The Valley of the Kings: The Pharaohs' Place


Liam Scully


Abstract
The Valley of the Kings is a rich part of Egypt's culture. For centuries, Pharaohs of Egypt have been buried in the valley. Many people wonder how come such kings and queens have been put to rest here in this desolate area. Since many tombs and famous mummies have been discovered, no one doubts that more mummies are to be found. This paper will cover the history of the Valley of the Kings, the jobs of priests in the Valley, background landscape, some famous pharaohs buried there and archaeological risks and concerns. The Valley of the Kings is a rich cultural statement to the world about the beliefs of the ancient Egyptians, their intelligence in constructing the tombs and monuments and the technology they used for these purposes.

Intro
During the New Kingdom, the area around the Nile River Valley was green and lush with vegetation. This was provided by the Nile, itself. Every year, rain would swell the banks, thus causing the water to come pouring through the valley. This gave the plants that are on the bank the rich soil for new seeds. Farmers in this region also depended on the Nile for water and agriculture. Temperatures during the winter there would have an average high of of 50-60 degrees Fahrenheit . In the spring and summer, it would, again, have a high average of 90-100 degrees (Life in Ancient Egypt, n.d.). In many places, there was only desert, however, where Thebes and many other cities where founded, wildlife and plants were abundant, the perfect set up for a dominant civilization.


Historical Landscape
When the New Kingdom began, about 1567 B.C., at the beginning of the period known as the 18th Dynasty, it was decided to find a secret area where the pharaohs would be buried in underground tombs. A place was chosen in the south, on the west bank of the Nile River and hidden among the Theban Hills. It was in the region of ancient Thebes (modern Luxor), the religious capital. This place became the Valley of the Kings. This sight was chosen for several reasons. The cliffs were easy to get to and there were only two openings. The cliffs formed into a natural pyramid, which religously meant that the dead kings would be lying in the shadow of a pyramid . One opening was a dead end, while another narrow path led over the hills, from the village of Dier El-Medina; where the workers lived. Both entrances were guarded by necropolis guards. The rock was also easier to carve. Egyptians believed that Pharaohs were gods, and when they died, they went on a journey to the sun. If they failed, the world might end. Since the Valley of the Kings was on the west bank of the Nile, the kings had a shorter trip to the afterlife. So, unlike the pyramids that stuck out like a sore thumb and were easier to break into, the place was perfect for protecting the bodies of the Pharaohs.


The first pharaoh that was ever buried in the valley was Thutmose I who reigned from 1524 b.c to 1518 B.C., while the last pharaoh to be buried here was Ramses X in 1104 B.C.. In fact, Ramses XI had cut a tomb for himself in the valley, but he was not buried there. This ended nearly 500 years' of burial in the valley. There are 64 tombs in tomb in total. Sixty-three tombs have been excavated. Nearly twenty-three tombs are found abandoned, although fifteen of the owners have been found. Two of them were animal burials. The rest were found in their plundered or as in Tutankhamun's tomb, intact tombs.


Tomb Robbers
Toward the beginning of the 20th dynasty, there were many problems in Egypt, including invasions from foreigners such as the Babylonians and the Romans, and bankruptcy which was due to the wars. There are ancient records that told us that work sometimes stopped in the valley because of these problems. These records are called Tomb Robbery Papyri. Think of it as a Egyptian Great Depression. At such times it was difficult to maintain strict security in the valley and it was at those times that the tombs in the valley have been broken into and looted. Among those records, we have other records of robbers who where caught. More than a dozen of the papyri have survived and over half of them are in the British Museum in London.
Many of the robbers who were caught came from the workers' village. The village was where the men and their families lived. The men were the ones who built the tombs and found it easy to break into the tombs since they were stonemasons. To get information, the suspects would be beaten on the sole of their feet to make them confess. The papyri also contained long lists of items stolen from the tombs, the longest being nearly seven feet long. To be caught robbing the tombs carried the death penalty, and the criminals were executed by being impaled on stakes like shish-kabobs . Apparently, the thought of so much buried gold in the tombs was to much for some people, and they were prepared to risk being caught and executed to steal it. However, another reason for all of this carnage might be that people were not being payed enough and that they decided that robbing would add to their cash flow.

Priests and Embalmers
The priests had many different roles in the Valley of the Kings. Priests, when the pharaoh died, would embalm the mummy, wrapping precious amulets for the dead pharaoh in the linen. On the first day, the embalmers would de-brain the body, then the skull would be washed out. Afterward, the body would be gutted and then washed and stuffed. Drying was the most important part of the embalming. The embalmers would literally bury the body with natron, which is a type of salt, for 40 days. This was to remove rot-inviting moisture. After that is done, the natron is washed away and the embalmers stuffed the empty body with sawdust and linen rags. Then the body is rubbed with oils to preserve it, eye sockets are stuffed, nose holes plugged and the body is covered in resin to help the oil preserve it. Finally, the body is wrapped, secured with ropes and is placed in it's sarcophagus.

