a word from the president - the amarna research … spring vol 3. no 1.pdf · devices -- myth,...

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Volume 3 Number 1 May 1998 © 1998 The Amarna Research Foundation Linda Anderson -Editor .r- ----------------~ OFFICIAL NOTICE The Annual Meeting of The Amarna Research Foundation for 1998 will be held August 15, 1998 at twelve noon at 7350 Coronado Court, Boulder, Colorado 80303. The Agenda will be: 1. Call to Order 2. Treasurers Report 3. Membership Report 4. Nominating Committee Report 5. Election of the r90ard of Trustees L. ":Iection of Officers 7. President's Report 8. Old or New Business 9. Adjournment Our By-laws state that nominations may not come from the floor, but must be directed through the Nominating Committee at least 15 days in advance of the Annual Meeting. The Chairman of the Nominating Committee is Dr. William Petty, 7110 South Old Farm Road, Littleton, CO 80123. A word from the President ... Last fall, while on our extended trip to Akhetaten, Barry Kemp told me Gwilym Ovven, his photographer, had a project in mind that TARF might be interested in supporting. They needed a balloon to be used for aeriel pictures of Akhetaten. Bob Hanawalt TARF President I met with Gwil to discuss this crying need ... the last photos of note had been taken by the ~ Egyptian Air Force in the late 1930's. Gwil said the expedition had made several attempts at aerial photography using a kite, but the results were less than satisfactory. I told Gwil I would approach the TARF Board of Trustees with the matter. I did and they decided there was no question that this was a good project for TARF to support. Jack Elliott, Board member, took responsibility for contacting several balloon companies here in the States. He gathered information on the best approach for the situation, as vvell as, price quotes. The final conclusion was that a helium balloon in a traditional "Zeplin" shape would be the best platform for such an undertaking. The TARF Board authorized the funding of the project. The balloon was ordered and sent through the Friends of Cambridge University in the U.S. (In order to maintain tax exempt status) designated for the McDonald School of Archeology, Amarna Project, in Cambridge, England. Shortly thereafter, along with grateful thanks, vve received pictures of Gwil Ovven and his wife in the courtyard of Kings College, with the 213rds inflated 18 foot blimp, provided to them courtesy of you. Since then vve have received pictures of the blimp over Amarna, where it is apparently quite a success. It occurred to me that vve have not provided you with information on how your money has been spent. This is entirely my fault and will be corrected shortly via the" Aten Sunspots." I made a personal resolution early in the formation of this organization that the Akhetaten Sun would not become an instrument for fund raising, nor for financial reporting. We all know that is important, but I frankly, get tired of the amount of space allotted to it in non-profit publications. Gwil Owen, expedition photographer, and wife Els grapple with partly-filled blimp - trial run in England.

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Volume 3 Number 1May 1998

© 1998 The AmarnaResearch Foundation

Linda Anderson -Editor

.r- ----------------~OFFICIAL NOTICE

The Annual Meeting ofThe Amarna ResearchFoundation for 1998 willbe held August 15, 1998at twelve noon at7350 Coronado Court,Boulder, Colorado80303.

The Agenda will be:1. Call to Order2. Treasurers Report3. Membership Report4. Nominating

Committee Report5. Election of ther90ard of TrusteesL. ":Iection of Officers7. President's Report8. Old or New Business9. Adjournment

Our By-laws state thatnominations may notcome from the floor, butmust be directedthrough the NominatingCommittee at least 15days in advance of theAnnual Meeting. TheChairman of theNominating Committeeis Dr. William Petty,7110 South Old FarmRoad, Littleton, CO80123.

•A word from the President ...

Last fall, while onour extended trip toAkhetaten, BarryKemp told meGwilym Ovven, hisphotographer, had aproject in mind thatTARF might beinterested insupporting. Theyneeded a balloon tobe used for aerielpictures ofAkhetaten.

Bob Hanawalt• TARF President

• I met with Gwil to discuss this crying need ...the last photos of note had been taken by the

~ Egyptian Air Force in the late 1930's. Gwil• said the expedition had made several

attempts at aerial photography using a kite,• but the results were less than satisfactory.

I told Gwil I would approach the TARF Boardof Trustees with the matter. I did and theydecided there was no question that this was agood project for TARF to support. JackElliott, Board member, took responsibility forcontacting several balloon companies here inthe States. He gathered information on thebest approach for the situation, as vvell as,price quotes. The final conclusion was that ahelium balloon in a traditional "Zeplin" shapewould be the best platform for such anundertaking. The TARF Board authorized thefunding of the project. The balloon wasordered and sent through the Friends of

Cambridge University in the U.S. (In order tomaintain tax exempt status) designated forthe McDonald School of Archeology, AmarnaProject, in Cambridge, England.

Shortly thereafter, along with grateful thanks,vve received pictures of Gwil Ovven and hiswife in the courtyard of Kings College, withthe 213rds inflated 18 foot blimp, provided tothem courtesy of you. Since then vve havereceived pictures of the blimp over Amarna,where it is apparently quite a success.

It occurred to me that vve have not providedyou with information on how your money hasbeen spent. This is entirely my fault and willbe corrected shortly via the" Aten Sunspots."I made a personal resolution early in theformation of this organization that theAkhetaten Sun would not become aninstrument for fund raising, nor for financialreporting. We all know that is important, but Ifrankly, get tired of the amount of spaceallotted to it in non-profit publications.

Gwil Owen, expedition photographer, and wife Elsgrapple with partly-filled blimp - trial run in England.

