The Tombs of the Nobles

by Jean Smith, the President of the Egyptian Society of South Africa in Cape Town.

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The barren hills on the west bank are honeycombed with tombs of nobles and officials of the Middle and New Kingdoms. These are divided into two sections called the Upper and Lower Enclosure.

In the Lower Enclosure, one of the three tombs most visited is that of the Vizier Ramose (Vizier under two Pharoahs, one being AmenhotepIV - the future Heretic Pharaoh Akhenaton).

As Vizier, Ramose’s tomb is particularly grand and spacious, with pillared halls and fine reliefs; some of these show him and his wife in an offering ceremony. There is also a purification ceremony and a good banquet scene. Of interest are the reliefs depicting the future Akhenaton, on one wall in traditional style but on another portrayed in the exaggerated Amarnan style; he and his queen Nefertiti are depicted decorating Ramose with awards of some sort. In this tomb is a well known depiction of a group of mourning women.

The second tomb is that of the Scribe of the Granaries, Nakht; in his tomb, as one would expect, are scenes of sowing and ploughing. There is a charming scene of a graceful lady lute player; she is accompanied by other musicians as well as dancers. An interesting feature is Nakht’s chair, under which crouches a bristling cat; it has some food that it appears to have stolen from the table laden with food; it’s not known if this has any significance or if it’s merely a charming detail in this small tomb.

A tomb well worth seeing but often not included in visits to the area is that of Rekhmire, Vizier to an earlier Pharaoh, Thutmose III and his son Amenhotep II. Although the reliefs are not in good condition, few other tombs show us real life scenes in such detail. Among these are such scenes as tax collecting, Rekhmire officiating in a law court; and receiving tribute from foreigners, including Cretans with their distinctive vases. Most of the trades are represented as well - bead and sandal-makers, leather and metal workers, carpenters and gold and silver smiths. Rekhmire supervised construction of one of the gateways at Karnak temple; the people shown making the bricks are foreign prisoners of war.

In the Upper Enclosure, the only tomb usually visited is that of Menna, Scribe of the Fields under the New Kingdom PharoahThutmose IV (ca.1401-1391BCE). Appropriately, this tomb deals almost completely with the harvest. However there are some charming scenes of everyday life which include a scene of a young girl taking a thorn from another’s foot as well as two girls who appear to be quarrelling! Strange scenes to take to eternity!

Strangely Menna’s face has been carefully effaced; reasons suggested for this desecration are personal vengeance on the part of his enemies. As the image of the dead man was believed too be animated by his soul, to efface the image of a man was to destroy his identity. Another possible reason was that it was done by grave robbers trying to stave off retaliation by magical means!

The next article in this series will be about the workers village at Deir el Medina.

To find out how you can visit these fascinating sites, please contact us on +27 11 678 4777 or +27 11 478 2884 or email us on: info@egyptandbeyond.co.za.

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