Valley of the Kings
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The Valley of the Kings, or Wadi el-Muluk (وادي الملوك) in Arabic, is a valley in Egypt where tombs were built for the Pharaohs and powerful nobles of the New Kingdom, the Eighteenth through Twentieth Dynasties of Ancient Egypt.<ref>Maspero, Gaston, Manual of Egyptian Archaeology, Sixth English Edition, p.182</ref><ref>[1] Theban Mapping Project</ref>
The valley stands on the west bank of the Nile, across from Thebes (modern Luxor), within the heart of the Theban Necropolis, under the peak of the pyramid-shaped mountain al-Qurn, immediately behind the temple of Hatshepsut of Deir el-Bahri.<ref name="silottip13">Siliotti, A. Guide to the Valley of the Kings and to the Theban Necropolises and Temples 1996, A.A. Gaddis, Cairo, p.13</ref> The wadi consists of two valleys, East and West, with the majority of the royal tombs situated in the East Valley.
The area has been a focus of concentrated Archaeological and Egyptological exploration since the end of the Eighteenth Century, and its tombs and burials continue to stimulate research and interest. In modern times the valley has become famous for the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun (with its rumours of the Curse of the Pharaohs), and is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. In 1979, along with the rest of the Theban Necropolis, it became a World Heritage Site.<ref>[2] Ancient Thebes and its necropolis</ref>
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[edit] Geology
The hills are an alternating sandwich of dense limestone and other sedimentary rock (which form the cliffs in the valley and Deir el-Bahri) and soft layers of marl. The sedimentary rock was originally deposited between 35 - 56 million years ago during a time when the precursor to the Mediterranean Sea covered an area that extended much further inland than today. During the Pleistocene the valley was carved out the plateau by steady rains.<ref>[3] Theban Mapping Project: Geography and Geology of the Valley</ref> There is currently little year-round rain in this part of Egypt, but there are occasional flash floods which hit the valley, dumping tons of debris into the open tombs.<ref>Bonnie M Sampsell, A Traveller's Guide to the Geology of Egypt, 2003</ref>
The quality of the rock in the Valley is inconsistent, ranging from finely-grained to coarse stone, the latter with the potential to be structurally unsound. The occasional layer of shale also caused construction and conservation difficulties, as this rock expands in the presence of water, forcing apart the stone surrounding it. It is thought that some tombs were altered in shape and size depending on the types of the layers of rock the builders encountered.<ref>[4] Theban Mapping Project: Geography and Geology of the Valley</ref>
Builders took advantage of available geological features when constructing the tombs. Some tombs were quarried out of existing limestone clefts, others behind slopes of scree, or were at the edge of rock spurs created by ancient flood channels.<ref>[5] The Geography and Geology of the Valley of the Kings on the West Bank at Thebes</ref>
The problems of tomb construction can be seen with tombs of Ramesses III and his father Setnakhte. Setnakhte started to excavate KV11, but broke into the tomb of Amenmesse, so construction was abandoned and he instead usurped the tomb of Twosret, KV14. When looking for a tomb, Ramesses III extended the part-excavated tomb started by his father.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.194</ref> The tomb of Ramesses II returned to an early style (with a Bent Axis, probably due to the quality of the rock being excavated.
Between 1998-2002 the Amarna Royal Tombs Project investigated the valley floor using ground-penetrating radar and found that below the modern surface the Valley's cliffs descend beneath the scree in a series of abrupt, natural "shelves", arranged one below the other, descending several metres down to the bedrock in the valley floor.<ref>[6] Amarna Royal Tombs Project</ref>
[edit] History
The Theban Hills are dominated by the peak of al-Qurn, known to the Ancient Egyptians as ta dehent, or 'The Peak'. It has a pyramid shaped appearance, and it is thought to have been the reason why the kings of Egypt started to be buried beneath it, echoing the pyamids of the Old Kingdom. Its isolated position also resulted in reduced access, and special tomb police (the Medjay) were used to guard the necropolis.