- FIELD DIRECTOR'S REPORT - Barry KempAmarna Expedition --September/October 1997

The expedition ran betvveen September 9thand October 9th, the period actually workedat Amarna being from September 17th toOctober 6th. The team comprised Barry

• Kemp, Neal Spencer, Emma Duncalf, MarthaI- Hawting and Margarita Nikolakaki-Kantrou.• The Antiquities Organization was ably• represented by Inspector of Antiquities Aly• EI-Bakry, to whom many thanks are due, as• also to Mahmoud Hamza, Samir Anis and

their COlleagues in the Minia Inspectorate, as• vvell as to the Supreme Council of Antiquities

for granting permission for the work to takeplace.

The principal task was to continue the• programme of architectural recording and• conservation at the North Palace. Most of• the funding was provided by the generosity of~ The Amarna Research Foundation. The part~ chosen for detailed re-examination was the· front entrance to the palace, which now lies• close to the edge of the cultivation. It was

first cleared by the Egypt Exploration Society• in the 1920's.;.

- To begin with, a grid of five-metre squares• was laid out across the gateway and the• ground inside and outside. By the end of the_ season ten squares had been cleared.

• The gateway had beenflanked by two narrowpylons of mud brickwhich protruded onlyon the outside face ofthe enclosure wall.They were 3.50 metreswide, the spacebetvveen them being3.60 metres. Originallythe gateway had beenfloored with limestoneslabs. One of thesestill remains, tilted at asteep angle into a pit.The gateway must

have been raised in level, for to front andback are narrow parallel walls which musthave formed the edges to shallow ramps. Tothe south of the southem ramp on the outsidea second parallel wall ran outwards for amuch longer distance, beyond the limits ofthe excavation. The old plan implies that a

Western Gateway of North Palace

corresponding wall lay to the north.

A small excavation was also carried out overthe south-west corner of the palace. Thecorner itself was found to have been markedby a stone block, over which the brickworkhad been laid. From this a narrow wall, onebrick in thickness, ran vvestwards, beyond thelimits of the excavation. It is tempting to seeit fulfilling the same purpose as the similarwall at the main gateway, and enclosing anarea of ground in front of the palace.

The opportunity was also taken to sink a largetrench into the fields on the axis of the palaceand at a distance of approximately 70 metresfrom its front. The trench measured 15 by .......metres and was set at an angle to the axis inorder to increase the chances of locating anyfeatures which might be parallel to it. In theevent, the trench descended through darkalluvial soil until a pale creamy-grey clay layerwas reached. This sloped steadily downwardstowards the river, between 1.10 and 1.90 mbeneath the present level of the fields. It hada flat even surface and seems to be thenatural desert. A shallow pit cut into itrevealed no cultural material. On the surfaceof the pale clay, hovvever, lay a few fragmentsof red brick, one of them extensively roundedby water erosion. During the course of thedigging the soil produced sherds, a mixture ofrecent, Byzantine and Eighteenth Dynasty.However, the lowest material, below 1.10 rn,produced only a single sherd. This absenceof cultural material around the junction .~betvveen river soil and desert clay is strikin;The provisional interpretation is that, in theNew Kingdom, the ground in front of the NorthPalace was desert, sloping towards the Nilebut permanently above the level of theinundation. At a later date (early centuriesAD?) the rising bed of the Nile began to bringprogressively the inundation over the desertand to deposit alluvium. In the earliest stagesthe movement of the waters scoured away thesandy desert cover and whateverarchaeological material there had been.Eventually cultivation began on the alluvialsoil, perhaps bringing once again a settledpopulation to the area.

The conservation programme took the form ofrepairs to the brick walls of the Garden Court,

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begun last season, in March and April of 1997.Two teams of builders vvere employed, as vvellas a team of brickmakers. The buildersworked their way along the rooms on the eastand west sides of the central garden, and alsoalong the south wall and the outer face of thewest wall. Wherever the base of a wall waseroded the old bricks vvere replaced with newcourses. Many of the sides of the doorwayswere rebuilt.

ooo 0o 0

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North Palace - Garden Court site planhatched walls are those repaired during 1997

In Room 1 the bottom two steps of_.,._ the staircase were replaced. Along

the south wall, the bottom parts ofthe stone pilasters which ended thecolonnade were rebuilt with newlimestone blocks.

North Palace - Garden Courtstair before and after reconstruction

North Palace - Garden Courtdepression of questionable use in front ofreconstructed walls with channelling.

A distinctive problem at the North Palace isthe deep channelling of walls caused by theloss of timber beams originally inserted andnow eaten away. Our method here is to fillthese channels with pieces of brick and withmud mortar recessed slightly from the face ofthe brickwork. When dry a strip was paintedalong it with a wood stain specially formulatedfor outdoor use, which forms a hard plasticlayer over the mortar. An appearance ofaging can be given by throwing dust a thesurface and then lightly brushing it away. Theresult is quite effective. At the expeditionhouse many pieces of carved stone from theSmall Aten Temple were copied in facsimile,for inclusion in the planned publication of thetemple.

Editor s Book ReviewLinda Anderson

Ancient Egypt - Anatomy of a Civilizationby Barry Kemp

© 1989 and reprinted almost yearly

In Barry's own words, "The nature of theancient Egyptian state and it's vvealth ofdevices -- myth, symbol, and institution -- tomanipulate the minds and to direct the lives ofits people are at the centre of this book."

He sets the country's backdrop: culturally,geographically, economically, historically.

Within one section titled Egypt in microcosm:the city of EI-Amama Barry discussesAkhenaten and his religious reform (in view oflater religions, including Christianity andIslam); change of art style and the portrayal ofthe royal family; and in-detail development ofAkhentaten as a complex city complete withcommunity needs for workers and royality:water supplies, housing, agricultural spaces.

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Barry Kemp is also aFellow of the BritishAcademy, Fellow ofWolfson College,Cambridge, and aCorresponding Member ofthe GermanArchaeological Institute.

