified, as you can see on the above map.
From the 1st Dynasty tombs, we see that tomb # 3507 was owned by Herneith, or at least so it is believed. Then there is 3505 - Ka, 3504 - Djer, 3503 - Merneith and so on. These individuals are from the 1st Dynasty, a time where it was tradition to be buried at Abydos and also construct a mastaba (Arabic for 'bench')at Saqqara for cult purposes. The mastabas and tombs from the 3rd Dynasty are, according to the map, not linked with any individuals.
The structure above earth reminded of a bench, built in brick and under ground these mastabas often had several rooms, decorated with reliefs or paintings and with the purpose of giving offerings to the deceased. The 1st Dynasty mastabas had a palace facade and no entrance, but already in the 2nd Dynasty, there was added two false doors on the outside and the facade was made simpler. In the 3rd Dynasty these false doors developed into small, decorated chapels. During the following dynasties (4,5,6) several rooms were added below ground, many of them decorated with reliefs and paintings.
These mastabas, of which nothing exists today, only here and there a heap of rubble, existed mainly at Saqqara and Giza, where they were built of stone. The mastabas at Abydos and other places, were built of mudbrick but the ones at Abydos are only known from fragments of reliefs which are likely to come from them.
Beginning with the Early Dynastic mastabas, the necropolis of Saqqara, would continue to serve the city of MenNefer (meaning in ancient Egyptian: White Wall. Greek name: Memphis) all throughout the history of Egypt into the Roman Period. A remarkably long time.
