Inside King Tut’s Tomb
Tutankhamun’s tomb is perhaps one of the most famous within the Valley of the Kings.
Despite suffering various attempted robberies through the ages, most of the tomb
remained intact, and its contents provide us with a valuable insight into Ancient Egyptian
culture.
Full of artefacts, and elaborately decorated with hieroglyphs and art, King Tut’s tomb
was made up of four main chambers. Each one had its own important function and
purpose.
The Chambers
Source A: King Tut's tomb
Antechamber
The antechamber is the first chamber accessible from the entrance of King Tut’s tomb. It
is the main chamber of the entire tomb, and all other chambers could only be accessed
through it. On its discovery, the chamber was full of treasure; however, compared to
tombs of other pharaohs, Tutankhamun’s is modest in comparison. There is a lack of
pillars, paintings, and wall carvings. Unlike tombs of other Pharaoh’s, the walls of
Tutankhamun’s tomb lacked prayers, hymns, or achievements of King Tut, to showcase
his greatness. The chamber walls are bear and unadorned, supporting the idea that king
Tut was buried hastily, as if there had not been enough time to prepare the tomb.
However, to the eyes of the modern man this room was extremely grand, and when
Howard Carter first entered the tomb he was in awe of it:
“At first I could see nothing, the hot air escaping from the
chamber causing the candle flames to flicker, but presently, as my
eyes grew accustomed to the light, details of the room within
emerged slowly from the mist, strange animals, statues and gold everywhere the glint of gold.”
-
Howard Carter’s recorded account (Source B)
The chamber contained over 700 items that were catalogued by Carter, and historians
believe that the purpose of placing all these items in Tutankhamun’s tomb was so they
would journey with King Tut, to the afterlife. The chamber was also full of couches,
chests, baskets, statues, beds and stools. Most of these items were things the Pharaoh
would have used in his everyday life, and were also included in his tomb so they could
follow Tutankhamun to the afterlife. The uses of many items, such as the three animal
couches, remain a mystery, but are thought to be part of the mummification process.
These large items were also used as shelves to store and organize funerary equipment.
Most items were placed in messy piles, indicating that the items had been placed their
half-heartedly by priests, or rather robbers made attempts to reorganise the tomb.
Source D: The Annex
Source C: Tutankhamun's Antechamber
Annex
The Annex functioned as a store room for Tutankhamun. It contained jars upon jars of
what were costly oils and perfumes, food and wine. However, when Carter discovered
the room, it was found in complete disarray, with 5-feet-tal objects jumbled on top of one
another. Robbers had dumped clothing, furniture, and funerary items in their search for
precious metals and more valuable objects. According to Carter, the room:
“was but an illustration of both drama and tragedy . . . There was hardly an object that did not
bear marks of depredation and before us . . . were the very footprints of the last intruder”
-
Howard Carter, The Tomb of Tutankhamun).
The room was in such disarray that it was the last room to be documented, as Carter
stated it was the hardest to examine, even despite its small size.
Treasury
The treasury was full of items, such as shrines, chests, a boat, and what historians
believe are 2 of King Tut’s stillborn daughters. The room was easily accessible through
the eastern side of the burial chamber. Within this room there was a carved wooden
shrine, gilded in gold, that contained four canopic jars of Tutankhamun, these were jars
that held his body organs. The shrine had four Goddesses on each side, Isis, Selket,
Nepthys, and Neith. Their presence around the shrine acted as a defence to ward away
intruders.
The canopic jars themselves were made from alabaster, and were decorated with
intricate carvings and painted with black lines. The treasury also held many small
statues of Tutankhamun, that were wooden and covered in gilded gold, and were made
in matching pairs. There were 34 statues alone that were placed in black resin.
Historians believe that the statues were used during the funerary service of
Tutankhamun, or they were placed on his tomb in order to protect him.
Burial Chamber
King Tut’s burial chamber is perhaps the most lavish of his entire tomb. The walls are
brightly coloured, and painted with various images and representations of Tutankhamun.
Many historians believe that the paintings were made particularly large, as to cover the
walls quickly. Other tombs in the Valley of the Kings had more elaborate and intricate
paintings, and Tutankhamun’s are simple in comparison. Historians have divided the
burial chamber into four major sections, the northern wall, eastern wall, southern wall,
and western wall. Each one depicts a different era of King Tut’s life, ranging from his
death, to his entrance into the afterlife.
Northern Wall:
This mural depicts three scenes of
Tutankhamun. In one, he is in the form of
Osiris in the opening of the mouth
ceremony. This ceremony was done to
mummies and statues as this ritual brought
them to life. In the second scene, he is
depicted as a young boy being greeted by
the Goddess Nut. In her hands she is
holding a symbols that resemble the surface
of water. These symbols represent the
Goddess welcoming king Tut to his journey
in the afterlife. This shows, almost certainly,
that the Goddess is comforting and helping
Source E: King Tut’s Northern Wall, where he is being greeted by
the Goddess Nut
Tutankhamun in his journey.
Eastern Wall
The Eastern Wall is much more dramatic
than the others. Its images depict
Tutankhamun’s body being carried to his
tomb by mourners and high officials of
Lower and Upper Egypt. In this painting,
his body is being slid across the ground
upon a ship that is attached to a sled, with
a canopy that protects the mummy. This
painting helps to understand funerary
customs of ancient Egypt, especially those
that were done for Egyptian Pharaohs.
Source F: Tutankhamun’s body being carried by his mourners, to his
tomb.
Western Wall
The paintings on the Western Wall depicts
figures sitting in a boat, and the wall is
also completely covered with images of 12
baboons, that represent the twelve hours in
the night which Tutankhamun needed to
pass through, in order to access the
afterlife. This boat ride was a very
important part of Egyptian funerary beliefs,
and for this reason, the boat was painted in
the left upper hand corner of the wall, with
a scarab beetle in the centre, representing
the presence of the sun god. The two
figures within the boat are two forms of
Osiris. Opposite this painting are images of
other Egyptian Gods.
Source G: the 12 baboons, and two representations of Osiris
Source H: The damaged Southern wall, depicting Isis and
Anubis carrying Ankhs
Southern Wall
In the process of excavation, the Southern
Wall of the Burial Chamber was damaged,
as the chamber had no door to easily
access the chamber. From the
Antechamber, Carter and his excavation
team cut through the Southern Wall,
damaging a painting of the Goddess Isis. Even though a large part of the painting was
damaged, the remainder of the wall shows Tutankhamun with the God Anubis and the
Goddess Hathor. In their hands they are holding ankhs, which symbolise eternal life in
the Afterworld.
Questions
1. What was the function of each chamber in Tutankhamun’s tomb?
2. According to Carter’s records, and Source 2, what state was the Annex chamber found
in, and what theories do historians have to explain it?
3. How many times do historians believe Tutankhamun’s tomb was sacked by thieves?
What problems does this incur for us, when studying his tomb?
4. What evidence is there that suggests King Tut’s death was unexpected?
5. Using Source E, and the content within the Antechamber, and the Burial chamber,
what ideas about Ancient Egyptian funerary beliefs can you extract?