Report of Thebes in First Millennium BC conference part 3

Day 3

This consisted of site visits to TT223 Karakhamun TT391 Karabasken TT33 Petamenophis TT414 Ankh-Hor TT279 Pabasa TT312 Nespakashuty apart from TT312 I have visit reports or lectures of all these sites on the blog from previous posts, please search on the tags on the right hand side. The reports from the visitors were 1000% happy, they thoroughly enjoyed the talks and the onsite lectures. The food at Sheik Ali was also given a huge thumbs up, so well done them.

Day 4

The morning was site visits to Karnak, again this was hugely enjoyed and the onsite descriptions given by members of the team were much appreciated. The afternoon we resumed at the Mummification Museum.

A major development project of the Northern area of the Amun-Ra precinct at Karnak during the reign of Shabaka

A three part presentation by Christophe Theirs, Pierre Zignani and Nadia Licitra. Although casual visitors to Karnak might not realise it there are huge stretches of the site that have not been excavated and gradually these are. The northern area is one of these, around the Ptah temple.

This picture of the model in the visitors centre shows the area and you can see just how much of the area is blank canvas. However these presentations put buildings in the blank places.

 

Christophe described the history of excavations from Legrain (1896-1900) and Chevrier (1932/34 1947/48) until today. He stated that the Ptah temple used to be a way station until the expansion of Karnak. This meant that it was subsequently altered by Shabaka with monumental gates and incorporation in other structures. He described the restoration of the gateway and how complex scenes were originally designed and altered.

Pierre stated the temple of Ptah has its own axis’s, the oldest part is Tuthmosis III, and the Ptolemaic extensions came about from the extension of the enclosure wall in 30th dynasty. Another gate has been found which connects with the Shabaka gate and reused talatat blocks. The also found the door jamb from the 17th dynasty with the name of Sen-Nakht-En-R which has been reported in the Egyptian press http://english.ahram.org.eg/NewsContent/9/40/35984/Heritage/Ancient-Egypt/Gate-found-in-Karnak-Temple-adds-new-name-to-ancie.aspx

Nadia went on the describe the Treasury of Shabaka, the know part of this structure was 12 columns but much more has been found including previously dismissed mud brick walls and two new rooms. The treasury itself had sandstone benches much of this remains.

The building activity of the God’s Wives of Amun at Karnak during the XXVI dynasty. New data from recent excavations and unexploited archives.

Presented by Laurent Coulon he gave a lot of detail about Osiris Wennefer Neb Djefau, why it was in that location, and its use as the processional way of the fetish. He also described the buildings in the area known as Naga Malgata (the place where things are picked up) which further north. A 26th dynasty building had been previous published by Pillet. There are so few remains that use has been made of archive photographs from Lyon. He believes one structure to be more of a ritual place than a chapel. The Griffiths institute archives have also contributed to his work. He also talked about the statue of Ibi Je36158 and related the 4 buildings described to his research.

Offering Magazines on the Southern Bank of the Sacred Lake in Karnak: A possible reconstruction of the Architectural Phases of the 25th and 26th Dynasty

Another blank area



Aurelia Masson  described how the construction of the sound and light stage had meant rescue archaeology of the that area which discovered priests house, subsequently more excavation had been done and she looked at the relationship between the East and South of the Sacred Lake. Lepidus had documented a large monument, an Offering Magazine belonging to Psammuthes (can be seen in the model) built of mud brick with sandstone columns and doorways. She went into some detail about other buildings in this area the chapel of Thoth and Amun, a chapel of Shabaka part of which is in the Berlin which they has excavated and found lots more, a chapel of Osorkon which is located but not excavated. She then proposed a layout which incorporated all of this and made another offering magazine, actually she had two proposals. The pottery is from the 25th/26th dynasty and her idea is that this building had the same function as the later building.

Ceramic Production in the Theban Area from 25th and 26th dynasties: about new discoveries in Karnak

Catherine Deferernez talked about how the lack of stratification made dating difficult but typology is different she is beginning a classification of Late Period pottery. Stephanie Boulet went on to show the pieces recovered from three trenches under the chapel of the God’s wife of Amun and showed a series of slides illustrating the various types.

