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104-620: Saqqara contains the oldest complete stone building complex known in history, the Pyramid of Djoser, built during the Third Dynasty . Another sixteen Egyptian kings built pyramids at Saqqara, which are now in various states of preservation. High officials added private funeral monuments to this necropolis during the entire Pharaonic period . It remained an important complex for non-royal burials and cult ceremonies for more than 3000 years, well into Ptolemaic and Roman times. North of

208-551: A 30-foot-deep (9 meter) burial shaft containing five limestone sarcophagi, four wooden coffins with human mummies, and an array of other artifacts. Among them were 365 faience ushabti and a small wooden obelisk about 40 centimeters tall that had been painted with depictions of Horus , Isis and Nepthys . In September 2020, a 36-foot (11-meter) deep burial shaft revealed almost 30 sarcophagi that had remained completely sealed since their interment. On 3 October 2020, Khalid el-Anany, Egypt's tourism and antiquities minister announced

312-506: A 4,000-year-old tomb near Egypt's Saqqara Necropolis . Archaeologists confirmed that the tomb belonged to an influential person named Khuwy, who lived in Egypt during the 5th Dynasty . "The L-shaped Khuwy tomb starts with a small corridor heading downwards into an antechamber and from there a larger chamber with painted reliefs depicting the tomb owner seated at an offerings table", reported Megahed. Some paintings maintained their brightness over

416-566: A 4,300-year-old mummy to a man named Hekashepes covered with gold, in addition to finds date back to the 5th and 6th dynasties, such as a priest inspector named Khnumdjedef, secret keeper called Meri and a judge and writer named Fetek. In April 2024, a rock-cut tomb dating back to the Second Dynasty was uncovered in Saqqara by a team of Japanese and Egyptian archaeologists. The tomb contained artifacts from various periods, spanning over

520-469: A cartouche containing a form of the sign for "ka," with just enough room for the sign for "Neb." Nebka's reign length is given as eighteen years by both Manetho and the Turin Canon, though these sources write over 2,300 and 1,400 years after his lifetime, so their accuracy is uncertain. In contrast to Djoser, both Sanakht and Nebka are attested in considerably few relics for a ruler of nearly two decades;

624-532: A century and the first cache to be discovered by a solely Egyptian mission. The coffins were stacked on top of each other and arranged in two rows about three feet below the sandy surface. The first coffin's head was partially exposed in the sand, which led to the cache's discovery. Two of the coffins belonged to children, a rare occurrence in archeology. Mostafa Waziri , secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, explained that one could identify

728-516: A century. Some scholars have proposed a southern origin for the Third Dynasty. Petrie believed the dynasty originated from Sudan based on iconographic evidence, but Keita argued southern Egypt is equally likely. The pharaohs of the Third Dynasty ruled for approximately 75 years. Due to recent archaeological findings in Abydos revealing that Djoser was the one who buried Khasekhemwy ,

832-601: A different location for their pyramids . During the second half of the Old Kingdom , under the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties, Saqqara was again the royal burial ground. The Fifth and Sixth Dynasty pyramids are not built wholly of massive stone blocks, but instead with a core consisting of rubble. Consequently, they are less well preserved than the world-famous pyramids built by the Fourth Dynasty kings at Giza . Unas ,

936-459: A focus for Egyptologists and archaeological exploration since the end of the 18th century, and its tombs and burials continue to stimulate research and interest. The Valley of the Kings garnered significant attention following the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922, and is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. In 1979, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site alongside

1040-431: A funerary chapel decorated with multi-colored reliefs, which was uncovered in 1997. as well as the tomb of courtier Nyankhnefertem uncovered in 2003. The expedition also explored two necropoles. Archaeologists revealed several dozen graves of noblemen from the period of the 6th Dynasty , dating to the 24th–21st century BC, and 500 graves of indigent people dating approximately to the 6th century BC – 1st century AD. Most of

1144-646: A further 16 tombs to the list, and explored several tombs that had already been discovered. During this time Georges Daressy explored KV9 . When Gaston Maspero was reappointed as head of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, the nature of the exploration of the valley changed again. Maspero appointed English archaeologist 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 . Around

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1248-542: A king assigned nineteen years by Manetho, find almost no support given the unfinished state of his tomb, the Buried Pyramid . It is believed that Khaba possibly built the Layer Pyramid at Zawyet el'Aryan ; the pyramid is far smaller than it was intended to be, but it is not known whether this is due to natural erosion or because it, like Sekhemkhet's own tomb, was never completed to begin with. In any case,

1352-539: A local Berber tribe called the Beni Saqqar, despite the fact that a tribe of this name is not documented anywhere. Medieval authors also refer to the village as Ard as-Sadr ( Arabic : ارض السدر , lit.   'land of the buckthorn'). The earliest burials of nobles can be traced back to the First Dynasty , at the northern side of the Saqqara plateau. During this time, the royal burial ground

