We boarded a boat at our hotel dock at 4pm for a quick 10 min ferry across the river; then to a shuttle bus that transported us to the Valley of the Kings archeological site. We arrived just before 5pm as the site was closing and security was escorting the last few straggling tourists out the gate. Shortly after, we were inside the tomb complex with our guide, Nash.
The Valley of the Kings is nestled within the hills of ancient Thebes and was an important burial ground for the royalty of the Egyptian Middle and New Kingdoms. The pyramid shaped peak of the mountain al-Qurn, translated as the Horn, dominates the otherwise desolate landscape. The first tomb belonging to the pharaoh Ramses Vll was discovered and opened in Roman times, but excavation in the valley began in earnest in 1820’s and since then discovered tombs have been numbered from KV 1 through 63. There are currently 57 teams of archeologists working the west bank of the Nile; ironically Egyptian teams have only been on site since 2017 but have discovered nine tombs during this time. Archeologists believe there are at least two more undiscovered tombs. Additionally, a worker’s village was discovered in the valley, providing insight into the lives and culture of those who built the tombs and supported royalty’s transition to the afterlife.
Nash was a gifted storyteller, a former teacher, who magically make history come alive through sharing of interesting tales. We were in small groups of eight and would have private access to four different tombs this evening. Nash immediately steered us to her favorite and the most elaborate tomb of the tour, that of Seti I who she claimed was also one of the most handsome pharaohs. I was at the front of the group as we approached the opening of the tomb; the guard offered me the chance to push open the wooden door and lead the group underground.
We descended almost 440 feet down a wooden staircase into the first chamber of the tomb. Above the portico of the first room, we could see the falcon, tribute to the god, Khonsu. Our jaws dropped as we saw the beautiful paintings and base reliefs, in full color covering the walls and ceiling of the outer room.
We moved into a second room with large columns. Although the ceiling was mostly destroyed, paintings on the walls and lower portion of the columns were still intact. Not bad for a tomb constructed in later part of 12th century BC and discovered in 1817.
We were drawn to a large mural, shimmering gold with people and boats and animals and cartouches towards the back of the columned room. Below the mural in a lower room, was Seti’s burial chamber, minus the sarcophagus that had long ago been moved to a museum
Above the mural, the ceiling was beautifully illustrated with images that depicted two animals leading a procession of figures with human bodies and assorted animal heads, all with circles above. Per Nash, these circles represent the sun and are associated with the sun god, Ra.
Seti ruled between 1290-1279 BCE; his reign is known for achievements in art and culture so his tomb is one of the largest and most decorated and became the standard for the remainder of the tombs in the valley that followed. There were several side chambers also fully decorated despite the fact that Seti only reigned for 11 years.
The next tomb on our itinerary was that of Ramses IX who ruled almost 150 years after Seti. We entered down a wooden ramp through a wide entrance into an antechamber decorated with animals, serpents and demons from the Book of the Dead.
A pillared hallway with a well-preserved painted ceiling and base reliefs on the walls led to the burial chamber. Although Ramses ruled for 18 years, unlike Seti’s, his tomb was unfinished.
In ancient Egypt, construction was started on the pharaoh’s tomb immediately and work continued until he died. The size and detail of the tomb was a function of length of reign but also could signify, as in the case of Seti, the power and importance of the ruler.
The next tomb we visited was one of the most famous, but the least impressive of the four – that of Tutankhamun or King Tut. The discovery of the tomb in 1922 by the British Egyptologist Howard Carter created a global sensation not so much because of the tomb itself but because its four rooms were filled with over 5000 objects; an impressive collection of jewelry, statues, chariots, weapons, furniture, musical instruments, jars and food, all the things a ruler would need for the afterlife. These artifacts are displayed in the Egyptian museum in Cairo so the tomb itself is only composed of four partially finished rooms; this has lead Egyptologists to speculate that Tut may have died suddenly so his mummy was buried in a tomb intended for someone else. He became pharaoh at the age of 14 and died 11 years later.
The bizarre thing about this tomb was that Tut’s mummified body was displayed in one of the rooms. Enclosed in a glass case, the body was unwrapped, covered by a thin piece of white linen with head and feet exposed. Rather undignified, he looked like a dried, shriveled prune. Despite the no photographs sign, the afterhours tomb attendant grabbed my camera, stood on the rail and snapped a picture, then asked for a tip.
The only item in the beautifully decorated burial chamber in Tutankhamun’s tomb is his sarcophagus, a large crack across its quartzite lid.
It was getting dark as we hiked up a small hill to the final tomb we would visit for the evening, the tomb of Merneptah who ruled from 1213-1203 BCE.
Mernepthah’s tomb was one of the larger ones in the Valley of Kings, with several corridors beautifully decorated with imagery from the Book of the Dead. As Nash explained, The Book of the Dead was not really a book but the tacit knowledge of funerary traditions and spells that helped the deceased find their way to the afterlife to become united with Osiris, the god of the dead.
At the entrance to the burial chamber, the stone coffin that originally entombed Merneptah’s body was on display, empty now since the mummy was moved years ago to the museum in Cairo. Mernaptah’s likeness was molded into the lid giving us an idea of what the king might have looked like.
Recessed and gated off from the coffin, was the alabaster sarcophagus with some of its original etchings. As we were taking pictures, the afterhours attendant in this tomb saw an opportunity to delight us and make some tip money so he let us cross the gate, walk along the outer edge of the chamber and jump down into the sarcophagus. It was surreal to be inside the outer structure that entombed a pharaoh who’d died over 2400 years ago.
Exhilarated by our private tomb visits, we left the the Valley of the Kings for dinner. One more amazing surprise awaited. Exiting the shuttle, we followed a path marked with luminaries towards a softly floodlit temple.
Costumed ancient Egyptian soldiers escorted us to beautifully set tables at the front of temple. Our dinner venue this evening -the Medinet Habu Temple of Ramses III, a mortuary temple, erected not far from his tomb that we’d just visited. Mortuary temples were constructed after a pharaoh’s death to commemorate his reign and keep his cult alive after his death.
Ligthed flowers, suns and stars were projected on the face of the temple, illuminating the inscribed glyphs and pictures that depicted major battles that Ramses III had successfully won during his reign. Egyptian dancers in shimmering gold capes emerged from the temple entrance, spinning and twirling to the beat of clappers and flutes. As they danced, their outstretched arms resembled the wings of the falcons so revered by Egyptian pharaohs.
We enjoyed a wonderful dinner and an evening of music and dance under the stars. What a fitting end to an amazing few days in Luxor. Tomorrow we are off the Cairo to experience the ancient Egyptian wonders of the Old Kingdom, 1000 years older than those in Luxor!