The development of graffiti practices in Karnak in the early first millennium B.C the case study of the temple of Ptah

Elizabeth Frood spoke with great enthusiasm not only about her project but the use of a new technique called Reflective Transform Imaging. She is using this software (open source code) and a snooker ball to look at blocks. It is enabling here to get all sorts of information from what look like undecipherable blocks. She suggests you look at this blog to get more information http://kathrynpiquette.blogspot.com/

She believes that graffiti was an elite activity and defines graffiti as ‘text or images on a temple or tomb wall that were not intended’. There are 100 known images at Ptah from Third Intermediate Period till Roman, not forgetting 19th century and a lost Coptic inscription. The south wall has the most with 18 blocks being inscribed. She intends to publish her work both online and in print because of this new technique.

The Lost Tombs Beneath the Houses of Qurna and el Khokha

Ramadan Ahmed Ali the Chief Inspector gave a talk about the consequences of the removal of the houses. He did not go into the politics of the action but just showed us the tombs that had been revealed amongst these were C14, TT 209, 137 136 385 29 32 183 48 185 and some unnumbered tombs. Although some are being excavated he welcomed more teams coming to work on these.

Closing Speech Mansour Boraik

Mansour joked that the title was ‘Title to follow’. He talked about the embankment that had discovered at Karnak and the rich information this excavation had revealed. He went into some detail about the work of Taharqa and the possibility the big inundation recorded on a stele of Taharqa (21 cubits in front of Waset) might have been the motivation for the building for the ramp at a different angle.

Elena Pischikova then gave a short presentation thanking all her people. I videoed some of it but missed the beginning when Ken Griffin and Trisha Mason were thanked. She showed some lovely photos from the entire season. Some of those volunteers managed to come back to help with the conference and she stressed what a massive help they have been to the smooth running of the conference.



Tony Browder who fund raises for the project in America gave thanks to Elena and the project for the educational work they do. http://www.ikg-info.com/ 

Some other people spoke giving thanks like Julia Budka but the most surprising was a lady from Mehen Studycentre for Ancient Egypt http://www.mehen.nl/ who was with a small group, she announced a donation of 1000 Euros for both Elena and Claude Traunecker TT33. I wish you could have seen Elena’s face as this was announced, most of these missions work on a shoe string budget and the smallest donation is massively appreciated. If you would like to make a donation to help this excavation please go to this page on the website http://southasasif.com/Become-a-Sponsor2.html


So this part 3 of my report just the gala dinner at Luxor Temple to go

Report of Thebes in First Millennium BC conference Part 2

Day 1 continued

The funerary caches (tombs) of the Third Intermediate Period in Thebes

Erhart Graefe put out an appeal to anyone and everyone.  There is a missing photograph of E Breugsch in the burial chamber, do you know where there is a copy. In KMT 20.4.2009 E. Wilson shows a photograph outside and says it is part of a pair offered for sale. Does anyone have a copy of this second photograph?

His lecture talked about the various caches around and at Deir el Bahri, There are 9 shafts at the site itself, some locations have been lost like Maunier and Mariette’s. Some contents have been scattered for example at the coronation of the Khedive some 80 objects were offered as presents and have disappeared into private collections. He believes the box of Hatshepsut could be an heirloom from a royal storehouse and it was reused. Also the tombs were cut in 21st Dynasty.

Royal Tombs at Thebes in the First Millennium BC

David Ashton examined the tombs and equipment of the ‘royal families’ of Thebes.

Tombs of the Third Intermediate Period Royal Members in the Deir el Bahri Necropolis

Zbigniew Szafranski detailed all the burial shafts at Deir el Bahri; these were located in the vaulted Amun chamber or just outside. The location was under the offering bearers so the deceased could virtually benefit from the offering scenes. The use of the vaulted chamber was significant.

Day 2

The second day was opened by Dr Mohammed Abd el-Aziz director of the west bank.

The Coming of Kushites: 25th Dynasty Origins and the 23rd/25th Dynasty transition in Thebes.

Aidan Dobson told us of the origins of the 25th dynasty kings. The regime reigned in Kush and developed into the 25th dynasty kings. He disputed the findings of Reisner that the tombs/tumuli/pyramids at El Kurra represented doubled up burials and the generations ascribed. He feels that the pyramids and mastabas alone form Piye at 750 would give 7 generations at 20 years a generation that takes you to 894 and at 25 years to 929 which takes you back to Osorkon which was the last time the title Viceroy of Kush was used. His talk was very interesting, if you can’t wait until the paper is published then his book After Glow of the Empire has some details.

