c.2686-2160 B.C. (but see article on ancient Egyptian dates)
The Old Kingdom Period was the great age of pyramid building that started with Djoser's 6-step pyramid at Saqqara.Before the Old Kingdom Period were the Predynastic and Early Dynastic Periods, so the Old Kingdom did not begin with the first dynasty, but, instead, with Dynasty 3. It ended with Dynasty 6 or 8, depending on scholarly interpretation of the start of the next era, the First Intermediate Period.