While the iconic pyramid complexes of the Giza plateau have come to symbolize ancient Egypt, the majority of tombs were in fact cut into rock. Most pyramids and mastabas contain sections which are cut into ground level, and there are full rock-cut tombs in Egypt that date back to the Old Kingdom, more than a thousand years prior to the first royal burials carved out in the Valley of the Kings.<ref>Dodson, Aidan. Egyptian Rock-cut Tombs. 1991, Shire Publications Ltd., Buckinghamshire, p5-7.</ref>
After the defeat of the Hyksos and the reunification of Egypt under Ahmose I, the Theban rulers began to construct elaborate tombs that would reflect their new found power.<ref>John Baines & Jaromir Malik Cultural Atlas of Ancient Egyptp.99</ref> The tombs of Ahmose and his son Amenhotep I were probably (their exact location remains unknown) in the Seventeenth Dynasty necropolis of Dra' Abu el-Naga'. The first royal tomb in the valley were those of Amenhotep I (although this identification is again disputed), and Thutmose I, whose advisor Ineni notes in his tomb that he advised his king to place his tomb in the desolate valley.
I saw to the excavation of the rock-tomb of his majesty, alone, no one seeing, no one hearing.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.186</ref>
The Valley was used for primary burials from approximately 1539 BC to 1075 BC, and contains at least 63 tombs, beginning with Thutmose I (or possibly earlier, during the reign of Amenhotep I), and ending with Ramesses X or XI.
Despite the name, the Valley of the Kings also contains the tombs of favorite nobles as well as the wives and children of both nobles and pharaohs. Around the time of Ramesses I (ca. 1301 BC) construction commenced in the separate Valley of the Queens, although some wives continued to be buried with their husbands in the Valley of the Kings.
[edit] Royal Necropolis
The official name for the site in ancient times was The Great and Majestic Necropolis of the Millions of Years of the Pharaoh, Life, Strength, Health in The West of Thebes, or more usually, Ta-sekhet-ma'at (the Great Field).<ref name="silottip12">Siliotti, A. Guide to the Valley of the Kings and to the Theban Necropolises and Temples pp.12-13</ref>
<hiero>G41-G1-Aa1:D21-O1-O29:Y1-A50-s-Z4:Y1-G7-N35-C11-Z2:N35-M4-M4-M4-t:Z2:N35-O29:O1*O1-G7-S34-U28-s-D2:Z1-R14-t:t-N23*Z1:N35-R19-t:O49-G7</hiero><ref name="silottip12" />
At the start of the Eighteenth Dynasty, only the kings were buried within the valley in large tombs, when a non-royal was buried, it was in a small rock cut chamber, close to the tomb of their master <cite name="weigall186" />. Amenhotep III's tomb was constructed in the Western Valley, and while his son Akhenaten moved his tomb's construction to Amarna, it is thought that the unfinished WV25 may have originally been intended for him.<ref>Reeves, Nicholas. Wilkinson, Richard. The Complete Valley of the Kings. p116</ref> With the return to religious orthodoxy at the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Tutankhamun, Ay and then Horemheb returned to the royal necropolis.
The Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasties saw an increase in the number of burials (both here and in the Valley of the Queens), with Ramesses II and later Ramesses III constructing a massive tomb that was used for the burial of his sons (KV55 and KV3 respectively). There are some kings that are not buried within the valley or whose tomb has not been located, Thutmose II may have been buried in Dra' Abu el-Naga' (although his mummy was in the Deir el-Bahri tomb cache), Smenkhkare's burial has never been located, and Ramesses VIII seems to have been buried elsewhere.
- Deir el-Medina
The tombs were constructed and decorated by the workers of the village of Deir el-Medina, located in a small wadi between this valley and the Valley of the Queens, facing Thebes. The workers journeyed to the tombs via routes over the Theban hills.<ref>[7] The Deir el-Medina Database</ref>
- Mortuary Temples
- Further information: Theban Necropolis
In the Pyramid Age the tomb of the king was associated with a mortuary temple located close to the pyramid. As the tomb of the king was hidden, this mortuary temple was located away from the burial, closer to the cultivation facing towards Thebes.
[edit] Tomb development
- Architecture
The usual tomb plan of a long inclined rock-cut corridor, descending through one or more halls (possibly mirroring the descending path of the sun-god into the underworld<ref>Strudwick and Strudwick, Thebes in Egypt p.117</ref>), to the burial chamber. In the earlier tombs the corridors turn through 90 degrees at least once, and the earliest had cartouche-shaped burial chambers. This layout is known as 'Bent Axis', and after the burial the upper corridors were meant to be filled with rubble, and the entrance to the tomb hidden.<ref>Strudwick and Strudwick, Thebes in Egypt p.98</ref> After the Amarna period, the layout gradually straightened, with an intermediate 'Jogged Axis', to the generally 'Straight Axis' of the late Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasty tombs.<ref>Nicholas Reeves and Richard H. Wilkinson, The Complete Valley of the Kings, 1996, Thames and Hudson, p.25</ref> Another feature that is common to most tombs is the 'well', which may have originated as an actual barrier intended to stop flood waters entering the lower parts of the tombs. It later seems to have developed a 'magical' purpose as a symbolical shaft. In the later Twentieth Dynasty, the well itself was not excavated, but the well room was still present.
