The Tomb of Tutankhamen in the Valley of the Kings

The gold funerary mask

One of the best known tombs in the valley is that of the Pharaoh Tutankhamen. [KV 62] Although a very minor Pharaoh who only lived for 18 years, he is well known because his tomb is, up to the present time, the only almost intact tomb ever found in the valley; (robbers had on two occasions been into the tomb and taken small items).

Gold coffin

The story of the discovery of the tomb in 1922 is rather an exciting one and it came in the nick of time; the excavator’s sponsor was about to give up the concession. The excavator, Howard Carter, had been working in the Valley since 1917 searching for the tomb of Tutankhamen, but in 1922 his sponsor Lord Carnarvon became convinced that there was nothing of value to be found in the area and decided to withdraw his sponsorship. But Carter begged for just one more season to which Carnarvon reluctantly agreed. Back in Egypt, Carter carried on with his work and on 4 November 1922, a workman discovered a stone step. On investigation, this turned out to be the first of a flight of sixteen steps that ended at a door still sealed with the seal of the necropolis – the jackal headed god Anubis - above nine defeated enemies.

The steps were then covered up again and Carter notified Carnarvon of this promising find. On November 21, in the presence of his sponsor, the sixteen steps were uncovered again; the door was breached and found to lead into a passage that also ended with a sealed door.

On November 26 - the day Carter called 'the day of days' - accompanied by Lord Carnarvon, he made a hole in the second door and inserted a candle into the blackness beyond. To Carnarvon's anxious enquiry, "Can you see anything?" he replied, "Yes, wonderful things." There were indeed 'wonderful things' in the tomb and it took several years to clear all of it's approximately 3,500 items.

The tomb itself is quite small and simple; there are two large rooms, called the antechamber and the burial chamber; off the antechamber is a small annex and off the burial chamber is the so-called treasury. The room Carter saw by the light of a flickering candle was the antechamber and the ‘wonderful things’ he saw were parts of beds and chariots, thrones, calcite vases, inlaid boxes, statuettes and many more - items of luxury and religious significance buried with the Pharaoh for his journey to the afterlife.

Calcite chalice

This chamber took months to clear and it was only in February 1923 that he was able to access the burial chamber. However, it was only in the following season that work began on what Carter had called 'a wall of gold'; the 'wall of gold' turned out to be a massive gilded wooden shrine that almost filled the entire room; inside of this were another three gilded shrines. Under these was a red granite sarcophagus guarded on all four corners by the protective goddesses Isis, Nephthys, Neith and Selket.

The goddess Selket

When the lid of the sarcophagus was lifted, there was revealed a linen-wrapped anthropoid coffin, inside of which was another coffin, and inside this second one was the third coffin - but this was made of solid gold, chased and engraved.

Gold dagger

Only when this third coffin was opened was the wrapped mummy of the Pharaoh revealed for the first time in more than 3000 years; covering his head and shoulders was one of the world’s greatest treasures – the beautiful polished gold funerary mask, the face serene, elegant and remote.

The treasury that led off this room contained a large canopic shrine overlaid with gold and topped by a cornice of sacred cobras. Standing free of this were statues of the four tutelary goddesses of the dead – Carter called them 'gracious figures with outstretched protective arms....so compassionate the expression upon their faces that one felt it almost sacrilege to look at them.' Also found in this room was the well known figure of Anubis, draped with a shawl.

Calcite ibex

The burial chamber is the only one that has decorations on the walls. Scenes depict the funeral procession of the Pharaoh and the 'Opening of the Mouth' ceremony being performed by his successor, the old vizier Ay. Other depictions show the Pharaoh with his ka (or double), being welcomed into the presence of Nut the sky goddess in front of Osiris; other gods represented are Anubis and the cow-headed goddess Hat-hor. Another of the decorations depicts him in his celestial boat bound for the afterlife. Texts on the wall are from the Book of the Amduat from which some wall painting take inspiration.

The contents of his tomb are breathtaking in their beauty and variety. All are now in the Cairo Museum on the upper floor. Take time off from looking at the lavish gold items and spectacular jewellery and look into the smaller cases in the passage that hold items like a pair of gauntlets, sandals, and the small chair - little personal things that make him more real.

Funerary pectoral

The mummy of the Pharaoh, when unwrapped, was examined by the leading pathologists of the time and they damaged further the mummy of Tutankhamen. The embalming process hadn’t been a success and the mummy was already much damaged by over use of the unguents and oils meant to preserve him. He is the only Pharaoh who still remains in his tomb inside the first wooden coffin in the sarcophagus. Entrance to the tomb is permitted but there is an extra charge for this.

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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