MEET YOUR HONORARY TRUSTEE:BARRY KEMP

,eo

Ie I ovve my interest in Egyptology to the• disruptions of the Second World War. It

took my father to Egypt, where he drove a• truck in the Royal Engineers regiment of the

British army. During a period of leave hemade an excursion to Luxor with some fellow

• soldiers. A packet of tiny snapshots of the• now familiar scenes eventually arrived by

post at our home, along with some luridly• coloured postcards of Tutankhamun's

treasures. I remember the items had,eo somehow become stained and fragranced• from spilt perfume. That was an essential

part of their exotic character which remained• dormant until, many years later, when a

school history project set me writing aboutancient Egypt. There were not, in those

• days, the lavishly illustrated books that now• abound. Weigall's A Short History of Ancient'. ~was all my local library could provide,

but it was enough. Together with my father's• pictures it fired my imagination. As a• schoolboy I began to develop an interest in• local archaeology also and took a small part· in excavations and Saturday volunteer work

in the Birmingham Museum...• I won a place at the University of Liverpool,• for a four-year intensive course in

Egyptology, under the magisterial guidance• of H.W. Fairman. The four years were• mostly devoted to Egyptian language (and

also to Coptic). Although I have come to see• that too great a devotion to language studies

has badly warped the study of Egypt's past, I• am grateful for those years. The proper,. integration of texts and archaeology, the• theme I have tried to build my career around,• demands that language study be an essential

part of one's education.

After graduation came a start on a doctoraldissertation: the study of what remained ofthe records of John Garstang's unpublishedexcavation of a thousand tombs at Abydosbetween 1906 and 1909. I never finished it,though it gave me a lasting interest in thatsadly mutilated site where, for two seasons, Iwas later able to work as an assistant on thePennsylvania-Yale expedition. Within a yearI was appointed to a junior teaching post atCambridge University, where I have stayed.Thirty-five years later, I hold the post ofReader in Egyptology, an English university

rank which recognises that its holder likes todo research and offers a degree of prestigebehind which one can shelter from many anadministrative burden.

Partly because I teach a fairly broad course,have dabbled in several different aspects ofEgyptology. From early on I have been drivenby a dissatisfaction with the way the subject isput together. Texts and art are held in toohigh a veneration. Archaeology counts forlittle unless it provides more. Believing thatVYe are well into the era of diminishing returnsfor the former, I look to archaeology as theway forwards towards a more broadly-basedunderstanding of ancient Egyptian society. Bythis I mean archaeology in its modern guiSf .........as a mode of explaining the structure andbroad workings of society as much as with thebusiness of excavation. At first I toyed withthe idea of excavating a multi-period townmound, to try to follow the changing fortunesof a provincial society. In the 1970's I visitedand evaluated several such sites, but shiedaway. At that time, I felt that I would not beable to gather the range of expertise and theresources needed to explore thesuperimposed periods on a suitably significantscale. Even now, few expeditions in Egyptare able to do this satisfactorily.

Whilst preparing a seminar paper in 1970,which attempted to reconstruct a model of theinteraction between institutional and privateeconomies in the New Kingdom, I suddenlysaw that Amarna, in its single-period sirnplic]and huge scale, offered a test bed forexploring how archaeological evidence of allkinds could be better employed. Bycoincidence, I worked again for thePennsylvania-Yale expedition not longafterwards. This time in Amenhotep Ill's townand palace at Malkata, and so I came intocontact with the domestic archaeology of thelate 18th Dynasty. Fieldwork at Amarna wasthe next logical step.

On the re-opening of provincial Egypt toforeign expeditions after the dark yearsfollowing the 1967 Middle East war, Iapproached the Egypt Exploration Societywith a request to re-start their connection withthe site. A partnership was borne that hascontinued ever since. My goal has remained

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Simon Bradley

Reconstructed columnSmall Aten Temple

the broad integration of all kinds of evidencefor understanding better the life of an ancientcity. Evidence is obtained over the whole siteand encompasses the results of the work ofthe past as well as what we find now. I havealso become sensitive to the dereliction that ahundred years of archaeology has wreaked.Through the conservation work that we havestarted (and with the help of TARF), I amtrying to put some of that right. It has, all toopredictably, turned out to be an immenselyslower and larger task than imagined, and isone that will easily take me to the end of mycareer. But I would not have it otherwise.

Amarna Contributor:Simon Bradley

A major contributor to the current buildingworks at Amarna is the sculptor SimonBradley. Brought up in the West Midlands ofEngland, Simon is a graduate of theprestigious Royal College of Art in London,where he trained as a sculptor. Although heremains a sculptor at heart, he also enjoys thechallenge of working in a range of materials tocreate three-dimensional forms on a largescale. It comes as no surprise to find thatsome of his work has been on film sets.

His involvement at Amarna began in 1991,when he agreed to work on designs preparedby architect Michael Mallinson to recreate oneof the colossal columns which had stood atthe front of the Small Aten Temple sanctuary.Many huge broken pieces still littered theground and provided templates for the design.Working in the winter-cold stables of a statelyhome in south-east England, he began bymaking a full-length segment of the wholecolumn in three-quarters of a ton of modelingclay. From this model he took a series ofmoulds in glass-fibre which were later shippedto Egypt and taken to a factory near Ismailiyawhere casts were made in glass-fibrereinforced concrete. The real challenge,hovvever, was yet to come: how to assemblea kit of heavy pieces to make a truly verticaland symmetrical column twenty-seven feettall? Simon's ability to think big and in termsof structural stability saved the day, as didanother of his many skills: welding. Todesigns which he drew up on the spot, a

village blacksmith made a series of iron cagesto which, when stacked one upon another, thecolumn panels could be attached.

Surrounded by a dense but rickety scaffoldingand with the aid of a portable welder lent by afriendly building company in Cairo (Keminco),Simon spent two months in the Spring of 1994creating from the cages a rigid tower, carefullybraced and vertically true. One by one, thepanels were welded on to it. Simon's columnnow stands as alandmark to help visitorsto orientate themselvesat Amarna. It also givesthem a measure, of theotherwise lost, verticalscale of Akhenaten'smonuments.

