ABSTRACT
An ancient Egyptian pyramid complex can be interpreted as a transition from life into death. There is a hierarchy of places from the river to the desert. The heart of the complex is the tomb of the Pharaoh. The point of symbolic transition is the place where the mortuary temple meets the base of the pyramid. Dynamic and static places have characters that derive from the basic and modifying elements that identify them. The character of a static place may be affected by that of the dynamic places that lead to it; and the character of a dynamic place might be affected by that of the static place to which it leads. Even in quite mundane examples, transitions form part of the experience of works of architecture. The door of a house is a significant interface between the public and the private realm. Transitions, hierarchies and hearts can be found in less dramatic works of architecture too.