- Decoration
The majority of the royal tombs were decorated with religious texts and images. The early tombs were decorated with scenes from Amduat ('That Which is in the Underworld'), with describes the journey of the sun-god through the twelve hours of the night. From the time of Horemheb, tombs were decorated with the Book of Gates, which shows the sun-god passing through the twelve gates that divide the night time, and ensure the tomb owner's own safe passage through the night.
Late in the Nineteenth Dynasty the Book of Caverns, which divided the underworld into massive caverns containing deities and the deceased waiting for the sun to pass through and restore them to life. The burial of Ramesses III saw the Book of the Earth, where the underworld is divided into 4 sections, climaxing in the sun disc being pulled from the earth by Nun.
The ceilings of the burial chambers were decorated (from the burial of Seti I onwards) with what become formalised as the Book of the Heavens, which again describe the sun's journey through the twelve hours of night. Again from Seti I's time, the Litany of Re, a lengthy hymn to the sun god.
- Tomb equipment
Each burial was provided with equipment that would enable them a continued existence in the afterlife in comfort. Also present in the tombs were ritual magical items, such as Shabti's and divine figurines. Some equipment was that which the king may have used in their lifetime (Tutankhamun's sandles for example), and some was specially constructed for the burial.
[edit] Decline of the Royal Necropolis
By the end of the New Kingdom, Egypt had entered a long period of political and economic decline. The priests at Thebes grew in power and effectively administered Upper Egypt, while kings ruling from Tanis controlled Lower Egypt. Some attempt at using the open tombs was made at the start of the Twenty first Dynasty, with the High Priest of Amun Pinedjem I adding his cartouche to KV4.<ref>Reeves, Nicholas. Wilkinson, Richard. The Complete Valley of the Kings. p208</ref> The Valley began to be heavily plundered, so during the 21st Dynasty the priests of Amen opened most of the tombs and moved the mummies into three tombs in order to better protect them, even removing most of their treasure in order to further protect the bodies from robbers. Later most of these were moved to a single cache near Deir el-Bari. During the later Third Intermediate Period and later periods, intrusive burials were introduced into many of the open tombs.
[edit] Tomb robbers
Almost all of the tombs have been ransacked, including Tutankhamun's, though in its case, it seems that the robbers were interrupted, so very little was removed.<ref>[8] Valley of the Kings, finds in the Petrie Museum</ref> Several papyrus have been found that describe the trials of tomb robbers, these date mostly from the late Twentieth Dynasty. One of these (Papyrus Mayer B) describes the robbery of the tomb of Ramesses VI and was probably written in Year 9 of Ramesses IX.
The foreigner Nesamun took us up and showed us the tomb of King Ramesses VI ... And I spent four days breaking into it, we being present all five. We opened the tomb and entered it. ... We found a cauldron of bronze, three wash bowls of bronze ...<ref>Nicholas Reeves and Richard H. Wilkinson, The Complete Valley of the Kings, 1996, Thames and Hudson, p.192</ref>
The valley also seems to have suffered an official plundering during the virtual civil war which started in the reign of Ramesses XI. The tombs were opened, all the valuables removed, and the mummies collected into two large caches. One in the tomb of Amenhotep II, contained sixteen, and others were hidden within Amenhotep I's tomb. A few years later most of them were moved to the so-called Deir el-Bahri cache, contained no less than forty royal mummies and their coffins.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.191</ref> Only those tombs whose locations were lost (KV62, KV63 and KV46) were undisturbed in this period.
[edit] Exploration of the valley
The Valley of the Kings has been a major area of modern Egyptological exploration for the last two centuries. Before this the area was a site for tourism in antiquity (especially during Roman times). This areas illustrates the changes in the study of ancient Egypt, starting as antiquity hunting, and ending as scientific excavation of the whole Theban Necropolis. Despite the exploration and investigation noted below, only eleven of the tombs have actually been completely recorded.
