Menefet
Menefet has been the capital of Khemit several times over the thousands of years. In particular, when the Hyperborean Empire took control of Khemit, they established Menefet as the royal capital because it gave them easier access to the native government. Furthermore, as the capital of the Lower Kingdom, Menefet has been a seat of power even when the royal capital was elsewhere. It is a huge city, one of the largest in the world, and is the most likely place in Khemit to encounter people from throughout the Lost Lands. Its commercial port area is incredibly busy, as it is a primary distribution point for food and other goods entering and leaving the kingdom.
Menefet is the financial center of Khemit and the entire desert region of central Libynos. Markets exist here for the trade of commodities that will never pass through Menefet but are for delivery elsewhere in Khemit, in other nations of Libynos, or beyond. The city includes large markets in gems and other valuables, and trades raw materials as well as worked stones. It goes without saying that a city of this size has a huge underworld, and the black markets in Menefet thrive almost as well as the official markets. One big underground enterprise in Menefet provides for the trade in antiquities. Authorization to acquire the ancient relics of past dynasties and empires comes and goes based on the whims of the pharaohs, but the desire for them by collectors seems never to go out of season.
As might be expected for a city with such a distinguished history, several religious hierarchies have their high seats in Menefet. The most important of these is the god Ptah, creator of the universe and of the other gods, and the patron deity of Menefet. Great bulls are raised near the city and sacrificed during his ceremonies. Of second importance is the high seat of the temple to Osiris, lord of the underworld and judge of souls. Other deities of Khemit whose high seats are in Menefet are Amun, the ram-headed god of sky and sun; Hathor, the beautiful goddess of music, dance, and other arts; Seker, hawk-headed deity of light and dark, life and death; and Sekhmet, lion-headed goddess of war and retribution. The city also has temples of one size or another to the full pantheon of Hyperborean gods; a good-sized temple to the desert deity Mah-Barek; one to Anumon, god of gates, whose worship originated in neighboring Numeda; and religious edifices of various types to many deities from throughout Libynos as well other parts of the world.
The Necropolis of Saghara, a few miles south of Menefet, was the royal burial ground beginning in the 2nd Dynasty when Menefet was the capital of the Conjoined Double Kingdom of Khemit. These early burials took place in underground galleries, but in the 4th Dynasty, kings began to build pyramids here, first a step pyramid and then several others. (These ancient pyramids are in poor condition, so few people come to view them; most visit the slightly later pyramids at Gizeh, which are more impressive.) Later, nobles were also buried here, primarily in rectangular tombs called mastabas. During dynasties when the royal capital has been elsewhere, the necropolis has been used for burial of non-noble (but usually wealthy) people, and specialized religious ceremonies.
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