TT8

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Theban Tomb 8
Burial site of Kha and Merit
Gilded anthropoid coffin of Kha (TT8).jpg
The gilded inner coffin of Merit (now in the Museo Egizio of Turin)
Theban Tomb 8 is located in Egypt
Theban Tomb 8
Theban Tomb 8
Coordinates25°44′N 32°36′E / 25.733°N 32.600°E / 25.733; 32.600Coordinates: 25°44′N 32°36′E / 25.733°N 32.600°E / 25.733; 32.600
LocationTheban Tombs
Discovered1906
Excavated byArthur Weigall and Ernesto Schiaparelli
← Previous
TT7
Next →
TT9
N28
a
Y1
and
mriitB1
[1]
Kha and Meryt
Era: New Kingdom
(1550–1069 BC)
Egyptian hieroglyphs

Theban Tomb 8, abbreviated TT8, was the tomb of Kha, the overseer of works from Deir el-Medina in the mid-18th Dynasty[2] and his wife, Merit. TT8 was one of the greatest archaeological discoveries of ancient Egypt, one of few tombs of nobility to survive intact. It was discovered by Arthur Weigall and Ernesto Schiaparelli in 1906 on behalf of the Italian Archaeological Mission.[3] Its discoverers used 250 workers to dig in pursuit of the tomb for several weeks. The pyramid-chapel of Kha and Merit was already well known for many years; scenes from the chapel had already been copied in the 19th century by several Egyptologists, including John Gardiner Wilkinson and Karl Lepsius.[4] Egyptologists also knew that Kha was an important foreman at Deir El-Medina, where he was responsible for projects constructed during the reigns of Amenhotep II, Thutmose IV and Amenhotep III.[5] The pyramidion of the chapel was reused for a later structure and is now in the Louvre Museum.[6][7][8]

Schiaparelli was surprised to discover the tomb in the isolated cliffs surrounding the village and not in the immediate proximity of the chapel itself, as was conventionally the case for other burials of Egyptian nobility.[7]

Chapel[]

Location and description[]

The chapel during Schiaparelli's 1906 excavations

The now-ruined tomb chapel of Kha and Merit is located in a shallow bay at the northern end of the Deir el-Medina necropolis.[9] The small, slightly rectangular (4.66 by 4.72 metres (15.3 ft × 15.5 ft)) mudbrick pyramid-chapel sits at the back of a rectangular courtyard 12.45 by 7.60 metres (40.8 ft × 24.9 ft) that is surrounded on three sides by tall rocky walls.[10][11] The sides have an incline of 75 degrees, giving the structure a projected total height of 9.32 metres (30.6 ft); the exterior was plastered and whitewashed.[10] The chapel was topped by a whitewashed sandstone pyramidion decorated on all sides with sunk bas-reliefs of Kha worshipping Ra and inscribed with hymns to him at the stages of his journey: the east and damaged north faces adore Ra at sunrise, the south face praises him as he crosses the sky, and the west face worships Ra as he sets. The pyramidion was reused for a small, anonymous pyramid-chapel in the courtyard of the tomb of Pashedu (TT3), a few metres south-east of TT8 and was rediscovered by Bernard Bruyère on February 8 1923.[6]

The façade of the chapel is oriented to the northeast and is entered through a single doorway with prominent doorposts. These support a lintel that was likely topped by a sandstone cornice, of which nothing remains. Like other pyramid-chapels in the necropolis, there was probably a niche cut into the face of the pyramid, above the door, into which a small stele was set. The interior of the chapel measures 3 by 1.6 metres (9.8 ft × 5.2 ft) with a vaulted ceiling 2.15 metres (7.1 ft) high; a small relieving chamber was probably present above. The back wall has a central niche which probably housed the stele now in the Museo Egizio, Turin. This wall is badly damaged, probably as a result of the removal of the stela.[10]

Unusually, the chapel is not directly associated with the tomb itself.[10] In 1924, Bernard Bruyère conducted excavations in the courtyard of the chapel to see if the presence of another burial shaft close to the area was the reason for the separation. On the right side of the courtyard, 3 metres (9.8 ft) from the entrance of the chapel, in the expected location of a burial shaft, he found a pit 0.75 metres (2.5 ft) deep and 1 metre (3.3 ft) wide lined with mudbrick. Schiaparelli suggested that this pit was where Kha's additional copy of the Book of the Dead and other funerary items, known before the discovery of the tomb, were originally deposited. Bruyère suggests the separation of chapel and tomb is instead due to the very poor quality of the rock beneath the chapel and courtyard.[11]

