Valley of the Queens
| Valley of the Queens in hieroglyphics | ||||||||
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Ta-set-neferu T3-st-nfrw The place of beauty |
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The Valley of the Queens ( Arabic بيبان الحريم, DMG Bībān al-Ḥarīm orوادي الملكات / Wādī al-Malikāt , Egypt .: Ta-set-neferu "the place of beauty") is a necropolis of the ancient Thebes in Egypt .
The Valley of the Queens is south of the Valley of the Kings in Thebes- West. Close relatives of the rulers of the late 17th , 18th , 19th and 20th dynasties were buried here in over 90 graves . The term was chosen to be analogous to "Valley of the Kings", but this term is misleading as not only queens were buried here. The most important tomb is that of Nefertari ( QV66 ), the great royal consort of Ramses II (19th dynasty).
In 1979 UNESCO added the Valley of the Queens, the Valley of the Kings, Karnak , Luxor and other sites in Thebes to the list of World Heritage Sites .
topography
The valley is a cut running from east to west into the Theban Mountains. Its entrance is almost exactly behind Medinet Habu and the mortuary temple of Ramses III. In contrast to the Valley of the Kings , the necropolis is not hidden between the rocky mountains, but is accessible without any obstacles, which made it easier to plunder the graves in ancient times. The side wadis also contain tombs, so that the Valley of the Queens is just one of several burial sites.
An important reason for choosing the location was, as with the Valley of the Kings, obviously the mountain el-Qurn in the background of the wadi, the shape of which gives the impression of a huge natural pyramid. Another reason was probably a cascading cave in the background of the valley. When it rains heavily, a small waterfall pours over the grotto, and the specially shaped incision of the grotto absorbs the water masses. There is a connection to the goddess Hathor , the patroness of grottos and rock chapels. This is proven by various wall paintings in the cave-like incision, in which Hathor is shown in her human form or as a cow.
history
The early graves, which date to the end of the 17th and early 18th dynasties, are mainly simple shafts with one chamber. During this time, mostly high officials were buried here, for example a vizier ( QV46 ) or a stable master ( QV30 ). The first tomb of a queen may belong to Mutnedjemet , the wife of Haremhab , who may have had her tomb in QV37 .
It was not until the 19th dynasty that the place became a regular burial place for royal wives. The first safe queen to be named is Satre , the wife of Ramses I , whose tomb, however, was never completed. From this time on, the graves were also decorated with reliefs and paintings, whereas before they were always without decoration. With Mut-Tuya , the wife of Seti I , another queen received a grave in the valley. In the following generation, under Ramses II, five of the ruler's seven main wives were buried here.
In the period that followed, however, only a few queens such as Titi or Tanedjemet were buried, whose precise classification in Egyptian history is still uncertain. Under Ramses III. Finally some princes were buried here, who could call their own relatively large and richly decorated tombs. A final phase of use dates to the Third Intermediate Period . At that time, some of the old graves were used as mass graves.
architecture
There are three basic types of graves:
- The graves of the 18th dynasty: These oldest systems are simple, undecorated shaft graves. These usually only had one room, more rarely one or two side chambers. They are neither relief nor painted, which makes it difficult to identify the owner. They are mainly princes, but also princesses, dignitaries and officials.
- The graves of the queens of the 19th and 20th dynasties: In contrast to the graves of the 18th dynasty, these graves were laid out as real burial homes and form a veritable counterpart to the Valley of the Kings. They usually consist of two large rooms one behind the other. There were up to five secondary chambers. They are usually richly decorated. The representations follow a specific iconographic program: the journey of the deceased into the realm of Osiris (beyond) and to the light of Re (this world).
- The prince graves of the 20th dynasty are long, tube-like structures, of which only the last room, the burial chamber, is slightly larger. Adjoining rooms can be accessed from all rooms.
A special feature of these graves is the lack of any trace of superstructures. Neither signs of small cult buildings nor of grave steles were found in the vicinity. First of all, one has to consider that there never was any superstructure and therefore there never was a grave cult, which is rather unlikely in view of the noble rank of the buried people. Another possibility would be that burial chapels were built and eventually destroyed, but in this case traces should have been found. There is still a third possibility: there was a clear separation between the grave and the cult building. The latter could have been in a completely different location than the necropolis, perhaps near the million year houses of the 18th dynasty.
exploration
Some representations in the graves were copied by the Italian Ippolito Rosellini around 1828/29 . Other visitors were members of the Lepsius expedition in 1840 , who in turn copied individual scenes and described various tombs. Systematic excavations took place between 1903 and 1905, mainly by the Italian Ernesto Schiaparelli , who also discovered the grave of Nefertari ( QV66 ). In 1924 and from 1936 to 1937 Giulio Farina undertook further investigations, which remained relatively unsuccessful and so he returned the Italian excavation concession to the antiquities administration .
Although the most important graves have been well documented and prepared for tourism, dozens of other graves are lacking thorough documentation and adequate restoration work. In order to do justice to this, the CEDAE ( Center d'Etude et de Documentation sur l'ancienne Egypte ), in collaboration with the CNRS ( Center national de la recherche scientifique ) , has been working since 1968 to take thorough protective measures to preserve the graves in the Valley of the Queens .
