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Royal Necropolis At Tanis

Article Series Egyptian Sites

Places

Prefectures / cities
Monuments / Temples

Region

Lower Egypt / Middle Egypt
Upper Egypt / Nubia

Location

Tanis

30 58 '00 "North
31 52 '00 "East / 30.96667, 31.86667

The royal necropolis at Tanis is the missing link needed to understand an obscure period in the history of ancient Egypt , the ^Third Intermediate Period.

Built at the same time as building the temple of Amun at Tanis , it is placed in the south-west axis of the great temple in the precincts of the reign of Psusennes ^I.. The chamber also marks a deviation to include the necropolis, thus defining a perimeter in which several chapels will be built later to become the Ptolemaic period in a neighborhood of houses and craft workshops.

Discovery and general condition

In late 1930 , the team of the French archaeological mission excavating at Tanis and headed by Prof. Pierre Montet , working at clearing the area southwest of the enclosure. They take an incredible amount of earth and sand that had accumulated over the centuries .

Statue of the god Houroun protecting Ramses II - Cairo Museum

In doing so, they point to as 1938 the remains of brick buildings that seem to line up along the wall of the forecourt of the temple, including discovering an oratory dedicated to the god Houroun still containing the imposing statue of the falcon god protecting its wings a child king whose cartridges indicated that it was Ramses II. The unique piece is quickly transported to the Cairo Museum.

Pushing further east of this area within the confines of Psusennes ^I. In February 1939 the team of archaeologists to emerge late in the homes they take large slabs for a first floor, the only witness remaining a monument has long disappeared and workshops covered by brick the Greco-Roman. By cleaning the ground they soon discover clues that change the nature of the building uncovered. It was not a floor but the ceiling of a monument still exists but buried underground.

A slab broken household an opening through which access to underground rooms is possible. Egyptologists by cleaning characteristics are vestiges of a grave ... From shabti behalf of Shishak , three canopic vases, two caps of these vases, one representing Duamutef the other Qebehsenuef , a loop-shaped Tyt node, or knot of Isis Gold cloisonne, other fragments shabti, this time on behalf of a Osorkon , a beetle uninscribed , much remains viatical royal tomb that grave robbers had rejected there or lost . The hole was quickly cleared and thief can break into a tomb containing several pieces and had received several burials.

This is the tomb of Osorkon II.

The exploration of the first royal tomb reveals a real family vault with several royal burials all fully or partially looted. In identifying the sector in order to remove tons of debris and accumulated land in and outside the cellar, others quickly slabs appear indicating the existence of other graves in the north and south of that of Osorkon.

To the south a new tomb, looted and again north of the tomb Psusennes ^I. , which the search will be done once the first two vaults systematically emptied and studied. The new tomb dating to this time the ^twenty-first dynasty had remained closed since ancient times, delivering a set of graves from different periods partially or completely intact.

Tombs

The royal tombs of Tanis are designated by the acronym "NRT", for "Tanis Royal Necropolis" plus an inventory number, corresponding to their chronological discovery. Thus the first discovery, that of Osorkon II is identified in the literature as the grave I NRT.

In all, the royal necropolis at Tanis contains seven tombs, some of which prove to be true royal cache, including several royal tombs belonging to the ^twenty-first and ^XXII Dynasties :

NRC I , the tomb said to Osorkon II has a complex history. In a first phase, before Psusennes, there was already a building there that we can not with any certainty to the tomb of Smendes. This building was slashed in party in the expansion of NRM I by Psusennes ^I.. Only later qu'Osorkon II took over the vault to his account, by enlarging to bury his father Takelot ^I. and his son Hornakht. Decorating the walls, which includes extensive excerpts from books royal tomb, dates from this period. Later, Shishak III has cut the chamber 1 into two parts by a wall. A sarcophagus is also inserted at an unknown date. In his final statement, I NRT consists of four parts:

NRC I, 1: Sarcophagus of Shishak, perhaps Shishak V , installed there in a late phase, looted;
NRC I, 2: Well the original access the vault which has delivered the remains of royal funerary objects at the time of discovery;
NRC I, 3: Sarcophagus of the father of Osorkon II , Takelot ^I. , installed there by his son, as indicated by the texts on the walls, sacked.
NRC I, 4: Coffin of Osorkon II , pillaged, and his son Hornakht partially intact.

Restitution of the royal necropolis at Tanis

NRT II is a tomb uninscribed comprising two parts, a manhole and a bedroom with a large sarcophagus anonymous, in an old carved architrave. The lid has been broken for the grave robbers to empty its contents. The fragile edifice was not searched immediately because of the danger that weighed literally on the excavators. Later in the resumption of exploration in this part of the necropolis, the tomb contained the remains that have helped to identify with great probability as the tomb of the pharaoh Pimay.

NRT III , the tomb of Psusennes ^I. consists of six parts:

The manhole original vault, found intact, filled to the surface;
The lobby, including the funerary remains of several widely looted, with mummies Siamon and Psusennes II intact sarcophagus surrounding the sterling silver Shishak II containing the mummy and all his royal finery.
NRT III, 1: Vault intact Psusennes ^I. containing his sarcophagus and funerary objects of great wealth.
NRT III, 2: Wine Moutnedjemet his wife again for the pharaoh Amenemope containing coffins and funerary furniture of the king ephemeral. Less opulent than its predecessor, it is probable that he was once robbed and rescued by the priests who took cover in the cellar of his mother (?)
NRT III, 3: Tomb of the general and unused steward of Amon nkhefenmout , son of ^I. Psusennes or Herihor II contained a sarcophagus intact but empty.
NRT III, 4: Tomb of General intact Oundjebaoundjed , probably a relative of King Smendes, including its sarcophagi and funerary objects of great value. This room and the previous were not part of the architectural program Psusennes original but were added later by biting on the tomb that predates I NRT.

NRT IV : Tomb perhaps originally intended for King Amenemope , consisting of only one piece and still contained the outer sarcophagus of the king.

NRM V : Wine initial Shishak III. The plan of this tomb is near that of the NRM II with two pieces, a shaft and burial chamber. The latter still included the original outer sarcophagus of the king and that of Shishak IV , looted.

NRT VI : Wine empty uninscribed and looted, only one piece is preserved so that it seems to have possessed at least one second.

NRT VII : empty cellar adjacent to that of Osorkon II , in ruins, it probably consisted of two parts. Uninscribed, it was not possible to assign an owner. One block was used Psusennes reused for NRT VII, which dates the tomb at the earliest at the end of the ^twenty-first dynasty. It was later destroyed during the expansion of NRM I by Osorkon II.

Photos

Click on a thumbnail to enlarge

Overview of the royal necropolis at Tanis
View of the royal necropolis of Tanis with the tomb of Osorkon II
Entrance to the NRM I or tomb of Osorkon II

Notes

In fact, the Egyptians who used to build their homes on those of their ancestors, stacking somehow stratigraphic levels of the city are several meters of earth and debris that accumulates, the site covered under tonnes rubble of protecting the royal tombs forgotten
This objective was achieved, and two foundation deposits were discovered respectively at the southeast corner and northeast tower of the first to be dated from the reign of Osorkon II
Osorkon II
The canopic jars and the first Oushebti be attributed to Shishak III , the gold buckle and fragmentary Oushebti furniture that belonged to Osorkon II

Bibliography

Tanis, the gold of the pharaohs, Association ..., 1987 ;
Pierre Montet, Tanis Letters - The discovery of the royal treasures, Editions du Rocher, 1998
George Goyon, The discovery of the treasures of Tanis, Pygmalion, 2004