1456-430: A long time in the tomb. Mainly made of white limestone bricks, the tomb had a tunnel entrance generally typical for pyramids. Archaeologists say that there might be a connection between Khuwy and pharaoh because the mausoleum was found near the pyramid of Egyptian Pharaoh Djedkare Isesi , who ruled during that time. In October 2019, a cache of 30 coffins with mummies was discovered, at the time Egypt's largest in more than

1560-496: A partly damaged wooden coffin . The last time a similar mask was found was in 1939. The eyes were covered with obsidian , calcite , and black hued gemstone possibly onyx . "The finding of this mask could be called a sensation. Very few masks of precious metal have been preserved to the present day, because the tombs of most Ancient Egyptian dignitaries were looted in ancient times." said Hussein. In September 2018, several dozen cache of mummies dating 2,000 years back were found by

1664-519: A relatively minor king, and other burials probably had more numerous treasures. In the same central area as KV62 and KV63, is "KV64" , a radar anomaly believed to be a tomb or chamber announced on 28 July 2006. It was not an official designation, and the actual existence of a tomb at all was dismissed by the Supreme Council of Antiquities , prior to finally excavating and describing it during 2011–2012. The nearby tomb of Horemheb , ( KV57 )

1768-619: A systematic search, they discovered the actual tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62) in November 1922. 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. A map of the Valley of the Kings with locations of tombs marked The earliest tombs were located in cliffs at

1872-672: A team of Polish archaeologists led by Kamil Kuraszkiewicz from the Faculty of Oriental Studies of the University of Warsaw . The Polish-Egyptian expedition works under the auspices of the Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology University of Warsaw . Investigations were carried out for over two decades in the area to the west of the Djoser Pyramid. The most important discoveries include the tomb of vizier Merefnebef with

1976-400: A team of archaeologists led by Zahi Hawass found the funerary temple of Naert or Narat and three warehouses made of bricks attached to the southeastern side for storage of temple provisions, offerings and tools. Researchers also revealed that Narat's name was engraved on a fallen obelisk near the main entrance. Previously unknown to researchers, Naert was a wife of Teti , the first king of

2080-481: A thousand of them. The earliest positively dated graffiti dates to 278 BC. In 1799, members of Napoleon's expedition to Egypt (especially Vivant Denon ) 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 ). The Description de l'Égypte contains two volumes (out of

2184-547: A time when the Mediterranean Sea sometimes extended as far south as Aswan . During the Pleistocene the valley was carved out of the plateau by steady rains. There is now little year-round rain in this part of Egypt, but there are occasional flash floods . These floods dump tons of debris into the open tombs. The quality of the rock in the Valley is inconsistent, ranging from finely grained to coarse stone,

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2288-471: A total of 24) on the area around Thebes. European exploration continued in the area around Thebes during the nineteenth century. Early in the century, the area was visited by Giovanni 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 following year. At the end of his visits, Belzoni declared that all of

2392-471: A total of 61 sepulchers being known by the start of the 20th century. KV5 was only rediscovered in the 1990s after being dismissed as unimportant by previous investigators. Some of the tombs are unoccupied, others remain unidentifiable as regards to their owners, and still others are merely pits used for storage. Most of the open tombs in the Valley of the Kings are located in the East Valley, and this

2496-402: Is a tomb commencement that is thought to have been started for Akhenaten , but it is no more than a gateway and a series of steps. The tomb of Ay , Tutankhamun 's successor is close by. It is likely that this tomb was started for Tutankhamun (its decoration is of a similar style), but later usurped for Ay's burial. This would mean that KV62 may have been Ay's original tomb, which would explain

2600-416: Is little more than a truncated descending corridor and a burial chamber. However, KV16 has vibrant decoration and still contains the sarcophagus of the king. Its central location makes it one of the more frequently visited tombs. It shows the development of the tomb entrance and passage and of decoration. His son and successor, Seti I 's tomb KV17 (also known as Belzoni's tomb , the tomb of Apis , or

2704-405: Is rarely open to visitors, but it has many unique features and is extensively decorated. The decoration shows a transition from the pre-Amarna tombs to those of the 19th dynasty tombs that followed. The Nineteenth Dynasty saw a further standardisation of tomb layout and decoration. The tomb of the first king of the dynasty, Ramesses I , was hurriedly finished due to the early death of the king and

2808-401: Is vast in size, about the same length, and a larger area, of the tomb of his father. At the same time, and just opposite his own tomb, Ramesses enlarged the earlier small tomb of an unknown Eighteenth Dynasty noble ( KV5 ) for his numerous sons. 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

