6 - 12 September 2001
Issue No.550
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Al-Ahram Weekly Online 6 - 12 September 2001 Issue No.550 |
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Dig days
The Golden tomb
The Valley of the Kings contains the tombs of about 30 Pharaohs, few of which have been safe from the tomb robber. The most important and well-known was, of course, the tomb of Tutankhamun, discovered by Howard Carter in 1922, which, as you might remember, gave rise to a controversy about the so-called curse of the Pharaohs, and which contained a golden treasure horde which is now in the Cairo Museum.
But this is not the "Golden Tomb" I am talking about here. There is another in the royal valley, No 56, known only among scholars. It was found back in 1908, before the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, and its discoverer was a certain "Ayrton." It was called the Golden Tomb because archaeologists found marvellous treasures inside it, including bracelets, amulets, and necklaces, silver gloves and sandals. The inscribed evidence in the tomb revealed that it belonged to Queen Twosret and her husband, Seti II. When her husband died the legal successor was but a boy, so the queen apparently acted as regent and ruled Egypt for six years.
As I always say, any discovery in the Valley of the Kings inevitably gives rise to mysteries. Scholars begin to formulate theories, and every one has a different opinion. In this case, some scholars believed that the Golden Tomb was the first intact tomb to be discovered in the Valley; others said the gold belonged to Queen Twosret, but that this was not her original resting place; that it had been moved there from another tomb.
More recently, controversy about the tomb has surfaced again. Nicholas Reeves, an English Egyptologist who has written books about the Valley of the Kings, believes the tomb belonged to Queen Nefertiti, wife of Akhenaten.
An aura of mystery surrounds Queen Nefertiti, to be sure. Her husband worshipped a single god, called Aten, to the exclusion of all others. Some scholars hold that she became Akhenaten's co- regent at the end of his reign, after Akhenaten founded a new capital in Middle Egypt known today as Tell El-Amarna. They say she changed her name to Nefer-Neferu-Aten, which means "Beautiful is the beauty of the Aten."
But when Reeves began to be interested in working in the Golden Tomb, another possibility presented itself. He and the archaeologist Geoffrey Martin came to meet me and Gaballa A Gaballa, the head of antiquities, and I must say I was glad that Martin, who worked at Saqqara for a long time and made major discoveries there, would be cooperating with Reeves in the Valley of the Kings.
They began their first season in the Golden Tomb three years ago, 90 years after the last excavation there. When they began to excavate everyone watched their progress anxiously, hoping they would find something in the valley which had been silent since the discovery of the tomb of King Tutankhamun, the golden boy.
They cleared inside the tomb and met their first surprise when they discovered a piece of a gold bracelet inscribed with the name of Pharaoh Seti II. The English expedition then moved the focus of its work to another place, the cliff where Carter cleared workmen's huts before he found the tomb of Tutankhamun. Martin and Reeves hope to discover a royal tomb in this area, and now believe that one of the "Amarna people" could be buried there.
So far, the excavation has resulted in the finding of other artifacts, such as a limestone block inscribed with a scene showing a man standing in an attitude of adoration, and a piece of pottery depicting a sexual scene and the name of Seti I, father of the famous Pharaoh Rameses II. But there has been nothing from the time of Akhenaten and Nefertiti.
However, rumours began to circulate in the United States and Europe that the team had found two royal tombs. The American public began to ask me questions at my lectures, such as: Did the expedition find the tomb of Nefertiti? I always say no, not yet...
But the Valley of the Kings is a fascinating site, a place of mystery. The necropolis will continue to yield evidence which will ensure that rumours circulate for years to come.
I went to Luxor last year and, with my friend Sabri Abdel-Aziz, head of Antiquities at Luxor, visited the excavation site and examined the area. As one who has excavated in Egypt for the last 30 years, I can "smell" (metaphorically of course) what is hidden under the sand. I could "see" the remains of the workmen's huts near the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb, but I must confess that I could not detect any hint of a tomb waiting to be discovered. I believe that Carter thoroughly excavated the whole site, and my hopes are not high for a discovery of the Amarna period.
While I still hope that Martin's and Reeves' dream of a discovery will come true; and while I do not rule out the possibility of a discovery -- because, after all, who knows what the sands of Egypt may yield -- my hopes are not high ...
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