Located in Middle Egypt, the Tombs of the Nobles at Amarna are the burial places of some of the powerful courtiers and persons of the city of Akhetaten.
The tombs are in 2 groups, cut into the cliffs and bluffs in the east of the dry bay of Akhetaten. There are 25 major tombs, many of them decorated and with their owners name, some are small and unfinished, others modest and unassuming. Each seems to reflect the personality and patronage of the tomb's original owner.
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Northern tombs
These tombs are located in 2 groups in the cliffs overlooking the city of Akhetaten, to the north and east of the city. They are split into to 2 groups by a Wadi, and are near to one of the Boundary Stelae (Stelae V).
Tomb 2: The tomb of Meryra II.
Tomb 3: The tomb of Ahmes (also spelled Ahmose).
Tomb 4: The tomb of Meryra (also called Meryre I).
It, like many of these tombs, is incomplete. Had it been completed, it would have been the largest of the noble's tombs. In later times it was reused as a coptic house (or possibly a church).
Tomb 5: The tomb of Penthu. It is cross shaped, containing a long outer hall, and a long trasverse hall, containing the burial shaft and a now destroyed shrine to Penthu. Only the outer hall is decorated.
Tomb 6: The tomb of Panehsy.
This was originally a 2 roomed tomb, each of the rooms had 4 columns. Later reuse as a Coptic church has changed the layout and damaged the original decoration.
Desert altars
A short distance to the west and north of the Northern Tombs lie the remains of three large mud-brick solar altars in the form of platforms with ramps. The reason for their location is not clear. Their connection with an ancient road leading to the Northern Tombs would seem to be a sign that they were for the benefit of those buried in them.
Southern tombs
The southern tombs are located in a series of low bluffs south and east of the main city. Associated with these tombs a recently discovered workers cemetery has been found. [1]
Tomb 7: The tomb of Parennefer, who had another tomb in Thebes, Egypt.
Tomb 7a: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 7b: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 7c: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 8: The tomb of Tutu.
Tomb 9: The tomb of Mahu.
Tomb 9a: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 9b: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 9c: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 10: The tomb of Ipy.
Tomb 11: The tomb of Ramose.
Tomb 12: The tomb of Nekhtpaaten.
Tomb 13: The tomb of Neferkheperuhesekheper.
Tomb 14: The tomb of May.
Tomb 15: The tomb of Suti.
Tomb 16: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 17: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 18: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 19: The tomb of Satau.
Tomb 20: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 21: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 22: The owner of this tomb is unknown.
Tomb 23: The tomb of Any.
Tomb 24: The tomb of Paatenemheb.
Tomb 25: The tomb of Ay, a future pharaoh of Ancient Egypt.
Tomb 25a The tomb of Ia (?)
Rediscovery and excavation
Some the tombs have obviously been open since antiquity, and have been used variously as burial places in the Ptolemaic times, store houses, houses and as coptic churches.
Notes and references
References
- ^ "The Pharaoh's Lost City". http://open2.net/timewatch/2008/pharaoh.html. Retrieved 2008-01-29.
Further reading
- N. de G. Davis - The Rock Cut Tombs of El Amarna. Society for the Study of Egyptian Antiquities, 2004 (ISBN 0-85698-160-5).
- Owen, Gwil - The Amarna courtiers' tombs. Egyptian Archaeology Autumn 2000
External links
- City of Amarna, including all Tombs
- Northern tomb no. 1 of Huya
- Northern tomb no. 3 of Ahmes/Ahmose
- Northern tomb no. 4 of Meryra/Meryre I
- Northern tomb no. 6 of Panhesy
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