2912-609: Is where most of the tourist facilities are located. The Eighteenth Dynasty tombs within the valley vary quite a bit in decoration, style, and location. It seems that at first there was no fixed plan. The tomb of Hatshepsut has a unique shape, twisting and turning down over 200 metres from the entrance, so that the burial chamber is 97 metres below the surface. The tombs gradually became more regular and formalised, and those of Thutmose III and Thutmose IV , KV34 and KV43 , are good examples of Eighteenth Dynasty tombs, both with their bent axis, and simple decoration. Perhaps

3016-505: The 26th Dynasty . In November 2020, archaeologists unearthed more than 100 delicately painted wooden coffins dating to the 26th Dynasty and 40 statues of the local goddess Ptah Soker. Other artifacts discovered include funeral masks, canopic jars and 1,000 ceramic amulets. “This discovery is very important because it proves that Saqqara was the main burial of the 26th Dynasty ,” said Zahi Hawass , an Egyptologist and Egypt's former Minister of State for Antiquities Affairs. In January 2021,

3120-572: The Book of the Heavens , which again describes 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 began to appear. Each burial was provided with equipment that would enable a comfortable existence in the afterlife . Also present in the tombs were items used to perform magic rituals, such as shabtis and divine figurines. Some of

3224-722: The Eighteenth Dynasty to the Twentieth Dynasty , rock-cut tombs were excavated for pharaohs and powerful nobles under the New Kingdom of ancient Egypt . It is a wadi sitting on the west bank of the Nile , opposite Thebes (modern-day Luxor ) and within the heart of the Theban Necropolis . There are two main sections: the East Valley, where the majority of the royal tombs are situated; and

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3328-590: The Fifth Dynasty , and his wife, four children and mother. The tomb is about 33 feet (10 meters) long by 10 feet (3.0 meters) wide and has five burial shafts and a basement. It contains more than fifty sculptures, and is painted with scenes of the family, wine and pottery making, musical performances, sailing, hunting, and furniture making. On 13 April 2019, an expedition led by a member of the Czech Institute of Egyptology , Mohamed Megahed, discovered

3432-775: The Fourth , Fifth and Sixth . The capital during the period of the Old Kingdom was at Memphis . After the turbulent last years of the Second Dynasty , which might have included civil war, Egypt came under the rule of Djoser , marking the beginning of the Third Dynasty. Both the Turin King List and the Abydos King List record five kings, while the Saqqara Tablet only records four, and Manetho records nine, many of whom did not exist or are simply

3536-704: The Giza Plateau have come to symbolize ancient Egypt , the majority of tombs were cut into rock. Most pyramids and mastabas contain sections which were cut into ground level, and there are full rock-cut tombs in Egypt that date back to the Old Kingdom. After the defeat of the Hyksos and the reunification of Egypt under Ahmose I , the Theban rulers began to construct elaborate tombs that reflected their newfound power. The tombs of Ahmose I and his son Amenhotep I (their exact location remains unknown) were probably in

3640-514: The Late Period , the Ptolemaic period , and the 18th Dynasty . Among the findings were remains of an adult with a colored mask and a small child, in addition to two terracotta statues depicting Isis and Harpocrates . Third Dynasty of Egypt The Third Dynasty of ancient Egypt ( Dynasty III ) is the first dynasty of the Old Kingdom . Other dynasties of the Old Kingdom include

3744-607: The Pyramid of Unas and added an inscription to its south face to commemorate the restoration. He enlarged the Serapeum , the burial site of the mummified Apis bulls , and was later buried in the catacombs. The Serapeum, containing one undisturbed interment of an Apis bull and the tomb of Khaemweset, were rediscovered by the French Egyptologist Auguste Mariette in 1851. During the periods after

3848-480: The Seventeenth Dynasty necropolis of Dra' Abu el-Naga' . The first royal tombs in the Valley of the Kings were those of Amenhotep I (although this identification is also disputed), and Thutmose I , whose advisor, Ineni , notes in his tomb that he advised the king to place his tomb in the desolate valley (the identity of this actual tomb is unclear, but it is probably KV20 or KV38 ). I saw to

3952-471: The Turin Strike Papyrus . The valley has been a major focus of modern Egyptological exploration for the last two centuries. Prior to this time, it was a site for tourism in antiquity (especially during Roman times). The area illustrates the changes in the study of ancient Egypt, starting as antiquity hunting, and ending as scientific excavation of the whole Theban Necropolis . Despite

4056-528: The Ancient Egyptians as ta dehent , or "The Peak". It has a pyramid-shaped appearance, and it is probable that this echoed the pyramids of the Old Kingdom , more than a thousand years prior to the first royal burials carved here. Its isolated position also resulted in reduced access, and special tomb police (the Medjay ) were able to guard the necropolis. While the iconic pyramid complex of

