The Dahshur Necropolis is located just under 30 kilometers south of Cairo on the west bank of the Nile. On the rocky plateau stand five pyramid complexes dating from the Old and Middle Kingdoms (4th to 13th Dynasties). The best known and by far the best preserved are the pyramids of Pharaoh Sneferu, who reigned during the 4th Dynasty and had as many as three pyramids built: in Dahshur are the so-called Bent Pyramid, which acquired its unusual shape due to a construction error, and the Red Pyramid, which owes its name to the reddish hue of the stone. It is the third-largest ancient Egyptian pyramid, whose base dimensions even exceed those of the Pyramid of Khafre.