DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.4658#0008
XIITH DYNASTY.
hardly leave them behind, so it may be that these
tombs were cleared out in the last century, when,
as Dr. Waldemar Schmidt suggested to me, graves
would be opened to get timber. All these small
graves seem to belong to a brief period, about the
XXIInd dynasty. The names Sheshanq, Osorkon,
Takeloth, were repeatedly found, but no names of
earlier or later kings.
CHAPTER II.
3. The most important tomb of the Xllth dynasty
period consisted of a long, oblong shaft, skew to the
wall of one of the chambers (No. 5, PL. I) and
running under it. In the shaft were scattered two
types of ushabtis, one of green glaze, another of clay
painted yellow but not baked. These were of XXIInd
dynasty style, as were also a wooden head from a
coffin lid, some small wax figures of the four genii, and
fragments of red leather braces.
At the bottom of the shaft, 13 feet down, two small
chambers opened. These were cleared out and found
to be empty. Lastly, the heap left in the middle of
the shaft was removed, and in it, in a space about
2 feet square, was found a group of objects, some of
which are shown in PL. III.
First was a wooden box about 18 X 12 x 12
inches. It was covered with white plaster, and on
the lid was roughly drawn in black ink the figure of a
jackal. The box was about one third full of papyri
which were in extremely bad condition, three quarters
of their substance having decayed away ; if a fragment
of the material were pressed slightly between the
finger and thumb it disappeared in a mere dust.
But the papyrus was inscribed ; characters apparently
of the Xllth dynasty hieratic could be distinguished.
The papyrus was packed with care and has been
brought to England. It is too delicate even to be
unfolded, but it is to be hoped that Mr. Griffith may,
by copying what can be seen on one fold and then
brushing or scraping this away, get access to the next
and so make out much of the text.
In the box was also a bundie of reed pens, 16 inches
long and a tenth of an inch in diameter, and scattered
round it were a lot of small objects ; parts of four
ivory castanets (iii, 1, 2, 3) incised with the usual
series of mythical creatures, a bronze uraeus entangled
in a mass of hair, a cat and an ape in green glaze (5,
6), and a handful of beads. These comprised spherical
beads in amethyst and agate, barrel-shaped in hae-
matite and carnelian, glaze and carnelian beads of the
shape of an almond, and one covered with minute
crumbs of glaze. The green glaze object (7) like a
cucumber in shape is not understood. There is one
at Gizeh and another has lately been found in a
Xllth dynasty grave at El Kab. (Cf. also Mission
du Caire, Planche XXII.) The ivory piece (8) is
pierced at the round end for the insertion of a handle ;
similar objects were found at Kahun (Kahun, VIII,
18), but their use is not known. The rude doll (9),
without arms or legs, is made of a flat slip of wood
i inch thick, the painted cross-lines on the body seem
to represent some plaid material. The next two dolls,
with arms but cut off at the knees, are of limestone
and glaze respectively (10, 11). A patch on the
latter is covered, not with smooth glaze like the rest
of the figure, but with minute grains of blue frit; this
must be due to imperfect firing, and shows that the
glaze was applied as a wash of ground frit. The
same method is seen in the ushabtis of a far later
period.
The figure of a dancer (12) is in wood ; the girl
wears a mask and holds a bronze serpent in each
hand (cf. the canvas mask found at Kahun, Pl. VIII,
14). The doll (13) is in limestone, the ape (14) in
blue glaze, the dad in ivory, and the coarse cup (16)
in blue glaze, while the plain castanet (17), and the
handle (?) with two lions engraved on it, are of ivory.
Seeds of the dom palm and of balanites were also
found here. A very curious fragment is the ivory
boy with a calf upon his back (length 2 inches).
Found alone this might have passed for Roman
work, but the position can leave no doubt that all
these objects are from one interment and of one
date.
The history of the tomb would appear to be as
follows. The Xllth dynasty interment was dis-
covered and robbed long ago, perhaps by the work-
men of Rameses II, the valuables being taken away
and the other objects thrown out into the shaft and
left. When the Ramesseum was ruined and had
been given over to some families of the XXIInd
dynasty as a cemetery, the ready-made shaft was
again utilised ; it was cleared out until the mouths of
the chamber were reached, and in them the second
burials were placed. At some later period these too
were disturbed, but in neither of the two last instances
was the bottom of the shaft reached : so that when
we, after finding the chambers empty, cleared com-
pletely the ground between them, we found this patch
covered with the remains of the first interment. There
B 2
hardly leave them behind, so it may be that these
tombs were cleared out in the last century, when,
as Dr. Waldemar Schmidt suggested to me, graves
would be opened to get timber. All these small
graves seem to belong to a brief period, about the
XXIInd dynasty. The names Sheshanq, Osorkon,
Takeloth, were repeatedly found, but no names of
earlier or later kings.