4160-643: The Book of the Dead were also painted onto the surface of other coffins. Also found in the shafts were wooden funerary masks, board games, a shrine dedicated to god of the dead Anubis , bird-shaped artifacts and a bronze axe. A limestone stelae dated to the reign of Ramesses II was found in one of the shafts, depicting the overseer of the king's military chariot Kha-Ptah and his wife Mwt-em-wia worshipping Osiris and sitting with six of their children. Also in January 2021,

4264-408: The Kings also contains the tombs of favorite nobles as well as the wives and children of both nobles and pharaohs. Therefore, only about twenty of the tombs actually contain the remains of kings. The remains of nobles and of the royal family, together with unmarked pits and embalming caches, make up the rest. Around the time of Ramesses I (ca. 1301 BC) construction commenced in the separate Valley of

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4368-465: The Late Period more than 2,500 years ago, in addition to a 9-meter-long papyrus scroll which could be a depiction of a chapter of the Book of the Dead . In May 2022, the discovery of the nearly 4,300-year-old tomb of an ancient Egyptian high-ranked person who handled royal, sealed documents of pharaoh was announced. According to University of Warsaw ’s Polish Centre of Mediterranean Archaeology ,

4472-468: The New Kingdom's major royal figures as well as a number of privileged nobles. The royal tombs are decorated with traditional scenes from Egyptian mythology and reveal clues to the period's funerary practices and afterlife beliefs . Almost all of the tombs seem to have been opened and robbed in antiquity, but they still give an idea of the opulence and power of Egypt's pharaohs. This area has been

4576-538: The New Kingdom, when several cities in the Delta served as capital of Egypt, Saqqara remained in use as a burial ground for nobles. Moreover, the area became an important destination for pilgrims to a number of cult centres. Activities sprang up around the Serapeum, and extensive underground galleries were cut into the rock as burial sites for large numbers of mummified ibises, baboons, cats, dogs, and falcons. Saqqara and

4680-608: The Polish-Egyptian expedition also focuses on the interpretation of the so-called Dry Moat, a vast trench hewn around the Djoser Pyramid. The most recent discoveries confirm the hypothesis that the Dry Moat was a model of the pharaoh's journey to the netherworld, a road the deceased ruler had to follow to attain eternal life. In November 2018, an Egyptian archaeological mission located seven ancient Egyptian tombs at

4784-693: The Queens . 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 (see below for the hieroglyphic spelling), or Ta-sekhet-ma'at (the Great Field). At the start of the Eighteenth Dynasty , only kings were buried within the valley in large tombs. When a non-royal person was buried, it

4888-730: The Saqqara site lies the Abusir pyramid complex, and to its south lies the Dahshur pyramid complex, which together with the Giza Pyramid complex to the far north comprise the Pyramid Fields of Memphis , or the Memphite Necropolis , which was designated as a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1979. Some scholars believe that the name Saqqara is not derived from the ancient Egyptian funerary deity, Sokar , but from

4992-496: The Third Dynasty, before Huni, but this is by no means definitively known or even overwhelmingly supported among Egyptologists.) Some authorities believe that Imhotep lived into the reign of the Pharaoh Huni. Little is known for certain of Sekhemkhet , but his reign is considered to have been only six or seven years, according to the Turin Canon and Palermo Stone , respectively. Attempts to equate Sekhemkhet with Tosertasis ,

5096-407: The Turin Canon gives a reign of only six years to an unnamed immediate predecessor of Huni . Toby Wilkinson suggests that this number fits Sanakht (whom he identifies concretely with Nebka), given the sparsity of archaeological evidence for him, but it could also be the reign length of Khaba or even Qahedjet , kings whose identities are uncertain. (Wilkinson places Nebka as the penultimate king of

5200-416: The West Valley as WV1 through WV4. The tombs in the West Valley were later incorporated into the East Valley numbering system as WV22 through WV25 , and tombs that have been opened since Wilkinson's time have been added to the list. The numbers range from KV1 (Rameses VII) to KV64 (discovered in 2011). Since the early 19th century AD, antiquarians and archaeologists have cleared and recorded tombs, with

5304-474: The West Valley, otherwise known as the Valley of the Monkeys. With the 2005 discovery of a new chamber and the 2008 discovery of two further tomb entrances, the Valley of the Kings is known to contain 65 tombs and chambers, ranging in size from the simple pit that is KV54 to the complex tomb that is KV5 , which alone has over 120 chambers for the sons of Ramesses II . It was the principal burial place for

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5408-414: The ancient necropolis of Saqqara. Three of the tombs were used for cats, some dating back to the Fifth and Sixth Dynasties, while one of four other sarcophagi was unsealed. Among the dozens of cat mummies were 100 wooden and gilded statues of cats and one in bronze dedicated to the cat goddess Bastet, and funerary items dating back to the 12th Dynasty . Another of the seven tombs belongs to Khufu-Imhat,