Decoration[]

Funerary stele of Kha, now in the Museo Egizio, Turin

The interior of the chapel is plastered and decorated. Where preserved, the colours are still vibrant. The decoration has drawn attention, having been copied by several Egyptologists in the 19th century, including John Gardiner Wilkinson and Karl Lepsius.[4] The ceiling is covered with stylised floral motifs arranged in geometric patterns. A central band of blue hieroglyphs on a yellow ground divides the ceiling into two halves along its length; the design on each half of the ceiling is different. Another band of text runs around the walls, further dividing the vault from the upper frieze of alternating lotus flowers, buds, and grapes. All of the wall scenes are executed on a yellow background.[10]

The back wall, now badly damaged, is divided into three registers around the stele niche that occupies the centre of the wall. A pair of Anubis jackals with red collars seated on white shrines facing each other across a large bouquet in the uppermost, semi-circular register. Unlike the rest of the decoration, this is executed on a light grey ground. In the second register, two men, one on the left and one on the right, offer bouquets and raise their hand in adoration. The left side of the lowest register shows a seated man and woman, who are identified as Neferheb and Taoui, with offerings before them and receive ministrations from a man, on the right side of the register, dressed as a sem-priest. He is probably their son but his identity is unknown as the inscription is badly damaged.[10][12]

The left wall is dominated by a depiction of Kha and Merit seated before an offering table. Their daughter, also named Merit, bends to adjust her father's collar and one of their sons presents them with a goose and lotus flowers. The text above this scene gives a list of the offerings given. Below this scene, a narrow register depicts and additional offering of four amphorae, garlanded with flowers and fruit attended by a servant. The rest of the wall is divided into two registers. The upper depicts guests and musicians moving towards the larger scene of Kha and Merit. The lower register depicts a man and two women advancing in the opposite direction, towards a seated couple who are mostly obliterated.[10][12]

The right wall has the same layout as the left. The large scene depicts Osiris, enveloped in a red feather-patterned shroud, seated in a raised kiosk; he receives offerings from Kha and Merit, accompanied by their daughter and son. In the two smaller registers, servants approach with offerings of a long-horned goat (upper) and a white ox wearing a floral garland (lower).[10][12]

The chapel was the target of the agents of Akhenaten, with the name of Amun being hammered out wherever it occurred. It was later restored, but in a hasty way that does not match the original text.[10]

Tomb[]

The items found in the tomb show that Kha and Merit were quite wealthy during their lifetime. Unlike the more chaotic burial of Tutankhamun, the burials of Kha and Merit were carefully planned out. Important items were covered by dust sheets and the floor was swept by the last person to leave the tomb.[13]

The bodies of Kha and Merit were buried in two nested coffins; Kha's mummy was tightly wrapped and several items of jewelry were included within the wrappings. The two anthropoid coffins of Kha are excellent examples of the wealth and technically brilliant workmanship of the arts during the reign of Amenhotep III. Kha's outer coffin "was covered with black bitumen, with the face, hands, alternate stripes of the wig, bands of inscriptions and figures of funerary gods [all] in gilded gesso."[14] Kha's inner coffin was:

entirely covered in gold leaf, except for the eyes, eye-brows and cosmetic lines, which are inlaid--quartz or rock crystal for the whites of the eyes, black glass or obsidian for the irises, blue glass for the eyebrows and cosmetic lines. The eye sockets themselves are framed with copper or bronze. His arms are crossed over his chest in the pose of Osiris, lord of the dead. He wears a broad collar with falcon-head terminals. Below this is a vulture with outstretched wings grasping two shen-signs in its talons.[15]

Included in one of Kha's coffins is one of the earliest examples of the Egyptian Book of the Dead.[13] An x-ray of Kha's mummy shows that it was "adorned with a gold necklace and heavy earrings, one of the earliest examples yet found of men wearing earrings."[7]

Merit was buried in a single outer coffin with one inner anthropoid coffin and a cartonnage mask. Her mummy was loosely wrapped with funerary jewellery. A tomb of this magnitude would have taken years to prepare, a process that Kha certainly oversaw during his lifetime. Unexpectedly predeceased by Merit, Kha donated his own coffin to his wife. Since it was too big for Merit's mummy, Kha was forced to pack linens, monogrammed for him, around her mummy. Merit's single coffin combines features of Kha's inner and outer coffins; "the lid is entirely gilded, but the box is covered with black bitumen, with only the figures and inscriptions gilded."[15]

