“From the beginning of the New Kingdom (c.1550-1069 BC), kings were no longer buried in the pyramids in the north of Egypt but in tombs cut into the cliffs of the Valley of the Kings on the west bank of the Nile at Thebes. The walls of the royal tombs are covered with scenes depicting the pharaoh in the company of gods on his journey through the underworld. For ancient Egyptians, death was not the end but the entrance to eternal life. Those who could afford to, spent the greater part of their adult life preparing for it. Soon after coronation the king would start work on their tomb, a suitable spot would be chosen, plan drawn up and decoration for walls decided.” (Oakes and Gahlin, 2007)
We entered the Valley via donkey ride and passed the Colossi of Memnon, which are two statues of Amenhotep III. The site would have been larger than Karnak Temple, but this is all that remains.
The Valley of the Kings is a very remote desert with actually two valleys. We visited three tombs today. The first was the tomb of Tuthmosis III (Tuthmosis meaning son of Thoth (baboon god of wisdom/writing)). He reigned from 1479-1425 BC during the 18th Dynasty; however his reign includes 22 years he was co-regent to Hatshepsut-his stepmother and aunt (more on her below)
Tuthmosis III’s tomb is one of the most sophisticated in the Valley of the Kings. Upon entering down a steep dark stairway and crossing a small bridge we can smell a musk from the tomb. We pass a room full of writings on the walls into a second deeper chamber revealing the sarcophagus of the Pharaoh himself. The tomb has inscriptions on it, is red and is located towards the back of the room. This is the first sarcophagus I have been able to see and touch up close, without protection of a barrier or glass. The walls in the burial chamber are also covered in writings including a complete text of the Book of Amduat, which Egyptians called “Book of the Secret Room”. Amduat means “that which there is in the afterlife”, the book is divided into twelve parts representing the hours in the night.
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The second tomb we visited was that of Seti II, the fifth ruler of the 19th Dynasty (c.1200-c.1194 BC). The tomb consists of a short straight entryway to the funerary chamber.
The final tomb we visited was Ramses IX, the eighth ruler of the 20th Dynasty (c.1126-c.1108 BC). This tomb is amazingly well preserved; even the color of the paint is still distinguished. However, this tomb was also built during a period of frequent tomb robberies and civic troubles in Egypt.
After leaving the Valley of the Kings we make the short journey to the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut. Hatshepsut (or as Mustafa calls her- hot chicken soup) ruled Egypt as Queen between about 1479 and 1458 BC. A reign as long as hers was extremely unusual as women had ruled before, but only to old title for a male ruler to come of age.
Hatshepsut married Tuthmosis II but could only produce daughters with him; as a result he married again to another woman and gave birth to an heir, her half son Tuthmosis III. The boy was still a child upon his father’s death and so Hatshepsut took over as Queen on his behalf for seven years and then they ruled jointly for 14-15 years.
Despite her successful reign subsequent rulers came to efface her name wherever possible from monuments. The temple has three massive terraces and features the Chapel of Hathor (mother goddess) and the Chapel of Anubis.
Tonight we went to a nice restaurant where I was able to enjoy a good steak. Later we had an overnight train back to Cairo.
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