5512-404: The bodies were poorly preserved and all organic materials, including the wooden caskets, had decayed. The tombs discovered most recently (in 2018) form part of the younger, so-called Upper Necropolis. Most of the mummies we discovered last season were very modest, they were only subjected to basic embalming treatments, wrapped in bandages and placed directly in pits dug in the sand The research of

5616-471: The burial site next to the sacred temple of Anubis . It is thought that the mummified animals, mostly dogs, were intended to pass on the prayers of their owners to their deities. In July 2018, German-Egyptian researchers’ team head by Ramadan Badry Hussein of the University of Tübingen reported the discovery of an extremely rare gilded burial mask that probably dates from the Saite-Persian period in

5720-404: The central area of the valley. This central area appears to have been flooded at the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty , with several tombs buried under metres of debris. The tombs KV55 , KV62 , and KV63 are dug into the actual wadi bedrock rather than the debris, showing that the level of the valley was five meters below its present level. After this event, later dynasties levelled the floor of

5824-485: The country, and kings built their funerary complexes elsewhere. Few private monuments from this period have been found at Saqqara. During the New Kingdom , Memphis was an important administrative and military centre, being the capital after the Amarna Period. From the Eighteenth Dynasty onward, many high officials built tombs at Saqqara. While still a general, Horemheb built a large tomb here, although he later

5928-633: The cultivation facing Thebes . These mortuary temples became places visited during the various festivals held in the Theban necropolis. Most notable is the Beautiful festival of the valley , where the sacred barques of Amun-Re , his consort, Mut , and son, Khonsu , left the temple at Karnak in order to visit the funerary temples of deceased kings on the West Bank and their shrines in the Theban Necropolis . The tombs were constructed and decorated by

6032-418: The descending path of the sun god into the underworld) to the burial chamber. In the earlier tombs, the corridors turn 90 degrees at least once (such as KV43 , the tomb of Thutmose IV ), and the earliest ones had cartouche -shaped burial chambers (for example, KV43 , the tomb of Thutmose IV ). This layout is known as "Bent Axis", After the burial, the upper corridors were meant to be filled with rubble and

6136-501: The discovery of at least 59 sealed sarcophagi with mummies more than 2,600 years old. Archaeologists also revealed the 20 statues of Ptah-Soker and a carved 35-centimeter tall bronze statue of god Nefertem . On 19 October 2020, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities announced the discovery of gilded, wooden statues and more than 80 coffins in three burial shafts. Officials believed the coffins contain senior officials and priests from

6240-683: The duration of Khaba's reign is uncertain; a few Egyptologists believe Khaba was identical to Huni, but if Khaba is the same person as the Ramesside names Hudjeta II and Sednes , he could have reigned for six years. Valley of the Kings The Valley of the Kings , also known as the Valley of the Gates of the Kings , is an area in Egypt where, for a period of nearly 500 years from

6344-462: The earliest surviving pyramids , the Step Pyramid . Nebka's identification with Sanakht is uncertain; though many Egyptologists continue to support the theory that the two kings were one and the same man, opposition exists because this opinion rests on a single fragmentary clay seal discovered in 1903 by John Garstang . Though damaged, the seal displays the serekh of Sanakht, together with

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6448-502: The elaborately decorated tomb belonged to a man named Mehtjetju who served as a priest and an inspector of the royal property. Kamil O. Kuraszkiewicz, expedition director stated that Mehtjetju most likely lived at about the same time, at some point during the reigns of the first three rulers of the Sixth Dynasty : Teti , Userkare and Pepy I . In January 2023, Zahi Hawass announced the discovery of four tombs at Saqqara including

6552-591: The entrance to Khasekhemwy 's tomb at Abydos, which demonstrates that it was Djoser, rather than Sanakht, who buried and succeeded Khasekhemwy , who was the final king of the Second Dynasty. The Turin King List scribe wrote Djoser's name in red ink, which indicates the Ancient Egyptians' recognition of this king's historical importance in their culture. In any case, Djoser is the best known king of this dynasty, for commissioning his vizier Imhotep to build

6656-478: The entrance to the tomb hidden. After the Amarna Period , the layout gradually straightened, with an intermediate "Jogged Axis" (the tomb of Horemheb , KV57 is typical of this layout and is one of the tombs that is sometimes open to the public), to the generally "Straight Axis" of the late Nineteenth and Twentieth Dynasty tombs ( Ramesses III 's and Ramesses IX 's tombs, KV11 and KV6 respectively). As