CHAPTER II.
3. The most important tomb of the Xllth dynasty
period consisted of a long, oblong shaft, skew to the
wall of one of the chambers (No. 5, PL. I) and
running under it. In the shaft were scattered two
types of ushabtis, one of green glaze, another of clay
painted yellow but not baked. These were of XXIInd
dynasty style, as were also a wooden head from a
coffin lid, some small wax figures of the four genii, and
fragments of red leather braces.
At the bottom of the shaft, 13 feet down, two small
chambers opened. These were cleared out and found
to be empty. Lastly, the heap left in the middle of
the shaft was removed, and in it, in a space about
2 feet square, was found a group of objects, some of
which are shown in PL. III.
First was a wooden box about 18 X 12 x 12
inches. It was covered with white plaster, and on
the lid was roughly drawn in black ink the figure of a
jackal. The box was about one third full of papyri
which were in extremely bad condition, three quarters
of their substance having decayed away ; if a fragment
of the material were pressed slightly between the
finger and thumb it disappeared in a mere dust.
But the papyrus was inscribed ; characters apparently
of the Xllth dynasty hieratic could be distinguished.
The papyrus was packed with care and has been
brought to England. It is too delicate even to be
unfolded, but it is to be hoped that Mr. Griffith may,
by copying what can be seen on one fold and then
brushing or scraping this away, get access to the next
and so make out much of the text.
In the box was also a bundie of reed pens, 16 inches
long and a tenth of an inch in diameter, and scattered
round it were a lot of small objects ; parts of four
ivory castanets (iii, 1, 2, 3) incised with the usual
series of mythical creatures, a bronze uraeus entangled
in a mass of hair, a cat and an ape in green glaze (5,
6), and a handful of beads. These comprised spherical
beads in amethyst and agate, barrel-shaped in hae-
matite and carnelian, glaze and carnelian beads of the
shape of an almond, and one covered with minute
crumbs of glaze. The green glaze object (7) like a
cucumber in shape is not understood. There is one
at Gizeh and another has lately been found in a
Xllth dynasty grave at El Kab. (Cf. also Mission
du Caire, Planche XXII.) The ivory piece (8) is
pierced at the round end for the insertion of a handle ;
similar objects were found at Kahun (Kahun, VIII,
18), but their use is not known. The rude doll (9),
without arms or legs, is made of a flat slip of wood
i inch thick, the painted cross-lines on the body seem
to represent some plaid material. The next two dolls,
with arms but cut off at the knees, are of limestone
and glaze respectively (10, 11). A patch on the
latter is covered, not with smooth glaze like the rest
of the figure, but with minute grains of blue frit; this
must be due to imperfect firing, and shows that the
glaze was applied as a wash of ground frit. The
same method is seen in the ushabtis of a far later
period.
The figure of a dancer (12) is in wood ; the girl
wears a mask and holds a bronze serpent in each
hand (cf. the canvas mask found at Kahun, Pl. VIII,
14). The doll (13) is in limestone, the ape (14) in
blue glaze, the dad in ivory, and the coarse cup (16)
in blue glaze, while the plain castanet (17), and the
handle (?) with two lions engraved on it, are of ivory.
Seeds of the dom palm and of balanites were also
found here. A very curious fragment is the ivory
boy with a calf upon his back (length 2 inches).
Found alone this might have passed for Roman
work, but the position can leave no doubt that all
these objects are from one interment and of one
date.
The history of the tomb would appear to be as
follows. The Xllth dynasty interment was dis-
covered and robbed long ago, perhaps by the work-
men of Rameses II, the valuables being taken away
and the other objects thrown out into the shaft and
left. When the Ramesseum was ruined and had
been given over to some families of the XXIInd
dynasty as a cemetery, the ready-made shaft was
again utilised ; it was cleared out until the mouths of
the chamber were reached, and in them the second
burials were placed. At some later period these too
were disturbed, but in neither of the two last instances
was the bottom of the shaft reached : so that when
we, after finding the chambers empty, cleared com-
pletely the ground between them, we found this patch
covered with the remains of the first interment. There
B 2