[edit] Antiquity
The Greek writers Strabo (1st Century B.C.) and Diodorus Siculus (1st Century A.D.) were able to report that the total number of Theban royal tombs was 47, of which at the time only 17 were believed to be undestroyed.<ref name="reeves51">Reeves, C.N. Wilkinson, Richard H. The Complete Valley of the Kings: Tombs and Treasures of Egypt's Greatest Pharaohs. p51</ref> Pausanias and other ancient writers remarked on the pipe-like corridors of the Valley, clearly meaning the tombs.
Clearly others also visited the valley in these times, as many of the tombs have graffiti written by these ancient tourists. Jules Baillet located over 2100 Greek and Latin graffiti, along with a smaller number in Phoenician, Cypriot, Lycian, Coptic, and other languages.<ref>Jules BailletInscriptions grecques et latines des tombeaux des rois ou Syringes à Thèbes</ref> The majority of the ancient graffiti are found in KV9, containing just under a thousand of them. The earliest positively dated graffito dates to 278 B.C.<ref name="reeves51" />
[edit] Eighteenth Century
Before the nineteenth century, travel from Europe to Thebes (and indeed anywhere in Egypt) was difficult, time-consuming and expensive, and only the hardiest of European travelers visited – before the travels of Father Claude Sicard in 1726, it was unclear just where Thebes really was.<ref>[9] Discovers of Ancient Egypt</ref> It was known to be on the Nile, but it was often confused with Memphis and several other sites. One of the first travelers to record what he saw at Thebes was Frederic Louis Norden, a Danish adventurer and artist.<ref>[10] F.L. Norden: Voyage d'Egypte et de Nubie, 1755 (in Norwegian)</ref> He was followed by Richard Pococke, who published the first modern map of the valley itself, in 1743.<ref>[11] Brief biography of Richard Pococke</ref>
- French Expedition
In 1799, Napoleon's expedition drew maps and plans of the known tombs, and for the first time noted the Western Valley (where Prosper Jollois and Édouard de Villiers du Terrage located the tomb of Amenhotep III, WV22).<ref>Siliotti, A. Guide to the Valley of the Kings and to the Theban Necropolises and Temples 1996, A.A. Gaddis, Cairo, p.16</ref> The Description de l'Égypte contains two volumes (out a total of 24) on the area around Thebes.<ref>[12] Description de l'Égypte – text of the 2nd edition (in French)</ref>
[edit] Nineteenth Century
European exploration continued in the area around Thebes during the Nineteenth Century, boosted by Champollion's translation of hieroglyphs early in the century. Early in the century, the area was visited by Belzoni, working for Henry Salt, who discovered several tombs, including those of Ay in the West Valley (WV23) in 1816 and Seti I (KV17) the next year. At the end of his visits, Belzoni declared that all of the tombs had been found and nothing of note remained to be found. Working at the same time (and a great rival of Belzoni and Salt) was Bernardino Drovetti, the French Consul-General.<ref>[13] Bernardino Drovetti</ref>
In 1827 John Gardiner Wilkinson was assigned to paint the entry of every tomb, giving them each a designation that is still in use today – they were numbered from KV1 to KV21 (although the maps show 28 entrances, some of which were unexplored). These paintings and maps were later published in The Topography of Thebes and General Survey of Egypt, in 1830. At the same time James Burton explored the valley. His works included making KV17 safer from flooding, but he is better known for entering KV5.
Champollion himself visited the valley, along with Ippolito Rosellini and Nestor L'Hôte, in the Franco-Tuscan Expedition of 1829. The expedition spent two months studying the open tombs, visiting about 16 of them. They copied the inscriptions and identified the original tomb owners. In tomb KV17, they removed wall decorations, which are now on display in the Louvre in Paris.
In 1845 – 1846 the valley was explored by Karl Richard Lepsius's expedition, they explored and documented 25 in the main valley and four in the west.
The later half of the century saw a more concerted effort to preserve rather than simply gathering antiquities. Auguste Mariette's Egyptian Antiquities Service started to explore the valley, first with Eugène Lefébure in 1883,<ref>[14] Amenmesse Project</ref> then Jules Baillet and Georges Bénédite in early 1888 and finally Victor Loret in 1898 to 1899. During this time Georges Daressy explored KV9 and KV6.
Loret added a further 16 tombs to the list, and explored several tombs that had already been discovered.