Simon's othercontributions to datecontinue the theme ofmaking it easier tocomprehend Amarna'sruined building.Wherever the roofs ofhouses and palaceswere held up bycolumns, the columns stood on fat stonebases. More often than not these are lost,though their positions are usually knownexactly. Putting new ones in their place is aneffective way of bringing back a little much-needed life to the drab brickwork. Simon hasso far created two column-base moulds, ofdifferent diameters, one for the private houseQ44.1 and another for the North Palace.Skillfully made from latex, with a rigid glass-fibre casing for support, the moulds can beused by our local builders for turning outconvincing column bases from a mixture ofground-up stone and white cement.

Reconstructed columnbases - Garden Court

Egypt's lure has, for the moment, again takenSimon from his peaceful cottage in a Suffolkcoastal village to Hurghada, where he iscarving in limestone a large replica Egyptianstatue for a visitor centre which explainsEgypt's ancient Red Sea connection. It ismuch to be hoped that his talents can bebrought to bear again on Amarna as we seek,step by step, to help the city to communicatewith its visitors.

5

YUYA & TUYAFrom the "Valley of the Kings" to the Cairo Museum

©1998 text by David Pepper - photos by Jill Taylor

In analyzing the impact of the Amarna Period, manymodern writers focus on its decline. We are told thatafter Akhenaten had died, his advisor, Aye, steered theyoung boy-king, Tutankaten, away from the teachings ofAten's priests, and back towards the worship of the godAmun. The young king is seen abandoning the capitalcity of Akhetaten, moving back to Waset (Thebes),changing his name to Tutankamun, and ending the "ageof enlightenment" of the Aten. These writers considerAmarna "an experiment gone wrong," at best.

Other scholars see the Amarna Period as a renaissanceof new ideas and new art forms. They look to earlierregimes for the origins of the worship of the Aten, citingevidence of this religion during the reign of Akhenaten'sfather, Amenhotep III, and even much earlier. Theseanalysts see the Amarna age as a righteous rebellionagainst the powerful priesthood and bureaucracy ofAmun.

Still others look for a foreign element at pharaoh's court,proposing that Akhenaten's grandfather, Yuya, wasinfluential in this regard. They see the worship of theAten as a symbol of Egypt's acceptance of cosmopolitanideas and the religions of her colonies.

Which one is right? If it was thelatter, who was this Yuya? Whatis known about him? Was hereally a foreigner? Is there any

Yuya's Mummy Mask

evidence that heworshipped the Aten?Did he influence II Tuya's Mummy MaskAkhenaten's beliefs?Was he really theinstigator of the Amarna Period?

To answer these questions, VYe must start with thediscovery of Yuya's tomb in 1905.

On the 20th of December in 1904, Theodore M. Davis, amillionaire from Newport, Rhode Island, funded the workof Chief Inspector, James E. Quibell, in a small wadi atthe entrance to the Valley of the Kings. Quibell cleareddebris between two tombs that had been known for quitesome time: KV3, the tomb of a son of Rameses III, andKV4. which bears the name of Rameses XI.

Early in February, 1905, steps leading downward to a"sealed" door were found under the debris.Unfortunately, a robber's hole was apparent in the upper18 inches of both the exterior, and another interior,doorway.

Upon entering the burial chamber Davis comments:"[It] was as dark as dark could be, and extremelyhot. Our first quest was the name of the ownerof the tomb. as to which we had not the slightesknowledge or suspicion. We held up ourcandles, but they gave so little light and sodazzled our eyes that we could see nothing butthe glitter of gold. In a moment or two. hovvever,I made out a very large wooden sarcophagus.known as a funeral sled. It was about six feethigh and eight feet long, made of wood coveredwith bitumen, which was as bright as the day itwas put on. Around the upper part of the coffinwas a stripe of gold foil, about 6 inches wide, andcovered with hieroglyphs. On calling M.Maspero's attention to it, he immediately handedme his candle, which together with my own I heldbefore my eyes close to the inscription so that hecould read them. In an instant he said, "loulyal"[1]

So who was this Yuya? And why were he and his wifeTuya buried in the King's Valley?

Yuya was probably born sometime around the timeAmenhotep II was crowned as pharaoh. That is. about1427 BC [2]. By the time Amenhotep II died, around1401 BC, Yuya had married a girl with the commonEgyptian name of Tuya and at least two children hadbeen born to them, the oldest - a son named Anen, andthe youngest - a girl named Tiye.

Yuya's daughter Tiye must have been about 2 years oldwhen Thutmosis IV came to the throne, and as herparents were important officials, she probably associatedwith the king's young son, Amenhotep III. After a 10 yearrule, Thutmosis IV died and his son, Amenhotep III, wasstill only a boy of 12 years of age. By then, Yuya'sdaughter Tiye would have been about the same age.The young pharaoh's court at this time would have beenunder the influence of Thutmosis IV's widow Mutemweya

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and her advisors, of which Yuya was certainly one.

In the first year of hisreign, the young KingAmenhotep III wasmarried to Yuya'sdaughter, Tiye. So asroyal father-in-law it islikely that Yuya hadquite a lot of influenceon the young king.

Was Yuya a foreigner?The ancient Egyptianscribes seemed to havehad a great deal oftrouble spelling Yuya'sname. Some

Amentotep III & Queen Tiye II Egyptologists havesuggested thisindicates that his name

was of foreign origin, and may have been difficult torender into Egyptian. His name is spelled elevendifferent ways on his funerary equipment from his tomb:

Yuya was buried inside three nested wooden coffinswhich were set in a sledge-sarcophagus. The sled wasjust a canopy in the form of a box which had no bottom,and the sarcophagi inside it rested directly on the floor.The completed canopy was too large to be brought intothe tomb, and it had to have been assembled in place.