Both Kha's and Merit's anthropoid coffins were contained within Middle Kingdom style "rectangular outer coffins covered with black bitumen and having vaulted, gable-ended lids."[15] Kha's coffin was mounted on sledge runners, notes Ernesto Schiaparelli in his 1927 publication report of the discovery.[16]

The tomb was furnished with all the objects necessary in the afterlife. Ointments and kohl were regarded as a necessary part of hygiene and these precious materials were held in a variety of lidded alabaster, glass and faience vessels. Egyptians protected themselves from flies and from sunlight by wearing dark kohl under the eyes, depicted as a long cosmetic stripe on sculptures. Other objects in the tomb include sandals, jar vessels and more than 100 garments.[17]

  • Bowls, vases and jugs from the Tomb of Kha

  • Statue of Kha and in the background, probably a chair

  • Toilet box and vessels of Merit

Location of objects[]

All the funerary objects from Kha's tomb, except for two small articles, were subsequently transferred to the Egyptian museum in Turin.[7] Tomb TT8 was found at almost the same time as KV55 and less than two years after KV46, the tomb of Yuya and Tjuyu, which contained almost the same contents as TT8 and dated to only slightly later in the reign of Amenhotep III.

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ Porter and Moss, Topographical Bibliography: The Theban Necropolis, pg 16-17
  2. ^ David O'Connor & Eric Cline, Amenhotep III: Perspectives on His Reign, University of Michigan Press, 1998. p.118
  3. ^ "index". xy2.org. Archived from the original on 2009-01-06. Retrieved 2018-02-26.
  4. ^ a b Hobson, Christine (1987). The World of the Pharaohs: a complete guide to Ancient Egypt (1993 paperback ed.). New York: Thames and Hudson. p. 118. ISBN 9780500275603.
  5. ^ Hobson, p.118
  6. ^ a b Bruyère, Bernard (1924). "Rapport sur les fouilles de Deir El Médineh (1922-1923)". Fouilles de l'Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale (in French). Institut français d'archéologie orientale. 1 (1). Retrieved 31 January 2022.
  7. ^ a b c d Hobson, p.119
  8. ^ "Pyramidion". Musée du Louvre. Retrieved 17 July 2021.
  9. ^ Forbes, Dennis C.. (1998). Tombs. Treasures. Mummies : Seven great discoveries of Egyptian archaeology in five volumes. Book two, The tombs of Maiherpri (KV36) & Kha & Merit (TT8) (2015 Reprint ed.). Weaverville: Kmt Communications LLC. p. 132. ISBN 978-1512371956.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i Vandier d'Abbadie, Jeanne Marie Thérèse (1939). "Deux Tombes de Deir El Médineh (1) La Chapelle de Khâ (2) La tombe du scribe royal Amenemopet (1939)". Mémoires publiés par les membres de l'Institut français d'archéologie orientale. Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale. 73: 1–18. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  11. ^ a b Bruyère, Bernard (1925). "Rapport sur les fouilles de Deir El Médineh (1923-1924)". Fouilles de l'Institut Français d'Archéologie Orientale. Institut français d'archéologie orientale. 2 (2): 53–55. Retrieved 24 January 2022.
  12. ^ a b c Porter, Bertha; Moss, Rosalind L. B. Moss (1960). Topographical Bibliography of Ancient Egyptian Hieroglyphic Texts, Reliefs, and Paintings I. The Theban Necropolis Part 1. Private Tombs (PDF) (1970 reprint ed.). Oxford: Griffith Institute. pp. 16–18. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  13. ^ a b "The Archiect Kha, TT8". ib205.tripod.com. Retrieved 2018-02-26.
  14. ^ Ernesto Schiaparelli, La tomba intatta dell'architeto Cha. In: Relazione sui lavori della missione archeologica Italiano in Egitto (Anno 1902-1920), 2. Turin, 1927. figures 21 & 23
  15. ^ a b c O'Connor & Cline, p.119
  16. ^ Schiaparelli, pp.17-20 & 28, figures 18 & 27
  17. ^ John H. Taylor, Death and the Afterlife in Ancient Egypt, University of Chicago Press, 2001. p.108

External links[]

Retrieved from ""