Between South and North Assasif: the tomb of Harwa (TT 37) as a transitional monument.

Silvia Einaudi went into some detail about which tomb came first and why she believes that, the problem is that not all identify whose reign the person lived under.  She believes Karakhamun is older than Harwa. She also gave the reasons why the site was chosen. Harwa set the standard for later tombs and elaborated the plan of Karakhamun.

The “Funerary Palace” of Padiamenope: Tomb, place of pilgrimage and library. Current Research

Claude Traunecker gave an excellent presentation in English, which was much appreciated. He was the most amusing lecture of the conference with some well chosen slides and comments about bats. I personally find this tomb one of the most interesting and this talk confirmed my feeling. He explained why he thought various chapters of the book of the dead were duplicated, how the hidden burial chamber operated, the clever use of the design to allow books of different lengths to be put on opposing walls. He thought the owner was a scholar of the old ritual and had gone to considerable trouble to research the various texts. He came from a very important maternal family but his father or his father’s family don’t get a mention. He also demonstrated the relative importance of Padiamenope and Montuemhat with pictures of their statues.

The Amduat and the Book of the Gates in the tomb of Padiamenope (TT33)

Isabelle Regen’s presentation went into some detail about the texts in this tomb which are the last known complete copies. The rationale behind the extensive texts was that knowledge gets you through to the afterlife, so more knowledge the better chance. He got his texts from the OSIREION and Ramses VI and used Old Kingdom signs in New Kingdom texts to go back the oldest version. Later in the 30th dynasty they updated and changed texts but at this time it was the accuracy that mattered.

The tomb of Montuemhat (TT 34) – A new approach

Louise Gestermann explained that the tomb needed cleaning and now electricity was installed. She is working on rooms 44 to 53. They are using a digital image technique to record the tomb. Drawings are made from these digital photo photographs

The forgotten tomb of Ramose at Sheik ‘Abd-el-Qurna: TT 132’

Christian Greco started his talk by admitting the tomb isn’t that forgotten! He gave the history of the tomb from 1843-2006. The funerary cones identify that Taharqa was Ramose’s king.

Kushite and Saite Period Burials on el-Khokha

Gabor Schreiber detailed the work of the Hungarian mission and the reused tombs and intrusive burials at this time.

The so called ‘Lichthof’ once more. On the transmission of concept between the tomb and the temple.

Filip Coppens include aspects such as the open court being a place of regeneration and renewal. The resemblance to the Osireion cult place. Texts of the solar hymns and the cycle of Osiris.

Some observations about the representation of the neck sash in 26th Dynasty Thebes

Aleksandra Hallmann gave a detailed talk about the various sashes in use (over the shoulder, round the neck, round the waist), their significance and their relationship to other objects of the elite (e.g. fans). This sash is seen when accompanying the God’s Wives of Amun.

The inner coffin of Tameramon, a unique masterpiece of Kushite iconography from Thebes. A work in progress.

Simone Musso gave preliminary findings of the coffin of Tameramon, rather fascinating is that the various gods have been feminised in the vignettes, unheard of. This coffin MIGHT be a match with outer coffins half in Cairo. They have no idea how it got in to the collection!

Sokar-Osiris and the Goddesses: Some Twenty-fifth-Twenty-sixth Dynasty Coffins from the Theban Necropolis.

Cynthia Sheikholeslami gave a good talk on various coffins with the Sokar-Osiris style of coffin. These seem to be lower status individuals. The bottom of the coffin has the god, sometimes with a tree goddess above and on the side panels Isis and Nephthys (although not always). Someone with the subject ingrained under her finger tips!


This is the end of day 2, as always I appreciate corrections but do remember the abstracts are available and proper papers will be published, this is just to encourage you to read those.




Day 3 was site visits on the west bank TT223 TT391 TT33 TT414 TT279 TT312 to quote one visitor these were 'sublime'.



Day 4 is Karnak, site visit in the morning and lectures in the afternoon which I will write up after the event.

TT391 Karabasken photos by Richard Sellicks

Some more old photos of sites now closed for photography. This tomb is a South Assasif one, part of Dr Elena's concession and looks very different now, check the website for updates http://www.southasasif.com/

Old Mummification Museum lecture - South Assasif

I am really pleased to find this one after my visit there and the recent lecture. it puts things into context.