Three nested coffins always signified a member of thehighest court officials. Like the sled, the outermost coffinwas coated in black pitch banded with gold foil strips anddecorated with standing figures of funerary deities. Thiswas a fashion that was popular be~n the reign ofThutmosis III and the end of the 18 Dynasty.

Yuya's middle coffin is covered with silver leaf withinscriptions and figures of the gods detailed in gold.When found the silver gilding was still bright, but itblackened within two days upon exposure to external air.[3]

The innermost coffin is entirely covered on the outside ingold leaf with inlays of semi-precious stones and coloredglass. Inside, it is covered in silver, incised withinscriptions and reliefs. Like the middle coffin, the innercoffin is decorated on the lid in low relief with figures ofNekhbet, and Nut. This coffin shows signs of alterationsin ancient times. Yuya's name may perhaps been toooften misspelled, or alternatively, the coffin may havebeen originally made for a different owner.

Recorded on his coffins and other objects from his tombare Yuya's some 40 titles including Father of the God,Master of the Horse, Deputy of his Majesty in theChariotry, Hereditary Noble and Count, Ears and Mouthof the king, etc. etc. [4]

Yuya's canopic jars were contained in a lidded woodenbox on a sled, which was also coated with black pitch anddecorated with gilded bands of inscriptions, plus standingfigures of funerary deities, including Isis and Nepthys onthe front panel.. The canopic jars themselves were madeof Calcite (EgyptianAlabaster) with portraitlids. The viscera insidethe canopic jars wereplaced in mummiformwrappings, surmountedby a gilded cartonagemask.

When found themummies of both Yuyaand Tuya were still intheir innermost coffins.The robbers hadremoved the lids of eachsarcophagus, and thetops of the three innercoffins that it contained.

Canopic Jars

Arthur Weigall in The Glory of the Pharaohs wrote:"First above Yuaa and then above his wife theelectric lamps were held, as one looked downinto their quiet faces (from which the bandageshad been removed by some ancient robber),there was almost the feeling that they wouldpresently open their eyes and blink at the light."The stem features of the old man commandedone's attention, and again and again our gazewas turned from this mass of vvealth to thissleeping figure in whose honor it had beenplaced here." [5]

Weigall also stated in The Life and Times of Akhenatenthat:

"One must picture him as a tall man, with a fineshock of white hair; a great hooked nose like thatof a Syrian; full strong lips; and a prominent,determined jaw. He has the face of anecclesiastic, and there is something about hismouth which reminds one of the late pope, LeoXIII. One feels on looking at his well-preservedfeatures, that there may be found the originator

7

of the great religious movement which hisdaughter and grandson carried to execution." [6]

This last comment referring, of course, to the worship ofthe Aten, by the Pharaoh Akhenaten.

During the robbery, the bodies had been stripped ofmuch of their mummy cloth, and the scraps thrown downbeside each mummy as the jevvels and amulets vverepulled off. It is probable that many small objects vvereplundered, since few vvere found in the burial. Acomparison to intact burials of nobles from this timeperiod shows that a significant number of objects mayhave been taken. [7]

The lack of perfume jars and cosmetics probably meanthat the tomb was robbed soon after the burial. In tombsknown to have been robbed years after the burial, emptyperfume jars vvere cast away when their contents werefound to have dried up. Of the vessels in Yuya's &Tuya's tomb that vvere left - two jugs and a large jar -two had their sealed linen coverings ripped off inantiquity to establish what they held, while the lid of thethird had been cast off and broken. Lucas determinedthat one jug had held castor oil, and the other a dark redsubstance, while the large jar had been filled with natron.To the thieves, these were clearly commodities of littlevalue, and hence were rejected.

These ancient thieves, like their modern counterparts,preferred untraceable items, like recyclable metals suchas gold and silver. In Yuya's and Tuya's case, a woodenhandled sistrum had been stripped of its metal loop andshakers. Noteworthy, too, is the almost total absence ofgarments and linen.

While it is not known exactly when Yuya's and Tuya'stomb was plundered, there is evidence that it may havebeen entered two or three times. The first time wasprobably shortly after the interment, evidenced by thelack of perfume oil containers.

The second time was probablyseveral hundred years later duringthe construction of KV3 for one ofthe sons of Rameses III. No doubtthe whereabouts of KV46 becameknown to the Ramesside tombexcavators. Quibell published twoseal impressions of Rameses III inhis catalog of objects from KV46, thetomb of Yuya & Tuya, but it is notknown if they vvere intrusive, or putthere deliberately by the priests whotidied-up some of the damage in thetomb, and roughly re-blocked therobbers' openings.

A possible third robbery may have occurred during thetime of construction of KV4, Rameses XI. The temporaryblocking put up by the priests of Rameses Ill's time wasonce again removed, and a staff and scarab droppednear the main entrance. Since debris from KV4 thenburied the doorway opening. this seems to be the latestpossible date of any robbery.

Many valuable items vvere left behind by the thieves,hovvever.

There are twomagnificent cofferchests, raised on fourlegs, decorated withcovetto cornices andthe "Life, Stability, andPovver" hieroglyphicsigns. Both chests havethe cartouche of Yuyc~son-in-law, AmenhotepIII, and one is alsoinscribed with daughterQueen Tiye's name.

Three wooden chairsvvere also found amongthe furniture of Yuyaand Tuya. Two areinscribed with the name

of their grand-daughter, Sitamun. The smallest chair isthat of a child.

Coffer chest of Amenhotepllland Queen Tiye

This chair has been nick-named the "Ibex" chair, for ithas figures of crouching Ibex on either side under thearms. The feet of the chair are modeled as lion's paws,as was fashionable at the time, and on the back of thechair are three figures of goddesses standing on goldsigns. In the center is the god Bes. On either side areimages of the goddess of music, Tauret, inhippopotamus-headed form. This chair was found with alinen seat cushion. filled with down.

