The pyramid is the central feature of a vast mortuary complex in an enormous courtyard surrounded by ceremonial structures and decoration.

[10] This is based on the presence of his statue in the funerary complex of Djoser, his title of "overseer of sculptors and painters",[13] and a comment made by the 3rd century BC historian Manetho claiming Imhotep was the "inventor of building in stone".

[11] Djoser's mortuary complex comprises the great trench, enclosure wall, colonnaded entrance, "T" temple, Sed festival complex, north and south pavilions, south tomb and court, western mounds, mortuary temple, and the crowning feature of it all, the step pyramid with its substructure.

[17] It was the advent of the pyramidal form of the royal tomb and the first instance of the mass use of limestone in construction,[18] replacing mudbrick which had been the staple building material prior.

[19] This shift to limestone – a hard, dense material compared to mudbrick – presented novel challenges to the architects, though they kept to earlier tradition, copying architectonic elements and carving them into the stone.

[2] This element was revised repeatedly in construction, going through a series of developmental phases that culminated in its step pyramidal form.

A 2.6 m (9 ft; 5 cu) thick casing of fine white Tura limestone was applied to the core arranged in the same horizontal manner.

[26] A second casing of fine white limestone was applied to this which increased the mastaba's base length to 71.5 m (235 ft; 136 cu) square (M2).

[21] The builders used larger and better quality, roughly dressed limestone blocks – but instead of horizontal beds, they built successive inclined accretion layers 2–3 m (6.6–9.8 ft) thick.

[39] It is widely accepted that ramps would have been used to raise heavy stone to construct the pyramid, and many plausible models have been suggested.

[41] Under the step pyramid is a labyrinth of tunneled chambers and galleries that total nearly 6 km in length and connect to a central shaft 7 m square and 28 m deep.

The sides of the underground passages are limestone inlaid with blue faience tile to replicate reed matting.

[39] Together these chambers constitute the funerary apartment that mimicked the palace and would serve as the living place of the royal ka.

On the east side of the pyramid, eleven shafts 32 m deep were constructed and annexed to horizontal tunnels for royal family members.

An extensive network of underground galleries was located to the north, west and south of the central burial chamber and crude horizontal magazines were carved into these.

It is now thought that Djoser once restored the original tombs of the ancestors, and then sealed the grave goods in the galleries in an attempt to save them.

He found evidence of limestone blocks with five pointed stars in low relief that were likely on the ceiling, indicating the first occurrence of what would become a tradition.

[41] The main modern excavator of the Step Pyramid was Jean-Philippe Lauer, a French architect who reconstructed key portions of the complex.

These hosted false double-doors, while a fifteenth situated in the south-east corner of the east façade held the real entrance.

[47] The enclosure wall design recalls the appearance of First Dynasty tombs, such as those found directly north of the complex and at Abydos.

[47][49][50] Alan Spencer compares the design to the panelled construction of the palace façade, which imitates bound bundles of reeds.

[47][48] Hermann Kees thought the fifteen doors were related to the sed festival and indicated its duration as being half a lunar month.

[48] This is followed by a wider corridor flanked by 40 limestone columns, arranged in pairs, that fronted projecting walls, which formed alcoves.

[58] Between the twelfth and thirteenth alcove[59] is a "transverse vestibule" with a passage flanked by eight 5 m (16 ft) tall columns and cross-walls leading to a sanctuary.

[53][60] Lauer believes this chamber contained a statue of Djoser on a pedestal that bore his name and Imhotep's titles.

Within the court are curved stones thought to be territorial markers associated with the Heb-sed festival, an important ritual completed by Egyptian kings (typically after 30 years on the throne) to renew their powers.

This fits into the theory proposed by Barry Kemp, and generally accepted by many, that suggests the whole step pyramid complex symbolizes the royal palace enclosure and allows the king to eternally perform the rituals associated with kingship.

[11] The substructure of the south tomb is entered through a tunnel-like corridor with a staircase that descends about 30 m before opening up into the pink granite burial chamber.

[10] Importantly, Egyptian builders chose to employ their most skilled artisans and depict their finest art in the darkest, most inaccessible place in the complex.

[11] Flanking the east and west sides of the court are the remains of two groups of chapels, many of which are dummy buildings, of three different architectural styles.