Cache Tombs
There have been the finds of only three cache tombs, one of which included Ramses the Great, along with another 40 mummies. A cache tomb is a single, sometimes undecorated room containing mummies from all over the Valley. This is another job of the priest; when tomb robbers are out on the prowl, priests would take the royal mummies and gather them in one location. They would take the kings and they would rebury them in a secret location, such as a tomb that all but the priests have forgotten or in one such case, in the temple! Usually, they would take the body and that was it.
Many of the tombs in the Valley of the Kings are just one long corridor with rooms spreading out on both sides until it ends with the burial chamber. However, tombs like Ramses II's sons have more than 120 rooms! Another example of a tomb with only one corridor and several rooms is KV 62..


Archaeological Techniques
Radiocarbon dating was developed in 1949, as a way of dating organic matter, such as bones, skin and wood. It is based on the fact that organic matter contains a tiny amount of istope carbon 14. The proportion of carbon 14 decreases after death. Carbon 14 reaches it's halfway point after about 5,568 years, plus or minus 30 years. By measuring the amount of carbon 14 in an object, its age can be calculated. The method is reliable for dating matter that is up to 30,000 years in age. When excavating Mohenjo-Daro, Sir Mortimer Wheeler developed a way of excavating a site in a regular pattern of squares or rectangles, leaving uninterrupted ground in between. This helped him excavate at different levels across the site and easily record his findings. This became known as "The Wheeler System".

Tools
In the valley, many detectors are used to find pieces of gold. However, digging up the artifacts have not changed at all of the years. Everyone uses the same old shovel, trowel and wheelbarrow. However, there have been some differences in the tools of yesterday, and today. There is an addition of the pickax in the valley. Radar has been another addition to tools for archaeology today. If you want to open a mummy but you don't want to damage it, you can do the scientific way of opening the body. This is called a CT scan. A CT scan is basically x-rays of the body, while it is still in its case, of course. This is used to examine the embalmed body without damage.

Conservation and Risks
Another thing that archaeologist have to do when they open up a tomb, is to conserve it.
When a tomb is opened, the archaeologists have to label, date, and preserve the item, once its found. If the item is damaged, someone who is specially trained for conservation and preservation will set a special liquid on it to preserve the paint or wood. If it is a wooden sarcophagus, then all you can do is try to restore it against termites.
Risks come in many shapes and sizes. Like I had said earlier, the banks of the Nile would swell, every few years. The water would splash over the valley, spreading chaos. This is one case when KV5 was excavated. The tomb was full of debris from a flood that happened many years ago. Air is also a big problem to deal with as well. After years of being "bottled up" in a tomb, the air will start to deteriorate the artifacts. However, the biggest problem are tomb raiders!! Modern tomb robbers to be exact. One example was that some of King Tut's gold was found hidden away in a castle in England. The cost of the gold was nearly $100,000. Now it is away in Egypt, safe from harm.

Famous Pharaohs

Tutankhamun
Many people think he is the most famous king of Egypt; that is correct, a little. King Tut was only a little king. In fact, his reign was only a little more than nine years long. When his tomb was found, however, it was the most complete tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings. And you might be surprised, but his tomb was robbed twice, however, the tomb robbers were either caught, or took little. It was a treasure for all.
Tutankhamun was born in 1344 B.C.E as Tutankhaten, which meant "living image of the Aten". Tutankhamun came to the throne at the age of nine. He had succeeded his dad, Akhenaten
who had turned the country into a civil war when he replaced the old gods of Egypt with one god, the Aten. When Tutankhamun came to the throne, he replaced Aten with the old gods. Peace came. Then, at the age of eighteen, he died, unknown by archaeologists and he was packed up and wrapped up. Then his tomb was forgotten.
Tutankhamun's wife was his half-sister, Ankhesenamun. They had two stillborn children, whom were buried in his tomb. However, when Tutankhamun died suddenly, his tomb was not yet ready. So, he was buried in a makeshift tomb or "stole" a tomb from a lowly scribe. This could be told by the paintings in the tomb.