Mummification Museum Lecture - Forgotton Tombs of the Southern Assasif - Dr Elena Pischikova
Forgotten Tombs of the Southern Assasif - Dr Elena Pischikova
The idea of excavating the Southern Assasif came because the work the team did at Tomb of Nespakashuty (TT 312). After spending 6 years reconstructing the sandstone entrance which was a 6 m high structure. They felt their next task should be to find his mother. This tomb was known to be in the area known as Southern Assasif. This area is nowhere near the Assasif tombs at Deir el Bahri, but that is the name it is known by. It is actually just across the road from the Ramasseum, in southern Gurna and in the village of Abed Rassoul. There are 3 tombs near each other.

TT390 Irtieru or Irtyru, female scribe and attendant of the god’s priestess Nitiqret, Late Period
TT391 Karabasken or Kerebesken, mayor of Thebes, Dynasty 25
TT223 Karakhamun, first priest with entry, Late Period

There were many problems excavating in this area as the villagers felt these tombs were part of their houses. Indeed TT391 was used as the summer house when the family slept outside due to the extreme heat. It was a very complicated situation. The tombs were being used for the housing of donkeys and dogs. The team felt the removal of the village was good news but wanted to be around when the houses were demolished as they could see fragments being used in the construction of these houses.

TT390
Lexius recorded that there 2 door frames but 150 years later these were hard to see. The last person to see them was Dieter Arnold. There was a decorated ceiling in the burial chamber. Even finding where they were in the village was difficult but eventual in 2001 they were traced to the home of Ahmed Mahmoud Abdul Rassoul. The team were not welcome and they could not excavate as the family were there. Eventually Ahmed did let them in, it should be noted that he died 2 weeks ago.

There was a 4 story house on top of the tomb and the family were using the open courtyard. The tomb was covered in soot but although the ceiling was black they could see colour through it and it was a challenge to remove this soot without damaging the colour and pattern underneath. Lots of fragments had also been cut out. Prelimary cleaning revealed the colour, the whole tomb was painted and the Divine Adoratrice Nitocris (Neitiqert) was present in many scenes.

The old kingdom style papyrus columns were revealed to be painted in yellow. The offering inscription was dedicated to her father. There are 4 sections to the vaulted ceiling which have different patterns. The team found that the soot had actually preserved the colours. There was a prelimary drawing of the kepher frieze. All the tombs were left unfinished and Dr Elena knows that there is a related tomb at Abydos and wants to see if that is unfinished to. There is an offering scene of the owner and father.

The second door frame was covered in mud and had to be recorded before cleaning. In 2nd pillared hall the pillars are not in good condition, it is not finished and just has prelimary lines. There was a niche with lost bits. The carving is so shallow that without the painting you can not see it. It has never been excavated and the burial chamber has not been found by archaeologists. But they don’t expect to find anything as after this time the chamber has probably been cleared but they may find relief

TT391 was the house used during the summer by the family and in the courtyard there were 6 layers of flood debris. It was full of graffiti and the architectural elements had been destroyed. They thought there was nothing there but after digging down 2 meters they found images. The ground is very wet. The images were in the style of the Old Kingdom. There was an undecorated pillared hall and a 6 niched chamber. It is being left for the future.

TT223 there is relief of Karakhamun, known in the Berlin museum. At the 4 meter level they found carving including a figurine. This tomb will take at least 10 years but the pillars might be able to be reconstructed at the end. A 4 by 9 meter area was cleared. There was a good example of Kushite carving including a hunting dog, priest with a sash and an image of the owner. They found lots of fragments. The name of the owner had gone but no new name had replaced it. At least 2 pillars were decorated with offerings. There is a painted procession of the Gods. Dr Elena would love to try and reconstruct the ceiling from the fragments found but that is for the future.

They expect that these three tombs will take a long time to excavate properly; even the rest of their lives but the priority is TT390

In the question and answer session Mansour Boraik talked about the demolition of the houses. Apparently 72 houses were chosen from old photos and were not going to be demolished. They have found that the people are not cop-operative. With regard to Ahmed Rassoul the SCA had got an agreement with him but now he has died they will have to get an agreement with his 2 wives and 10 children which complicates things. They now intend to keep 65 houses.

Posted by Jane: - 9:13 pm - Edit| No Comments »
February 18th, 2007