6760-410: The excavation of the rock-tomb of his majesty, alone, no one seeing, no one hearing. The Valley was used for primary burials from approximately 1539 BC to 1075 BC. It 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 , although non-royal burials continued in usurped tombs. Despite its name, the Valley of

6864-545: The exploration and investigation noted below, only eleven of the tombs have actually been completely recorded. Many of the tombs have graffiti written by those ancient tourists. Jules Baillet has located over 2,100 Greek and Latin instances of graffiti, along with a smaller number in Phoenician , Cypriot , Lycian , Coptic , and other languages. The majority of the ancient graffiti is found in KV9, which contains just under

6968-412: The items may have been used by the king during his lifetime ( Tutankhamun 's sandals for example), and some were specially constructed for the burial. The modern abbreviation "KV" stands for "Kings' Valley". In 1827, Wilkinson painted KV numbers over the entrances to the 21 tombs that lay open in the East Valley at that time, beginning at the valley entrance and moving southward, and labeled four tombs in

7072-448: The last king of the Second Dynasty , it is now widely believed that Djoser is the founder of the Third Dynasty, as the direct successor of Khasekhemwy and the one responsible for finishing his tomb. These findings contradict earlier writings, like Wilkinson 1999, which proposed that Nebka / Sanakht was the founder of the dynasty. However, the two were not very far apart temporally; they may have been brothers, along with Sekhemkhet , as

7176-538: The last ruler of the Fifth Dynasty, was the first king to adorn the chambers in his pyramid with Pyramid Texts . During the Old Kingdom, it was customary for courtiers to be buried in mastaba tombs close to the pyramid of their king. Thus, clusters of private tombs were formed in Saqqara around the pyramid complexes of Unas and Teti . From the Middle Kingdom onward, Memphis was no longer the capital of

7280-445: The latter with the potential to be structurally unsound. The occasional layer of shale also caused construction (and in modern times, 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 rock the builders encountered. Builders took advantage of available geological features when constructing

7384-414: 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 to the bedrock in the valley floor. The area of the Theban hills is subject to infrequent, violent thunderstorms causing flash floods in the valley. Recent studies have shown that there are at least seven active flood stream beds leading down into

7488-484: The monumental enclosure wall around the Step Pyramid complex. Djoser's funerary complex, built by the royal architect Imhotep , further comprises a large number of dummy buildings and a secondary mastaba (the so-called 'Southern Tomb'). French architect and Egyptologist Jean-Philippe Lauer spent the greater part of his life excavating and restoring Djoser's funerary complex. Nearly all Fourth Dynasty kings chose

7592-411: The most imposing tomb of this period is that of Amenhotep III , WV22 , located in the West Valley. It was re-investigated in the 1990s by a team from Waseda University , Japan , but it is not open to the public. At the same time, powerful and influential nobles began to be buried with the royal family; the most famous of these tombs is the joint tomb of Yuya and Tjuyu , KV46 . They were possibly

7696-457: The mummy's gender by the shape of the hands on the coffin, open hands being female and hands balled into fists being male. The colors of the coffin inscriptions---made from limestone, red oak, turquoise, and other natural stones mixed with eggwhites—stayed intact, and the mixture of egg yolk and candle wax spread over the coffins to make them shine was still visible, making this a unique find. On April 28, 2020, archeologists announced they had found

7800-418: The nebty name Nebka. Dating the Third Dynasty is similarly challenging. Shaw gives the dates as being approximately from 2686 to 2613 BC. The Turin King List suggests a total of 75 years for the third dynasty. Baines and Malek have placed the third dynasty as spanning the years 2650–2575 BC, while Dodson and Hilton date the dynasty to 2584–2520 BC. It is not uncommon for these estimates to differ by more than

7904-496: The overseer of buildings in the royal palace. Also in November 2018, a collection of rare mummified scarab beetles was unearthed in two sarcophagi, one of which was decorated with paintings of large black beetles. Also in November 2018, the Egyptian government announced the discovery at Saqqara of a previously unknown 4,400-year-old tomb. It belongs to Wahtye , a high-ranking priest who served under King Neferirkare Kakai during

8008-410: The parents of Queen Tiy . Until the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, this was the best-preserved of the tombs that had been discovered in the Valley. The return of royal burials to Thebes after the end of the Amarna Period marks a change to the layout of royal burials, with the intermediate 'jogged axis' gradually giving way to the 'straight axis' of later dynasties. In the Western Valley, there

8112-515: The rest of the Theban Necropolis. Exploration, excavation, and conservation continues in the area and a new tourist centre has recently been opened. The Valley of the Kings is situated over 1,000 feet of limestone and other sedimentary rock, which form the cliffs in the valley and the nearby Deir el-Bahari , interspersed with soft layers of marl . The sedimentary rock was originally deposited between 35 and 56 million years ago during