When Gaston Maspero was reappointed to head the Egyptian Antiquities Service, the nature of the exploration of the valley changed again, Maspero appointed Howard Carter as the Chief Inspector of Upper Egypt and the young man discovered several new tombs and explored several others, clearing KV42 and KV20.
[edit] Twentieth century
Around the turn of the Twentieth Century, the American Theodore M. Davis had the excavation permit in the valley, and his team (led mostly by Edward R. Ayrton) discovered several royal and non-royal tombs (KV43, KV46 & KV57 being the most important). In 1907 they discovered the possible Amarna Period cache in KV55. After finding what they thought was the burial of Tutankhamun (KV61), it was announced that the valley was completely explored and no further burials were to be found.
Howard Carter then acquired the right to explore the valley and after a systematic search discovered the actual tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62) in November 1922.
At the end of the century, the Theban Mapping Project re-discovered and explored tomb KV5, which has since been discovered to be probably the largest in the valley (having at least 120 rooms), and was either a cenotaph or real burial for the sons of Ramesses II. Elsewhere in the eastern and western branches of the valley several other expeditions cleared and studied other tombs. Until 2002 the Amarna Royal Tombs Project has been exploring the area around KV55 and KV62, the Amarna Period tombs in the main valley.
[edit] Twenty-first century
Various expeditions have continued to explore the valley, adding greatly to the knowledge of the area. In 2001 the Theban Mapping Project designed new signs for the tombs, providing information and plans of the open tombs.
On February 8, 2006, the Supreme Council of Antiquities announced that an American team led by the University of Memphis had uncovered a pharaonic-era tomb (KV63), the first uncovered there since King Tutankhamun's in 1922. The 18th Dynasty tomb included five mummies in intact sarcophagi with coloured funerary masks along with more than 20 large storage jars, sealed with pharaonic seals. It is located close to the tomb of Tutankhamun. KV63, as it is known, appears to be a single chamber with five or six sarcophagi and about 20 large funerary jars. The chamber is from the 18th dynasty and it appears to have been a deposit of funerary preparation materials, rather than a tomb.
On 31 July 2006, Nicholas Reeves announced that analysis of ground penetrating radar for the autumn of 2000 showed a sub-surface anomaly in the area of KV62 and KV63.<ref>[15] Another new tomb in the Valley of the Kings: ‘KV64’.</ref> He has tentatively labeled this anomaly "KV64".<ref>[16] Nicholas Reeves interview</ref> This has caused some controversy, as only Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities can officially designate the name of a new tomb, the anomaly may not in fact be a tomb, and because Reeves had reported the finding to the press first, instead of a scientific paper.<ref>[17] Egyptian tomb digs up controversy, USA Today, August 14, 2006.</ref>
[edit] Important tombs
- See also: List of burials in the Valley of the Kings for full list of burials
The tombs are numbered in the order of 'discovery' from Ramesses VII (KV1) to KV63 (which was discovered in 2005), although many of the tombs have been open since antiquity, and KV5 was only rediscovered in the 1990s. The abbreviation "KV" stands for "Kings' Valley". A number of the tombs are unoccupied, the owners of others remain unknown, and others are merely pits used for storage.<ref>[18] Donald P. Ryan, Further Observations Concerning the Valley of the KingsValley of the Sun Kings: New Explorations in the Tombs of the PharaohsTucson, 1995</ref> Only those tombs that are publicly accessible or are important for historical and architectural reasons are noted here.
[edit] East Valley
Most of the open tombs in the Valley of the Kings are located in the East Valley, and this is where most tourists and facilities can be found.
- KV1 – Tomb of Ramesses VII
This tomb has been open since antiquity, as the numerous ancient graffiti attest. It was only properly investigated and cleared by Edwin Brock in 1984 - 1985. Frequently open to the public, this tomb is located close to the entrance to the valley.
- KV2 – Tomb of Ramesses IV
This tomb has also been open since antiquity, containing a large amount of hieratic graffiti. The tomb is mostly intact and is decorated with scenes from several religious texts.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.196</ref> It is frequently open to the public.