Also found was a slightly largerchair of grand-daughter Sitamun's.Like the story of the three bears,someone had been siHing in thechair, probably the young princessSitamun, as gold was rubbed offand patched again in severalplaces. The seat was originally ofplaited string, which had wornthrough and was replaced by arectangular board painted yellow.

Sitamun's chairs: "Ibex" chair on left

8

On the inside back of the middle-sized chair is a scenerepresenting Yuya's daughter, Queen Tiye, and twoprincesses on a papyrus boat in a marsh. The queenwears a crown of double feathers and a long wig, and sheis seated on a chair in the boat, under which a cat sitswith its tail erect. The queen is identified by her name ina cartouche with her title 'The Great Royal Wife." Infront of the queen in the prow of the boat stands the

young princess offering her mothera bunch of lotus flowers. She wearsa crown of lotus, and her nameSitamun is placed inside acartouche behind her.

The largest and most elaborate ofthe chairs has a duplicate sceneshowing the princess receiving anoffering of a gold necklace. Theinscription above the princess says,"the eldest daughter of the kingwhom he loves, Sitamun." The textabove the offering-bearer says,"offering of gold from the lands ofthe south."

Sitamun's Chair

In a corner of the tomb chamber, two wooden "Osiris"beds were found - one for each of the tomb's owners.Osiris beds are ceremonial in nature. Grains of barleywere sprinkled upon an earth and sand-filled frameoutlining a figure of Osiris. This small plantation wascarefully watered until the grains germinated and grew toa height of about 8 inches, at which time it was pressedflat by the whole bed being wrapped in a sheet of linenand allowed to dry before it was deposited in the tomb.

In addition to the ritual Osiris beds, three beds intendedfor people were also found in the tomb. One bedsteadhad its headboard finished in golden gilt, the second wasfinished in silver, and the third in painted relief. Theheadboards of these beds were decorated with variouscombinations of Bes and Tauret.

Ushabti boxes

Thirteen wooden Ushabti boxes werefound in the tomb. They were upright-style boxes, rectangular in shape, witharched lids and painted decoration,

mummiformfigures, andinscri ptions.The boxescontained14 Ushabti'swith Yuya'sname, andfour withTuya's.

Ushabtis

The first ancient Egyptian chariot ever found was inYuya's tomb. The chariot bears no name, but it probablybelonged to Yuya, as one of his titles was "Deputy of hisMajesty in the Chariotry." It is in nearly perfect condition:the framework of the body, the wheels, and the pole areintact, and even the leather-work which was strippedfrom the chariot's sides was found and could be put backin place. It is doubtful if this chariot had ever been used,as it's leather tires are hardly scratched.

The funeral papyrus found in Yuya's tomb is a goodspecimen of the 18th Dynasty Book of the Dead. Nowcut up into 34 sheets, the roll measured almost 10meters, and it contains some 40 chapters, one of which isunknown from any other source (8). The quality ofYuya's papyrus is in accordance with the high rank of itsowner. The copying of papyri must have been aprofitable industry in the 18th Dynasty. They were ofvarious lengths, probably in proportion to the price paidfor them. They were written beforehand, with blankspaces left in many places, usually at the beginning ofthe chapters for the name and titles of the deceased.The second copyist then had to insert the owner's nameinto the blank spaces of varying length, which show adifferent hand. In some places there was only room forYuya's name, but in others the blank spaces were filledwith his name and some of his titles.

As usual, the text begins on the right side, whichsymbolizes the east, and is written towards the left, orWest, which symbolizes man's march through life.

Here is a family tree of Yuya's clan. As you can see bythe bold boxes, which enclose the names of thepharaohs, Yuya was closely related to the kings of Egypt.

9

It is believed that Yuya was the grandfather ofAmenhotep IV, who changed his name to Akhenaten,shown here. He was surely the most "unique" of all theEgyptian pharaohs.

Now how much did Yuyainfluence his son-in-law andgrandson? Did Yuya foster thebelief in a single all-powerful god,the Aten? We may never know.

But what we do know is thatYuya's great-grandson,Tutankamun, reinstated the oldreligious beliefs, and once againplaced Amun as the mostpowerful of the Egyptian gods.

During the reign of King Tut'sgrandfather, the sun kingAmenhotep "I, Yuya includedamong his titles, "the mouth andears of the King," that is to say,his agent and advisor.

So why vvere impressive artifacts given for Yuya's andTuya's burial?

Was it because Yuya was a confidant of theKing?

Was it because Yuya and Tuya were parents ofthe king's chief wife, Tiye.

Was it because Yuya and Tuya weregrandparents of pharaoh's daughter Sitamun?

Or, was it because Yuya and Tuya weregrandparents of pharaoh's son, and future kinghimself, Amenhotep IV?

It was probably for all these reasons, this non-royalcouple vvere allowed to be buried in the final resting placeof the gods, "The Valley of the King's".

So next time you are at the Cairo Museum, don't justrush upstairs and turn right to gaze at King Tut'streasures, but turn left instead, and take a little time toexamine the artifacts from that "other" almost intact tomb- the Tomb of Yuya and Tuya.

ENDNOTES:

[1] Finding Pharaoh's In-Laws, by Dennis C. Forbes,Amama Letters, Volume One, KMTCommunications, 1991.

[2] The dates used are from The Atlas of Ancient Egypt,by Baines & Malek, Facts On File Publications, 1980.

[3] The description of artifacts are from The Tomb oflouiya and Touiyou, by Theodore M. Davis, ArchibaldConstable and Co. Ltd., London, 1907, and can alsobe found in Tomb of Yuaa and Thuiu, by James E.Quibell, Catalogue Generate des Antiquities~gyptiennes Du Musee Du Caire, Cairo, 1908.