8216-572: 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 each constructing a massive tomb used for the burial of their sons ( KV5 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

8320-618: The same king under multiple names. The archaeological evidence shows that Khasekhemwy , the last ruler of the Second Dynasty, was succeeded by Djoser, who at the time was only attested by his presumed Horus name Netjerikhet. Djoser's successor was Sekhemkhet , who had the Nebty name Djeserty. The last king of the dynasty is Huni, who may be the same person as Qahedjet or, less likely, Khaba . There are three remaining Horus names of known 3rd dynasty kings: Sanakht, Khaba, and perhaps Qahedjet. One of these three, by far most likely Sanakht, went by

8424-460: The sixth dynasty. In November 2021, archeologists from Cairo University discovered several tombs, including that of Batah-M-Woya, chief treasurer during the reign of Ramesses II , and of a military leader named Hor Mohib. In March 2022, five 4000-year-old tombs belonging to senior officials from the Old Kingdom and First Intermediary Period were discovered. On 30 May 2022, 250 sarcophagi and 150 statuettes were displayed at Saqqara, dated back to

8528-420: The smaller size and unusual layout for a royal tomb. The other Amarna Period tombs are located in a smaller, central area in the centre of the East Valley, with a possible mummy cache ( KV55 ) that may contain the burials of several Amarna Period royals – Tiy and Smenkhkare or Akhenaten . In close proximity is the burial of Tutankhamun, perhaps the most famous discovery of modern Western archaeology . It

8632-586: The sons of Khasekhemwy and his favoured consort Nimaathap . While Manetho names Necherophes, and the Turin King List names Nebka (a.k.a. Sanakht), as the first pharaoh of the Third Dynasty, many contemporary Egyptologists believe Djoser was the first king of this dynasty, pointing out the order in which some predecessors of Khufu are mentioned in the Papyrus Westcar suggests that Nebka should be placed between Djoser and Huni, and not before Djoser. More importantly, seals naming Djoser were found at

8736-481: The start of the 20th century, American explorer Theodore M. Davis held the excavation permit for the valley. His team (led mostly by Edward R. Ayrton ) discovered several royal and non-royal tombs (including KV43 , KV46 and KV57 ). In 1907, they discovered the possible Amarna Period cache in KV55. After finding what they thought was all that remained of the burial of Tutankhamun (items recovered from KV54 and KV58), it

8840-480: The sun god passing through the twelve gates that divide the nighttime and ensures the tomb owner's own safe passage through the night. These earliest tombs were generally sparsely decorated, and those of a non-royal nature were totally undecorated. Late in the Nineteenth Dynasty the Book of Caverns , which divided the underworld into massive caverns containing deities as well as the deceased waiting for

8944-493: The sun to pass through and restore them to life, was placed in the upper parts of tombs. A complete version appears in the tomb of Ramesses VI. The burial of Ramesses III saw the Book of the Earth , where the underworld is divided into four sections, climaxing in the sun disc being pulled from the earth by Naunet . The ceilings of the burial chambers were decorated (from the burial of Seti I onwards) with what became formalised as

9048-434: The surrounding areas of Abusir and Dahshur suffered damage by looters during the 2011 Egyptian protests . Store rooms were broken into, but the monuments were mostly unharmed. During routine excavations in 2011 at the dog catacomb in Saqqara necropolis, an excavation team led by Salima Ikram and an international team of researchers led by Paul Nicholson of Cardiff University uncovered almost eight million animal mummies at

9152-557: The tomb of Twosret , KV14 . When looking for a tomb, Ramesses III extended the partly excavated tomb started by his father. The tomb of Ramesses II returned to an early style, with a bent axis, probably due to the quality of the rock being excavated (following the Esna shale). Between 1998 and 2002, the Amarna Royal Tombs Project investigated the valley floor using ground-penetrating radar and found that, below

9256-512: The tomb of Psammis, son of Necho ), is usually regarded as the finest tomb in the valley. It has extensive relief work and paintings. When it was rediscovered by Belzoni in 1817, he referred to it as "a fortunate day." The son of Seti, Ramesses II (Ramesses the Great), constructed a massive tomb, KV7 , but it is in a ruinous state. It is currently undergoing excavation and conservation by a Franco-Egyptian team led by Christian Leblanc . The tomb

9360-495: The tombs had been located and nothing of note remained to be found. Working at the same time was Bernardino Drovetti , the French Consul-General and a great rival of Belzoni and Salt. John Gardner Wilkinson , who lived in Egypt from 1821 to 1832, copied many of the inscriptions and artwork in the tombs that were open at the time. The decipherment of hieroglyphs , though still incomplete during Wilkinson's stay in