- KV5 – Tomb of Sons of Ramesses II
The rediscovered tomb of the sons of Ramesses II. With 120 known rooms and excavation work still underway, it is probably the largest tomb in the valley. Originally opened (and robbed) in antiquity it is a low-lying structure that has been particularly prone to the flash floods that sometimes hit the area, which washed in tones of debris and material over the centuries, ultimately concealing its vast size. It is not currently open to the public.<ref>Kent R. Weeks, KV 5: A Preliminary Report on the Excavation of the Tomb of the Sons of Ramesses II in the Valley of the Kings</ref>
- KV6 – Tomb of Ramesses IX
KV6 has been open since antiquity, as can be seen by the graffiti left on its walls by Roman and Coptic visitors.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.198</ref> Located in the central part of the Valley, it stands between and slightly above KV5 and KV55. The tomb extends a total distance of 105 metres into the hillside, including extensive side chambers which were neither decorated nor finished. The hasty and incomplete nature of the rock-cutting and decorations within the tomb indicate that that the tomb was not completed by the time of Ramesses' death. Frequently open to the public.
- KV7 – Tomb of Ramesses II
The ruined tomb of Ramesses the Great is not open to the public, and it is currently undergoing excavation and conservation by a Franco-Egyptian team led by Christian Leblanc.<ref>[19]Christian Leblanc, "The Tomb of Ramesses II and Remains of His Funerary Treasure,"</ref><ref>[20]"Recherches et travaux dans la tombe de Ramses II: Aujourďhui."</ref> It is a vast size, being about the same length, and a larger area, of the tomb of Seti I.
- KV8 – Tomb of Merenptah
This was the tomb of the 19th Dynasty pharaoh Merenptah.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.202</ref> Open since antiquity, it extends 160 metres, ending in a burial chamber that once contained a set of four nested sarcophagi. It is typically open to the public.
- KV9 – Tomb of Ramesses V and Ramesses VI
Also known as the Tomb of Memnon or La Tombe de la Métempsychose, this was originally the tomb of Ramesses V, and then afterwards usurped by his brother Ramesses VI. It is decorated with many sunk-relief carvings, depicting many illustrated scenes from religious texts. Open since antiquity, it contains over a thousand graffiti in ancient Greek, Latin and Coptic.<ref>[21] Theban Mapping project - KV 9 (Rameses V and Rameses VI)</ref>
- KV11 – Tomb of Ramesses III
The tomb of Ramesses III (or Bruce's Tomb, The Harper's Tomb) is one of the largest tombs in the valley, and is open to the public, it is located close to the central 'rest–area', and is usually one of the tombs visited by tourists.<ref>Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.206</ref>
Located in the main body of the valley, it has two burial chambers, the later extensions making the tomb one of the largest of the Royal tombs, at over 112 metres.
- KV15 – Tomb of Seti II
Frequently open to the public.
- KV16 – Tomb of Ramesses I
This small tomb has vibrant decoration, and still contains the sarcophagus of the king. Its central location means that it is one of the frequently visited tombs. It shows the development of the tomb entrance and passage and of decoration.
- KV17 – Tomb of Seti I
The tomb of Seti I and is also known as Belzoni's tomb, the tomb of Apis, or the tomb of Psammis, son of Necho. It is usually thought to be the finest tomb in the valley, with well executed relief work and paintings.
- KV19 – Tomb of Mentuherkhepshef
This tomb is really a simple straight corridor, and is newly restored and open for visitors.
- KV34 – Tomb of Thutmose III
Located in the south-east corner of the valleys, and is a good example of an Eighteenth Dynasty tomb, with its bent axis, and simple decoration.
- KV35 – Tomb of Amenhotep II
This tomb was originally the tomb of Amenhotep II. Over a dozen mummies, many of them royal, were later relocated here.<ref name="weigall221">Arthur Weigall, A guide to the antiquities of Upper Egypt, p.221</ref> This is a good example of a mid-Eighteenth Dynasty tomb.
- KV43 – Tomb of Thutmose IV
Another Eighteenth Dynasty tomb with a bent axis, this tomb is located under the cliffs in the south-eastern corner, and is consequently less visited than the tombs in the main valley.
The tomb of the nobles Yuya and Tjuyu, who were possibly the parents of Queen Tiy. Until the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, this was the best preserved tomb to be found in the Valley.
- KV47 – Tomb of Siptah
This tomb is well decorated, especially the ceiling decoration.<ref>Theodore M. Davis The Tomb of Siphtah, 1908</ref>
- KV55 – Possible Amarna Period Mummy cache
The tomb maybe another mummy cache, and has the possible burials of several Amarna Period royals – Tiy and Smenkhkare/Akhenaten.<ref>Theodore M. Davis The Tomb of Queen Tiyi, 1910</ref>
- KV57 – Tomb of Horemheb
This tomb is rarely open for visitors, but it is superbly decorated and has excellent tomb paintings.