[4] All 40 titles are listed in Stranger in the Valley of theKings, by Ahmed Osman, Souvenir Press, London,1987.

[5] The Glory of the Pharaohs, by Arthur Weigall,Thomton, Butterworth Limited, London, 1923.

[6] The Life and Times of Akhenaten, by Arthur Weigall,London, 1910.

[7] Valley of the kings, by C.N. Reeves, Kegan PaulInternational, London, 1990.

[8] Described in detail in Funeral Papyrus of louiya,Archibald Constable & Co, London, 1908.

In Search of Nefertiti: Richard Harwood

As a general rule, I don't like tours. I have to admit thatup-front. They usually go only to the standard places, seethe standard monuments, and inevitably have one ormore complaining members who are less interested thantheir companions.

That opinion changed dramatically last fall when I wasone of thirteen members of The Amarna ResearchFoundation who participated in a fascinating tour ofEgypt. Organized by TARF and led by Dr. William D.Petty, TARF Treasurer (who very conveniently is alsothe President of Museum Tours, Inc., so the price andarrangements couldn't be beat!), the 15-day tour wasloaded with wonderful and unusual sites in Lower, Midc'and Upper Egypt.

Several of the tour members had been to Egypt at leastonce before. For others, it was the first time. We camefrom across the United States: New York to California,North Carolina to Colorado. We were teachers, bankers,authors, business people, museum administrators andoffice staff. But the common threads that ran throughthe group vvere a good, general knowledge of Egyptology;a particular interest in the Amama Period; and theenthusiastic willingness to sample new sites andexperiences.

It would be hard to tire of the vvell-known sites of theCairo area, and we took in: the Giza Plateau, Memphis,Saqqara, the Cairo Museum. Off the beaten path, and

10

with Dr. Petty's influence, vvevvere also ableto visit a couple of sites in Northern Saqqarathat are usually off-limits to tourists. The firstwas the beautiful Eighteenth DynastyTomb/Chapel of Horemheb, begun while hewas Great Commander of the Army underAkhenaten and as King's Deputy underTutankhamun, before declaring himselfpharaoh and building his final tomb (KV 57)in the Valley of the Kings. The second was thevery unusual "Tomb of the Two Brothers",Niankh-Khnum and Khnumhotep, the FifthDynasty tomb shared by two royalmanicurists.

Like Cairo, Luxor and the West Bank can beover-whelming, but the tour managed to takein most of the major sites and several of theless-visited ones. No one who has been there

r-an ever forget Luxor Temple at night, bathedIn the warm glow of lights and shadows; or theWest Bank with its famous royal Valleys,Medinet Habu, Deir el Medina, and theenchanting scenes of daily life in the Tombsof the Nobles. The Open Air Museum withinthe tremendous walls of Kamak is alwaysworth several hours of tourist-freeexamination.

The highlight of the tour, hovvever, was thetime vve spent in Middle Egypt. visiting thecliff-cut, Middle Kingdom tombs at BeniHasan and the incredible site at Tell elAmarna.

After a pleasant train ride from Cairo, vve vveretransported by mini-bus (there are no taxis inthe city of el Minya) to the Nefertiti Etap Hotel.The city is virtually devoid of tourists after the~errorist activities in recent years. BobHanawalt, TARF President, gave an informal,after-dinner presentation on the history ofAkhetaten and the Amama area. Memberslearned that el Amarna is a small town on thewestem side of the Nile. The name of thecommunity now located in the central part ofAkhetaten is known at el Till. It has apopulation of 8,000.

The next moming our mini-bus (escorted byarmed guards in two military tanks) took us tothe ferry boat. The farmland in this part ofEgypt is especially fertile, but the crops havebeen cleared for about fifty yards on each sideof the road for security purposes. After 45minutes, we reached a river landing where vvechanged guards and were ferried across the

Nile to the opposite landing at el Till.

There vve were greeted by Barry Kemp andthe Captain of the local Tourist Police, alongwith several other dignitaries. We proceededin another mini-bus to the North Palace.

Any reader of the "Akhetaten Sun" knows,Barry Kemp, of Cambridge University, hasspent many years excavating, recording,conserving and interpreting Akhenaten's royalcapital. By prior arrangement and with partialfunding by The Amama Research Foundation,Mr. Kemp and his staff vvere conducting a fallseason when we arrived. They graciouslyaccompanied us for three days as vve exploredthe ancient ruins of Akhetaten, watching thework in progress, learning about the site, andvisiting the noble and royal tombs cut into thecliff faces of the wadis.

•,••

,.•

That first morning vve were given a thoroughtour of the northern Palace by Barry and vvereshown much more than regular tourists wouldhave been, including the areas of preservationsupported by TARF, the excavation of theCentral Gate and new excavations betvveenthe west end of the Palace and the river.

We proceeded to the ruins of the DesertAltars. Though nothing much remains, theoutlines and elevations are quite evident.According to some Egyptologists, this was thelocation of the Foreign Tribute offering of theGreat Durbar in year 12. At the northernpalace (not to be confused with the NorthPalace), vve saw a seldom-visited spot whichsome believe to have been the principleresidence of Akhenaten, Nefertiti and family.Much of the structure's walls remain, and itwas using these original walls that the EgyptExplorationSocieties builtits first dighouse. (Thisis where MaryChub livedand hadexperiencesshe wroteabout in herbook, NefertitiLived Here,which isfamiliar tomany of us.

11

'.