It was November 4, 1920, when Howard Carter, a fallen archaeologist who was on the brink of quiting, while working under the tomb builders' huts, found steps that lead to a sealed door. When inspecting the seal, he found seals of old officials. The seal of King Tutankhamun was in fact, there, however, it was so faded, that they did not find it until later. He covered the hole and sent a telegram to his lord, Lord Carnarvon, and alerted him of the find. Within 20 days, Lord Carnarvon was by his side and the workers uncovered the steps and the sealed unknown. When they went right up to the sealed wall, Caranrvon noticed Tutankhamun's sealed name on the wall. Now, they had found his tomb.
On November 26, 1920, Carnarvon and Carter pried a few stone blocks from the sealed entrance. Carter then stuck his hand into the hole, and holding a candle, saw the lost world of Tutankhamun. For several moments, he looked, then Carnarvon, anxious about what was inside, asked:
"Can you see anything?"
And Carter replied:
"Yes, wonderful things."
As they scrambled into the tomb, the first things that they saw were the glittering eyes of six gigantic heads. These were the ends of three couches, inlaid in gold. Underneath, over, and on top of them was everything else. After clearing the first part of the tomb, Carter and his team saw what seemed like a wall of gold. In fact, it was one side of a huge golden shrine. The shrines double doors were bolted, but the stamped cord which should have sealed them was gone. The thieves had gotten here too. However, Carter's dismay ended when he saw that the second shrine inside was intact. The inner shrine that covered the sarcophagus was made from a single block of quartz, which barely fit the shrine. When the lid was raised, the most amazing sight appeared: three magnificent, golden coffins, one inside the other, protecting the mummy of King Tutankhamun.
In February of 1924, the sarcophagus lid was raised and all present stared at its magnificence. It was mummy shaped with the face of Tutankhamun and his crown. The cobra and the vulture of Lower and Upper Egypt, was garlanded with olive leaves and cornflowers. The mummy itself had a crumpled face and the nose was squashed from the pressure of the linen. Then, on his face, was a deep gash on the left cheek, however, no one will ever know if was caused by the embalmers, or if the boy king was murdered. However, scientists speculated Tut was weakened by a broken leg possibly from a fall. That and a malaria infection led to his death, they believe.
The Curse of the Mummy began when many terrible events occurred after the discovery of King Tut's tomb. Legend has it that anyone who dared to open the tomb would suffer the wrath of the mummy.
The scare began when Lord Carnarvon died shortly after the discovery. The path to his death began in the spring of 1923 when he was bitten on the cheek by a mosquito. During his morning shaving routines, he further infected the mosquito bite. Soon, Lord Carnarvon found himself ill. He suffered a high fever and chills. A doctor was sent to examine him but medical attention arrived too late and Lord Carnarvon died. At that exact moment the lights in Cairo mysteriously went out.
Once Carnarvon died, the media went wild with stories of his death. They claimed King Tut wanted revenge and said that the mummy's curse was targeted on those who had entered the tomb. Not only did the death of Carnarvon get all the people in an uproar but other stories began to surface as well. Of the stories that surfaced, two remain prominent. One of the stories was that Howard Carver's pet canary was eaten by a cobra after the discovery of King Tut's tomb. The other story is that Lord Carnarvon's dog howled and dropped dead at two in the morning when Carnarvon died, all the way in England.
What is interesting is that Howard Carter lived a decade after this major discovery. So what happened to Howard Carter during the scare? Howard Carter spent his last years logging and recording every artifact found in the tomb. Why didn't he suffer the curse of the mummy? He was, after all, the first to enter the tomb.
Did the boy king really unleash a curse? New findings are showing that bacteria on the wall of the tomb might have been the cause of the curse. The bacteria would release spores into the air allowing it to be breathed. This in turn caused people who came into contact with these spores to become ill. However, there could be a different solution, I mean, after all, Carnarvon was not in the best of health.


Seti I
King Seti I was king for 13 years, from 1291 B.C. to 1278 B.C.. However, he is also remembered for his military campaigns and for his magnificent tomb, which was completed before his death. After ascending to the throne, he launched major building projects and started foreign policies abroad. Afterward, he stayed home, building monuments for the gods and his deceased father. Seti I was born to Ramses I and his wife, Sitre in the year 1323 B.C.. Seti married Tuya, who was a daughter of one of his charioteer lieutenants. They had one son, who died. However, they had another son, Ramses II. He also had Tia and another daughter, Henutmire, who will later become a minor queen of Ramses II. Then he launched military campaigns against the Libyans in the west and crushed the Nubians in the south. The Hittites were also dealt with in the east. However, they were not conquered until Ramses II came along, at the battle of Kadesh.