9464-414: The tombs' axes straightened, the slopes also lessened. They almost disappeared in the late Twentieth Dynasty. Another feature that is common to most tombs is the "well", which may have originated as an actual barrier intended to stop flood waters from entering the lower parts of the tomb. It seems to have developed a "magical" purpose later as a symbolic shaft. In the later Twentieth Dynasty, the well itself

9568-433: The tombs. Some tombs were quarried out of existing limestone clefts, others behind slopes of scree , and some were at the edge of rock spurs created by ancient flood channels. The problems of tomb construction can be seen with the tombs of Ramesses III and his father Setnakhte . Setnakhte started to excavate KV11 but unintentionally broke into the tomb of Amenmesse , so construction was abandoned and he instead usurped

9672-436: The top of scree slopes, under storm-fed waterfalls ( KV34 and KV43 ). As these locations were filled, burials descended to the valley floor, gradually moving back up the slopes as the valley bottom filled with debris. This explains the location of the tombs KV62 and KV63 buried in the valley floor. The usual tomb plan consisted of a long inclined rock-cut corridor, descending through one or more halls (possibly mirroring

9776-480: The tourism and antiquities ministry announced the discovery of more than 50 wooden sarcophagi in 52 burial shafts which date back to the New Kingdom period, each around 30 to 40 feet deep, and a 13 ft-long papyrus that contains texts from Chapter 17 of the Book of the Dead . The papyrus scroll belonged to a man named Bu-Khaa-Af, whose name is written on it, on his sarcophagus, and on four ushabtis . Excerpts from

9880-559: The valley, enabled him to assemble a chronology of New Kingdom rulers based on the inscriptions in the tombs. He also established the system of tomb numbering that has been in use, with additions, ever since. The second half of the century saw a more concerted effort to preserve, rather than simply gather, antiquities. Auguste Mariette 's Egyptian Antiquities Service started to explore the valley, first with Eugène Lefébure in 1883, then Jules Baillet and Georges Bénédite in early 1888, and finally Victor Loret in 1898 to 1899. Loret added

9984-484: The valley, making the floods deposit their load further down the valley, and the buried tombs were forgotten and only discovered in the early 20th century. This was the area that was the subject of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project ground-scanning radar investigation, which showed several anomalies, one of which was proved to be KV63. The Theban Hills are dominated by the peak of al-Qurn , known to

10088-426: 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 through various routes over the Theban hills. The daily lives of these workers are quite well known due to their being recorded in tombs and official documents. Amongst the events documented is perhaps the first recorded workers' strike, detailed in

10192-400: Was announced that the valley was completely explored and that no further burials were to be found. Davis's 1912 publication, The Tombs of Harmhabi and Touatânkhamanou closes with the comment, "I fear that the Valley of Kings is now exhausted." After Davis's death early in 1915, Lord Carnarvon acquired the concession to excavate the valley, and he employed Howard Carter to explore it. After

10296-517: Was at Abydos . The first royal burials at Saqqara, comprising underground galleries, date to the early Second Dynasty reigns of Hotepsekhemwy , Raneb and Nynetjer . This is followed by a hiatus, with Seth-Peribsen and Khasekhemwy , the last Second Dynasty king, both buried in Abydos. Khasekhemwy may nonetheless also have built a funerary monument at Saqqara consisting of a large rectangular enclosure, known as Gisr el-Mudir , although this enclosure could also belong to Nynetjer. It probably inspired

10400-419: Was buried as pharaoh in the Valley of the Kings at Thebes. Other important tombs belong to the vizier Aperel , the vizier Neferronpet , the artist Thutmose , and the wet-nurse of Tutankhamun , Maia . Many monuments from earlier periods were still standing, but dilapidated by this period. Prince Khaemweset , son of Pharaoh Ramesses II , made repairs to buildings at Saqqara. Among other things, he restored

10504-401: Was discovered by Howard Carter on 4 November 1922, with clearance and conservation work continuing until 1932. This was the first royal tomb to be discovered that was still largely intact, although tomb robbers had entered. Until the excavation of KV63 on 10 March 2005, it was considered the last major discovery in the valley. The opulence of his grave goods notwithstanding, Tutankhamun was

10608-480: Was in a small rock cut chamber, close to the tomb of their master. 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. With the return to religious orthodoxy at the end of the Eighteenth Dynasty, Tutankhamun , Ay , and Horemheb returned to

10712-522: Was in the Deir el-Bahari tomb cache ), Smenkhkare's burial has never been located, and Ramesses VIII seems to have been buried elsewhere. In the Pyramid Age , the pyramid tomb of a king was associated with a mortuary temple located close to the pyramid. Since the tombs of the kings in the Valley of the Kings were hidden, the kings' mortuary temples were located away from their burial sites, closer to

10816-488: Was sometimes not excavated (by the builders), but the well room was still present. 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'), which 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

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