Excavations at the Courtyard of the Tomb of Senneferi at Thebes

CHAPTER 21 An Accumulation of Dirt: Excavations at the Courtyard of the Tomb of Senneferi at Thebes

Helen Strudwick Fitzwilliam Museum, University of Cambridge

Abstract ذ قة ت ض �ه�� ه ا �ل �� ح� ث �� ا ز ال� ��س�ت�� خ��د ا ا �ل�ح�د �� ث �ل��ف��ن��ا ء �ه�ن��ا ك د ��ل � ا �� ع�� ع�مق ا �ل�ح��ط�ا ور ب � بإي ج � إ م ي� TT99. يل و ح لى � م ذ ذ ة أ ة ن ذ ا �ل�� ت� اك �م�ن�� ا �ل��ف��ت� � ال� خ�� م�ن ا �ل��ش��ا ط �ه�ن��ا ك �م�ا �� ن ١٩٠٣ ١٩٠٧. �� س�ت�� خ��د ا �ه�� ا ي� ر م ر ير � بي� و بإ م ن ق ق فت ف ة ذ ��ص�� ال� � �م�ك�ا � ا �ل��ل � �ع� ن ا �ل�� ا ت� ا �ل��ا ص��ل�� ن �م اح� ��ح�ت�� ا � �ل� ا �ل�ز ء �م�ن ي� بح ب إ � ول يل � ر � بي� ر ل إ ل ل ك ج � � ق ذ ت ت ت خ ة ف ت ا لم �� , ا �ل�� د ه ��ث�� س�ا ؤ لا ت� �ع� ن ط � ا � � ��س�ت��د ا ا لم��ق�ا � ا �لخ��ا ص�� ا لم�ا ئ�� وع و ي� ب ور ي ير � � ول وو ر إ م بر � ي� ي� ة ع�ا ا لم�ا ض�� م � ي .

It was a great joy to hear that a Festschrift was being prepared for Mohamed el-Bialy, who has been a good friend since our first season of work in Luxor in 1984. While thinking about a suitable subject to write on in his honour, I remembered a photograph taken in October 2000 (illustration 21.1), when he was so amused by the amount of dirt I had acquired during the morning’s work that he asked Nigel to photograph us together. This led me to compile the following very preliminary comments on the deposition of dirt in the courtyard of TT99, the tomb on which we were working at that time.1

1 I am very grateful to Nigel Strudwick for his comments on this contribution and helping with preparing the illustrations.

illustration 21.1 The author with Mohamed el-Bialy in October 2000, following a morning working at the tomb of Senneferi (TT99). © Nigel Strudwick

The Courtyard of Senneferi

The tomb of Senneferi at Thebes (TT99) has been the subject of study by the University of Cambridge Theban Mission since 1992.2 The tomb’s courtyard is approximately rectangular and cut into the angle of the hillside of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, above the tomb of Rekhmire (TT100).3 The façade of the tomb is approximately 11.3 m wide and the courtyard extends out from it, facing the Nile, to between 14.25 m at the southern edge and 15.14 m at the north. The wings of the courtyard were built up in antiquity, presumably as part of the original 18th dynasty design.

2 Reports on each season’s work and much more information about the work of the mission at TT99 is available at http://www.fitzmuseum.cam.ac.uk/tt99/index.html [accessed 4 August 2014]. 3 The tomb faces the Nile and is thus orientated northwest to southeast. However, since the river was perceived by the Egyptians to flow from south to north, I will be using the orienta- tion local to the river, on which basis the tomb has a local east/west axis.