List of graves
- QV1 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV2 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV3 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV4 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV5 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV6 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV7 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV8 - Prince Hori and unknown princess, 18th Dynasty
- QV9 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV10 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV11 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV12 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV13 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV14 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV15 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV16 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV17 - Princess Meritre (I) and Urmerutes, 18th Dynasty
- QV18 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV19 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV20 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV21 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV22 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV23 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV24 - unknown, 20th Dynasty
- QV25 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV26 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV27 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV28 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV29 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV30 - Nebiri, 18th Dynasty
- QV31 - unknown princess or queen, 19th Dynasty
- QV32 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV33 - Tanedjemet, 19th Dynasty
- QV34 - unknown princess or queen, early 19th Dynasty
- QV35 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV36 - unknown princess or queen, early 19th Dynasty
- QV37 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV38 - Satre (mother of King Sethos I ), early 19th dynasty
- QV39 - unknown
- QV40 - unknown princess or queen, early 19th Dynasty
- QV41 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV42 - Paraherwenemef , 20th Dynasty
- QV43 - Sethherchepeschef , 20th Dynasty
- QV44 - Chaemwaset , 20th Dynasty
- QV45 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV46 - Vizier Imhotep , 18th Dynasty
- QV47 - King's daughter Ahmose 17th-18th centuries dynasty
- QV48 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV49 - unknown, 19. – 20. dynasty
- QV50 - unknown, 19. – 20. dynasty
- QV51 - Isis II ( Isettahemdjert ), 20th Dynasty
- QV52 - Titi, 20th Dynasty
- QV53 - Ramses-Meriamun (Prince's Tomb of Ramses IV ), 20th Dynasty
- QV54 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV55 - Amunherchepeschef , 20th Dynasty
- QV56 - unfinished tomb, 19th Dynasty
- QV57 - unfinished tomb, 19th Dynasty
- QV58 - unknown, 19th Dynasty
- QV59 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV60 - Nebettaui , 19th Dynasty
- QV61 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV62 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV63 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV64 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV65 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV66 - Nefertari Meri-en-Mut, 19th Dynasty
- QV67 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV68 - Meritamun , 19th Dynasty
- QV69 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV70 - Nehesi, 18th Dynasty
- QV71 - Princess Bintanat , 19th Dynasty
- QV72 - Princess Neferhat and Prince Baki, 18th Dynasty
- QV73 - Henut-taui, 19th Dynasty
- QV74 - Tentopet (Duatentipet), 20th Dynasty
- QV75 - Henut-mi-Ra, 19th Dynasty
- QV76 - Princess Meritre II, 18th Dynasty
- QV77 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV78 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV79 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV80 - (Mut-) Tuja , 19th Dynasty
- QV81 - Heka- (..), 18th Dynasty
- QV82 - Prince Minemhat and Amenhotep, 18th Dynasty
- QV83 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV84 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV85 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV86 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
- QV87 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV88 - Ahmes (Prince), 18th Dynasty
- QV89 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV90 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV91 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV92 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV93 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV94 - unknown, 18th Dynasty
- QV95 - unfinished tomb, 20th Dynasty
literature
- Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt : Graffiti de la Montagne thébaine. I-1, 1969-1970.
- Erik Hornung : Valley of the Kings - The resting place of the pharaohs. 1985.
- Christian Leblanc, Alberto Siliotti: Nefertari - excavations in the valley of the queens. Bechtermünz, Augsburg 1998, ISBN 3-8289-0705-9 .
- Christian Leblanc: Architecture et évolution chronologique des tombes de la Vallée des Reines. In: Bulletin de l'Institut français d'archéologie Orientale (BIFAO) Vol. 89, 1989, pp. 227-247.
- Christian Leblanc: Ta set neferou - une nécropole de Thèbes-Ouest et son histoire I. 1989.
- Christian Leblanc: The valley of the queens. In: Kent R. Weeks: In the Valley of the Kings. Of funerary art and the cult of the dead of the Egyptian rulers. 2001.
- Heike C. Schmidt, Joachim Willeitner : Nefertari - wife of Ramses' II. (= Zabern's illustrated books on archeology. Volume 10). Zabern, Mainz 1994, ISBN 3-8053-1529-5 , pp. 89-93.
- Ernesto Schiaparelli : Relazione sui lavori della Missione archeologica italiana in Egitto. I. Esplorazione della "Valle delle Regine" nella necropoli di Thebe. 1924.
- Kurt Lange, Max Hirmer: Egypt. Architecture, sculpture, painting in three millennia. Hirmer, Munich 1985.
Web links
- Official website of the Egyptian Antiquities Administration (English)
- Project of the Getty Conservation Institute (English)
- Ancient Theban Sites: Valley of the Queens
Individual evidence
- ^ Rainer Hannig: The language of the pharaohs - large concise dictionary German-Egyptian. 2000, p. 1273, and on the different spellings Christian Leblanc: Ta set neferou - une nécropole de Thèbes-Ouest et son histoire I. 1989, p. 14 ff.
- ↑ Entry on the website of the UNESCO World Heritage Center ( English and French ).
- ^ Christian Leblanc: Ta set neferou - une nécropole de Thèbes-Ouest et son histoire I. 1989, p. 11 ff., And Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt: Graffiti de la Montagne thébaine. I-1, 1969-1970, pp. XXI.
- ^ HC Schmidt, J. Willeitner: Nefertari. 1994, p. 91 ff .; Christian Leblanc: The valley of the queens. In: Kent R. Weeks: In the Valley of the Kings. Of funerary art and the cult of the dead of the Egyptian rulers. 2001, p. 281 ff. And Christian Leblanc: Architecture et évolution chronologique des tombes de la Vallée des Reines. In: BIFAO. 89, 1989, pp. 227-247.
- ^ Christian Leblanc: Architecture et évolution chronologique des tombes de la Vallée des Reines. In: BIFAO. 89, 1989, p. 230 ff.
- ^ Christian Leblanc: Ta set neferou. 1989, pp. 45-52.
Coordinates: 25 ° 43 ′ 42 " N , 32 ° 35 ′ 35" E