- KV62 – Tomb of Tutankhamun
Perhaps the most famous discovery of modern Western archaeology was made here by Howard Carter on November 4, 1922, with clearance and conservation work continuing until 1932. King Tutankhamun's tomb was the first royal tomb to be discovered that was still largely intact (although tomb robbers had entered it), and was, until the excavation of KV63 in 2006, considered the last major discovery in the valley. The opulence of his grave goods notwithstanding, Tutankhamun was a rather minor king and other burials probably had more numerous treasures.
- KV63 – Unknown
Discovered on 10 March 2005.<ref>[22] First look - MSNBC article</ref>
- 'KV64' – Unknown
Radar anomaly believed to be a tomb or chamber announced on 28 July 2006. It is not an official designation, and indeed the actual existence of a tomb at all is dismissed by the Supreme Council of Antiquities.<ref>[23] USAToday link; Controversy</ref>
[edit] West Valley
The numbering the West Valley follows in sequence to that of the East Valley, and there are only four known tombs and several pits in this branch of the valley.
- WV22 – Tomb of Amenhotep III
This is the tomb of one the greatest rulers of the Egyptian New Kingdom, Amenhotep III.<ref>[24] Sleuthing in a royal tomb</ref> It was been re–investigated in 1990s (by a team from Waseda University, Japan), but is not open to the public.<ref>[25] INTERIM REPORT ON THE RE-CLEARANCE AT THE ROYAL TOMB OF AMENOPHIS III</ref>
- WV23 – Tomb of Ay
The reconstructed tomb of Ay is the only tomb that is open to the public in the West Valley. It shows many unique features, and is rarely visited.
- Deir el-Bahri mummy cache
While this tomb is not strictly in the Valley of the Kings, it contained an astounding mummy cache.<ref>[26] TT320 project website</ref> It is located in the cliffs overlooking Hatshepsut's famous temple at Deir el-Bahri, was found to contain many of Egypt's most famous pharaohs.<ref>[27] The Finding of the Pharaohs</ref> They were found in a great state of disorder, many placed in other people's coffins, and several are still unidentified.
[edit] Tourism
Most of the tombs are not open to the public (16 of the tombs can be opened, but they are rarely open at the same time), and officials occasionally close those that are open for restoration work.<ref>[28] What tombs are open in the Valley of Kings (2006)</ref> The number of visitors to KV62 has led to a separate charge for entry into the tomb. The West Valley has only one open tomb – that of Ay – and a separate ticket is needed to visit this tomb. The tour guides are no longer allowed to lecture inside the tombs and visitors are expected to proceed quietly and in single file through the tombs. This is to minimize time in the tombs, and prevent the crowds from damaging the surfaces of the decoration. Photography is no longer allowed in the tombs.
In 1997, 58 tourists and 4 Egyptians were massacred at nearby Deir el-Bahri by Islamist militants from Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya. This led to an overall drop in tourism in the area.<ref>[29] Tourists massacred at temple</ref>
As of 2005, on most days of the week an average of four to five thousand tourists visit the main valley. On the days on which the Nile Cruises arrive the number can rise to nearly ten thousand.<ref>[30] Projected visitors</ref> These levels are expected to rise to 25,000 by 2015. The West Valley is much less visited, as there is only one tomb that is open to the public.
In January 2006 it was announced that a new visitors centre was to be constructed. <ref>[31] New visitors centre</ref> Constructed on the old cafeteria, it is planned to open in early 2007.<ref>[32] Theban Mapping Project August 2006 Progress report</ref> It will have displays and exhibits (including a model of the valley), showing the chronology and iconography of the New Kingdom necropolis. The Metropolitan Museum of Art and National Geographic Society have donated display and educational material.
[edit] In fiction
- The Amelia Peabody adventures The Curse of the Pharaohs, The Ape Who Guards the Balance, The Serpent on the Crown and Tomb of the Golden Bird are set in the valley.
[edit] Notes
<references/>
[edit] References
[edit] Books
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[edit] External Links
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to: |
- Theban Mapping Project
- The Quest for Immortality, Treasures of Ancient Egypt, Virtual Tour: KV 34
- Valley of the Kings photographs on GlobalAmity.net
- VOKF Foundation
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