Mastaba

Definition: Technically, mastabas precede the first pyramid. That pyramid was a step pyramid, made by stacking a mastaba on top of a slightly larger one. Mastabas were relatively low, rectangular, flat-roofed, roughly bench-shaped burial mounds for the pre-Dynastic pharaohs or nobility. Mastabas, which were made of mud brick or stone, were visible monuments, with the actual burial chamber under ground.