•i•••

Ie

'Searching for Nefertiti"Hot, tired, dusty and exuberant - Egyptian "groupies"

Editor's Note:Spelling of commonwords may vary fromarticle to article,depending on thenationality of theauthor. Egyptiannames may also takedifferent spellings,depending on authorpreference. Evenmodern Arabicnames may bewritten with differentspellings, dependingon how the word isheard. As inhieroglyphs, Arabicdoes not usually notethe vowels ...thus,while living in Saudiin the mid-70's, Ilearned a person'sname could bewritten differently onbirth certificate,vvedding decree anddeath certificate. Idon't mess with thosewords not obviouslymisspelled in alllanguages!

We wound up the day with a visit to the NorthTombs of the Nobles. The entry we made intoseveral involved quite a climb. Many weresurprised to find the vividness of the colorremaining in these tombs. The names of the Aten,Akhenaten and Nefertiti were all over -- putting torest the idea that the king's name had been totallyerased from the countryside.The following day we returned to Akhetaten andproceeded on the very bumpy road up the RoyalWadi to the King's Tomb. This site is about 5kilometers from the Central City. The tomb ispractically stripped bare, although some of theinscriptions remain. When the tomb wascarved, a raised, clearly-defined platform wasleft for the sarcophagus. It was interesting tonote that most of the defilement of the tombwas done in the 1930's when a couple of localfamilies got in a squabble over property rightsand tore the place up. We returned past theother shorter wadi containing the unfinishedRoyal Tombs to the Central City. Barryproceeded to give us an unbelievable, one-of-a-kind tour of the city, through the King'sPalace, the Small Aten Temple, the House ofthe Sculptor Thutmose, and the Hall ofRecords where the Amarna Tablets werefound.On day three at Amarna, we visited theSouthern Tombs, including that of Aye, whowas probably Akhenaten's father-in-law andalmost certainly the successor toTutankhamon. It was never completed and anumber of the columns are only half cut out ofthe stone, but the remaining color is veryvivid. Several other tombs were visited, alongwith the temple to the sun site Kom el Nana,which is attributed to Nefertiti. Our visit toAkhetaten was at an end, but vve still hadmore to see in Middle Egypt.The next morning we left early for the villageof Abu Kirkas, where we took a ferry acrossthe Nile to the Middle Kingdom Tombs atBeni-Hassan. No traveler of Egypt can saythe he has really seen the Nile until it is seenfrom the shelf on which the Tombs of theNobles are located at Beni-Hassan. It is asteep climb and the stairs should beundertaken slowly, but it is one of thoseplaces where the word "spectacular" doesn'tdo the vista justice. The four tombs open tothe public are outstanding. They are muchlarger than generally perceived and thedrawings on the walls are vvell preserved,

colorful and larger than expected.We all left Egypt with a greater sense of alIVefor the land, its history and people, and adeeper appreciation for what Egyptologistslike Barry Kemp and his staff are doingthroughout Egypt to preserve this rich heritagefor future generations.

Balloon Tale - Barry Kemp

And, with a changed perspective, I eagerlyawait the next Foundation tour.The balloon arrived in Cambridge inDecember as if it were TARF's Christmaspresent, neatly packaged in a large thincardboard box. On a cold Januarymorning Gwil and I unpacked it in thequadrangle in front of the McDonaldInstitute of Archaeological Research,spread it out to its full impressive lengthand managed to fit together the strutsand joints that make up the tail. A hiredcylinder of helium gas conveyed itscontents through a rubber tube and, tothe great interest of passers by, includingSaturday shoppers who take a short-cutacross the quadrangle, vve inflated it asfar as we could. By the time our cylinderwas empty the balloon was certainly up inthe air and pulling nicely, but bent in themiddle under its own weight: a limp blimp.The lesson was that it would take morethan one standard gas cylinder to fill itcompletely.We have no official channel for importingequipment into Egypt. We have to relyupon help from friends in the businesscommunity. It so happened that JohnSharp of Balfour Beatty International, theconstruction and engineering giant that isbuilding the new library at Alexandria, hadrecently offered us assistance inimportation. By this means the balloon,and other odds and ends, wassuccessfully imported, and finally arrivedat Amarna in mid-March.

helped. Through Amr Fayed, manager ofBP Middle East, vve found the rightsupplier for the gas for the balloon

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in the Egyptian Company for IndustrialGases, located in the semi-wasteland ofNasr City's industrial district. Warned byour Cambridge experiment we took twocylinders rather than one.

the latter half of the season he manageda series of flights with excellent results,some over the areas of digging andbuilding, others chosen for particularresearch needs. Some will appear in thenext issue of the Akhetaten Sun.Gradually vve hope to build up a detailedlow-level aerial photographic coverage ofthe whole city.

On a bright clear morning, on the groundbeside the dig house, Gwil supervisedthe unpacking and filling once again, andsoon the TARF balloon, now properlyswollen and startlingly red against thepale desert hues, hung tightly tethered atshoulder height. Once filled, of course, ithas to stay that way. Helium gas isexpensive. Fortunately we have a verylarge equipment store, and part of it nowbecame the hanger where the ballooncould rest between flights. We had totow it fully inflated to wherever the next

,.flight would be. We are considering, fornext season. having a frame and acanvas cover made so that it can betransported at reasonable speed on theback of a pickup truck.

So,youme

thank

for

TARF

gre

mbersaat gift!

The balloon rises to an impressive heightand is an inspiring sight as it floats overAmarna. Getting it above the right spotand making sure that the two tetheringropes do not dangle too obtrusively in thefield of view of the little radio-controlledcamera takes practiced and a keen eye.This is where Gwil takes charge. During

Gwil Owen and wife hold ·,impblimp" during trial in England.

Gwil Owen makes adjustments on the site balloon donated by TARF.Note camera mounted on bottom and the wheelbarrow hold-down.

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•••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••· I Contributors to• this Akhetaten• Sun:•• Linda Anderson

Simon BradleyBob HanawaltRichard Harwood 1.,

Barry KempDavid PepperJill Taylor