Popielska-Grzybowska, Joanna [Hrsg.]; Central European Conference of Young Egyptologists <2, 2001, Warszawa> [Hrsg.]: Proceedings of the Second Central European Conference of Young Egyptologists: Egypt 2001: perspectives of research, Warsaw 5 - 7 March 2001 (Warsaw, 2003)

Anna Wodzinska
Warsaw

Pottery from the Tomb of Khafraankh (G 7948)*
(Plates 32-41)

The rock-cut tomb of Khafraankh is located at the
eastern edge of the Giza plateau.* 1 The tomb and its
decoration were first documented by LEPSIUS (tomb
number LG75).2 Since 1996 the study of the tomb
has been carried out by the Russian Archaeological
Mission under the direction of Eleonora
kormysheva.
During the cleaning of the tomb of Khafraankh (dur-
ing the 1997-1998 seasons) a number of pot sherds
were discovered. All together there were 1086 frag-
ments including 154 diagnostic pieces, the latter rep-
resenting parts of rims, parts of bases, handles and
decorated sherds, as well as pieces bearing potmarks.
Eighty of the diagnostic pieces were drawn.
Following is the breakdown of the sherds in
numbers, types of clay used (in percentages), and

dates:
Sherds.1086
body sherds.931
rims.88
bases.41
complete profiles.13
handles.12
stopper...1
Clay:
imported clay.0.3 %
marl clay.4.4%
Nile alluvial clay.95.3%'
Dating:
Old Kingdom sherds.81 %

Later pottery (Middle Kingdom, Late Period,
Ptolemaic Period, Late Roman Period): 19%
Pottery sherds were found in (see pi. 32, fig. 1 -
plan of the tomb):3
* I would like to express my gratitude to Professor Karol
MYSLIWIEC, Mrs Teodozja RZEUSKA and Mr Hratch
PAPAZIAN for their help with work on this article.
1 PM ffl\pp. 207-208.
2 Ibidem, p. 207.
3 For details see: E. KORMYSHEVA, Report on the Activity
of the Russian Archaeological Mission at Giza, Tomb
G 7948, East Field, During the Season 1998, ASAE 74 (1999),

- the shaft leading to the burial chamber of the tomb
owner (3);
- the burial chamber of Khafraankh (11);
- the burial shaft of Herenka, Khafraankh's wife (4);
- the burial shaft of Herimerw and Ishepet (5);
- the so-called “X” grave (7,8);
- the entrance to the tomb of Khafraankh (6);
The ceramic material found in the tomb of
Khafraankh seems to come from perturbed strata
and can be dated to the Old Kingdom, Middle King-
dom, Late Period, Ptolemaic Period and Roman
Times. The predominant Old Kingdom types date
from IV th dynasty.
Old Kingdom
Many fragments of a single big pot (pi. 33, fig.
2)4 were found on the burial bed of Khafraankh in
his burial chamber. A few sherds of this pot were
also found above a layer of stones covering the
Khafraankh burial. The tall (38.3 cm), slender jar
was made of very fine, marl group clay, of foreign
origin. Two vertical handles were added to the ves-
sel, roughly half-way up. The surface was deco-
rated in the so-called “comb” pattern. The ancient
potter had drawn, in the still wet clay on the shoul-
der of the jar, a small, square-like potmark.
This jar belongs to a very well known group of simi-
lar pots found at Giza during excavations led
by H. JUNKER,5 S. HASS AN6 and G.A. REI-
pp. 23-37, pis. I-n.
4 Ibidem, p. 36, pi. II b.
5 H. JUNKER, Bericht iiber die Grabungen auf dem
Friedhofvon Giza I, Vienna-Leipzig 1929 (hereinafter re-
ferred to as: Friedhofvon Giza I), figs. 13,16.
6 S. HASSAN, Excavations at Giza, 1930-1931, Cairo 1936,
p. 147, fig. 173 [4].

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