The tomb was discovered by Giovanni Belzoni, a Italian "treasure thief." In the summer of 1817, he and an English archaeologist came upon a sight of a tomb in the valley. When inspecting the find, they came upon a well. They bridged the well and they were able to cross it into a large chamber. In this tomb, unlike many of the other tombs, it was obvious that it was completed before the death of the king. On the walls of the chamber were many "figures", which Belzoni called the hieroglyphics.
However, while inspecting the chamber and the chambers adjacent to it, Belzoni noticed that the left-hand side of a hall was disturbed; the large blocks of stone to make the floor level with the sea level were displaced. And to top it all off, there was a depression in the rubble and rock. Belzoni put his men to work there, and before long, they uncovered another flight of steps leading down to a doorway. When Belzoni clambered through the wreckage, he came upon many more corridors and chambers. At the end was a chamber which was twenty feet high and its walls were covered with fine, smooth, white plaster. In the middle of the room, probably his most famous discovery then, was a fine alabaster coffin. Belzoni found a beautiful and fine example of Egyptian art. It was here that Belzoni coined the term "sarcophagus" which means "flesh-eater". However, when the lid was opened, the body was gone. However, Seti I showed up in the 1881 cache tomb find.
Shortly after finding the tomb, Belzoni had to stop work for several different reasons.By then had run out of money and was having a hard time finding more. The stone where the most penetration had been made was almost spongy and was in danger of collapse. Air in the tomb was already bad; and when you are more than 650 below the entrance of the tomb, it is really bad to breathe. No one did try again until the 1960's when a expedition extended Belzoni's original clearance by one hundred more feet. Legends say that Seti's tomb will go through the valley and stop at the temple of Hatshepsut. (Romer, 2003; Weeks, 2000 )


Ramses II (a.k.a Ramses the Great)
Ramses II was the son of Seti I. He was one of the longest living pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. Ramses reigned 67 years from 1290 BC to 1224 BC. He lived to be more than 80 years old, which was very rare in those days.
As well as being a great warrior and architect, Ramses was also a charmer of women. He had five or six wives, his favorite being Nefertiti. With his wives and concubines, he had more than 100 children. He outlived many of his children, and when he died, his 13th son became the new pharaoh.
During his reign, he fought the Hittites, defeating them at the battle at Kadesh. He made an alliance with them by marrying a Hittite princess. He also built many monuments in his name.


He built his tomb into his dad's tomb (Seti I), however when it was dicovered, his tomb was full of flood debris. Nearly 50 years later, the Cache tomb of Deri-el-Medina in 1881 was found by Harry Burton. Ramses, his brother and father were discovered there with 36 other royal and noble mummies. He is now currently at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo.

Present Day

Current Digs
KV 63
Four years ago, Dr. Otto Schaden, an American archaeologist working in the Valley, found a shaft nearly 45 feet away from Tutankhamun. In the chamber following the shaft were seven coffins, with most of them damaged. Around the coffins were 26 ceramic pots. To get to the coffins, he and his team would need to clear away the pots. Seeing the coffins and all, he thought that they had found another cache tomb of royal mummies. His team set up a field lab in a nearby tomb and began to excavate the pots. At first, the team found old mummification utensils. Then, they found a wooden cobra head and gold leaf among the utensils. Then another discovery. Inside one of the jars, they found a key element to the mystery. Human flesh.
Meanwhile, in the chamber, the team photographer found yet another amazing discovery. Between the two adult coffins in the back, nudged in, was the coffin of a baby. Then, when they excavated the back coffins, the baby coffin was crushed. However, nothing was inside. When they reached the second to last coffin, nicknamed the "Princess" because of its beauty, they found a golden coffin from the royal workshop. The last one was not excavated yet. Then in July of 2006, Dr. Zawii Hawas personally opened the last coffin. Inside, hoping to kind Queen Kia, King Tutankhamun's mom, they were disappointed to find that it was just full of jewlery and offerings.

KV 64
In 2002, a group of researchers researching the land and depressions in the valley found a deep depression in the valley. However, they know it is probably another tomb. They have made an attempt to excavate the area, however, the plan backfired by the flash floods that the Nile brings year-round.

The Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities and concerns
In Egypt, there is an antiquities department that takes care of the museums and national monuments. The department is called the Supreme Council of Antiquities, headed by Dr. Zawii Hawas. There are many concerns in Egypt. Some of the tourists that visit sometimes take back a souvenir, like the piece of the wall, or some paint. However, the paint and wall are being destroyed. The conservation process that is used to preserve the paintings is too weak. Thus, it is easier for the tourists to take the paint or wall off. Every year, as I have discussed in the first part of this paper, the area floods right above the tombs. However, even though they prepare beforehand, sometimes the water leaks and damages the tombs. As well, dust storms occur too. Once, the trucks bringing tourists to Seti's tomb were too heavy and the roof almost collapsed because the trucks had to cross over the tomb to the unloading dock! The Valley of the Kings is a rich cultural statement is proven by the fact that when King Tut was found, his possessions gave veiwers the inside scoop on life and funiture in ancient Egypt.


Nowadays, the valley looks as it had been thousands of years ago. The same hillsides, the tombs camouflaged with the desert below. The lady of the peak is still standing there. The Nile is on the west side as it had been thousands of years ago. The blue sky with Horus in his boat in the sky as he makes his way west. And the busy people below, tourists and natives, in the valley are walking, in the footsteps, of a pharaoh.

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