The oldest of which the texts show the existence, north of Abydos, is that of Sneferu; the latest belong to the princes of the Twelfth Dynasty.

The construction of these monuments was, therefore, a continuous work, lasting for thirteen or fourteen centuries, under government direction.

Granite, alabaster, and basalt for the sarcophagus and some details were the only materials of which the use and the quantity was not regulated in advance, and which had to be brought from a distance.

To obtain them, each king sent one of the great men of his court on a mission to the quarries of Upper Egypt; and the quickness with which the blocks were brought back was a strong claim upon the sovereign's favour.

The other material was not so costly.