Not much is left of this city, despite its early importance as a national, and later provincial, capital. Constructed on the banks of the river around 3100 B.C., the site was not abandoned until the Arab invasion nearly 4,000 years later. The ruins aren't much to look at, but there is a museum featuring a 13m (43-ft.) figure of Ramses II, which is incredibly big, and an alabaster Sphinx in the garden of sculpture. If you're pressed for time, Dahshur and the necropolis at Saqqara are far more impressive, and this should be lower on your priority list.