Читать книгу Tomb Treasures of the Late Middle Kingdom - Wolfram Grajetzki - Страница 8

CHAPTER 1

Court Type Burials

In this chapter the category of Middle Kingdom burials known as “court type” is discussed. The first two examples described are the burial of Senebtisi and the “treasure” from the tomb of Sathathoriunet. These two burials are discussed first because both were carefully excavated and the findings published in detail. Indeed, in terms of their documentation and publication, the excavations of these burials set the standard in Egyptian archaeology. Furthermore, it was in the excavation report on the tomb of Senebtisi that the term “court type burial” was first coined. The burials discussed after those of Senebtisi and Sathathoriunet are arranged in chronological order. The last two groups of jewelry discussed are those found in two disintegrated “jewelry boxes” recovered from a gallery tomb next to the pyramid of Senusret III at Dahshur. They appear at the end because only the jewelry in the boxes is preserved; the actual burials of the women in the gallery tomb were looted.

THE TOMB OF SENEBTISI¹

The burial of the “lady of the house” Senebtisi (“the one who will be healthy”)² is among the most famous tombs of ancient Egypt, at least for Egyptologists interested in the Middle Kingdom and funerary culture. There are three reasons for this: first, the tomb was found almost untouched; second, the excavation was very carefully recorded; and third, the excavation was fully published about ten years later. In the publication, Senebtisi’s type of burial was labeled a “court type burial” because it was thought that the burial equipment was restricted to the royal court of the Twelfth Dynasty. Typical of court type burials are a set of staves and weapons, partly gilded coffins, and jewelry, all specially made for the tomb. They are mainly attested at the cemeteries at the royal court, but also at provincial cemeteries.³ The best preserved examples belong to “king’s daughters,” although this type of burial was not restricted to women at the royal court.

2. Map of Lisht. Drawn by the author.

3. Plan of the pyramid of Amenemhat I. Drawn by the author after Arnold 2008, pl. 114.

The burial of Senebtisi was excavated in the winter season 1906–1907 near the pyramid of Amenemhat I beside the modern village of Lisht (Fig. 2). It was found within the burial complex of the vizier Senusret, who held office under Senusret I and Amenemhat II. In the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties a huge cemetery developed around the royal pyramids. Many of the people at the court serving these kings were buried here, but the place also remained an important burial ground after this period, perhaps because it was the cemetery of the Middle Kingdom capital Itjtawy.

The burial complex of the vizier Senusret (Fig. 4) was already heavily destroyed when found. It consisted of two parts. There was an above-ground chapel, once decorated and perhaps accessible to everyone, or at least to the family of Senusret. The second part of the tomb consisted of the shaft and burial chamber, closed after the interment and, as usual, not decorated. The chapel of Senusret was found badly destroyed. Stone looters had taken all the stone blocks, and therefore little of the vizier’s chapel survived. All that is left are small fragments of reliefs with the titles and name of Senusret, some fragments of scenes once decorating the aboveground part of the tomb complex, and fragments with portions of a biographical inscription. These few remaining fragments of the reliefs are of the finest quality. The inscriptions provide us with some of the titles of Senusret. He was “vizier,” “overseer of the king’s ornament,” and “overseer of [all royal] works.” The last title might indicate that he was involved in royal building works or even in planning the king’s pyramid. As he is attested in the last years of Senusret I and in the first years of Amenemhat II, however, it seems unlikely that he was the major architect under Senusret I for his pyramid. The chapel of the complex for the vizier Senusret once measured about 12 × 26 m. Little has survived of its plan. It can be said with certainty only that there was a courtyard with columns at the front, with the cult chambers most likely at the back. Here was also the main shaft for the burial of Senusret, with the burial chamber at the bottom. The chapel with the burial shaft stood within an enclosure wall of mud brick decorated on the outside with a palace facade. On the east side there was a building for funerary priests built of mud bricks. Within the enclosure wall were several shafts, most of them on the west side of the cult building. Here were most likely buried relatives of Senusret, or people belonging to his staff at work. Only three shafts were located on the east side of the cult chapel, one of them belonging to Senebtisi.⁴

4. Plan of tomb of Senusret (reconstruction). The shaft of Senebtisi’s tomb is marked. Drawn by the author after Arnold 2008, pl. 147.

The excavator Herbert Winlock recognized the importance of Senebtisi’s tomb from the beginning and was very careful with his recording of its clearance. The main work was carried out with the help of Arthur C. Mace, a lesser-known figure of Egyptian archaeology but a very careful recorder, and in this area a pioneer. Later he was involved in the excavation of Tutankhamun’s tomb, and the high quality of the recording there is also due in large part to his involvement.⁵

The burial of Senebtisi was found in a rock-cut underground chamber at the bottom of a shaft (Fig. 5). The shaft measured 1.38 m × 2.8 m wide and only 6.85 m deep. The mouth of the shaft was lined with bricks, perhaps to prevent sand fall. At the bottom of the shaft, on the west side, was the burial chamber consisting of two parts. The first was an almost square room with an opening in the north wall leading to a second, slightly smaller and longer burial chamber for the coffin. The first room was filled with pottery, while in the burial chamber were the coffins and three boxes. In the east wall was a niche for the canopic box. This box contained the canopic jars holding the entrails of the deceased body, which were removed after mummification and placed in four jars.

5. Plan of Senebtisi’s tomb. From Mace, Winlock 1916, 6.

Senebtisi was placed in a set of three coffins. The outer coffin was made of a soft wood, most likely sycamore, and was badly preserved when found (Fig. 6). The excavators were just able to copy some of the inscriptions. The coffin was decorated on the long sides with four columns of text and a top horizontal text band. On the short ends were two columns and the top horizontal band. The front side of the coffin was further decorated with a pair of wedjat eyes. The lid was vaulted and had a single line of inscription down the middle. The coffin was painted red, perhaps in imitation of high-quality cedar wood. Although the inscriptions on the coffin were badly preserved, it seems clear that some of them are so far unique. Others are common for coffins of the late Twelfth Dynasty and contain short sentences spoken by different deities during the mummification.⁶ The decoration of the coffin with the wedjat eyes, four text columns on the long sides, two text columns on the short ends, and horizontal text lines at the top is typical of coffins of the Middle Kingdom.⁷ The coffin was not decorated on the inside.

Inside the outer coffin was placed the second wooden coffin.⁸ It was better preserved, perhaps because it was made of hard cedar wood, which has a greater chance of survival. This coffin had only a single golden inscription band on the lid and was decorated on the outer side only with the wedjat eyes motif (Fig. 7). The edges of the coffin were ornamented with gold foil. The inscription on the lid is an address to Nut, the sky goddess: “Words spoken: Nut, you are glorious, you are powerful in the body of your mother Tefnut, before your birth, (when) she caused that the lady of the house Sathapy, justified, be the god, lord of eternity, that she may unite with the justified lady of the house Senebtisi in life, duration and power, that she may not die for eternity.”⁹

6. View of Senebtisi’s coffin as it was found. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. Xa.

Inside this second, middle coffin was the final inner anthropoid one. This human-shaped coffin was also badly decayed when found. At first the excavators thought that they had found a cartonnage (a mummy cover of plaster and linen) covering the whole mummy. That it was a coffin was recognized only when six copper clamps were found that had held the box and the lid of the coffin together. The anthropoid coffin was decorated on the chest with a broad collar inlaid with various materials such as faience and carnelian (Fig. 8). It was covered with fine gold leaf.

7. The middle coffin of Senebtisi (194 cm long). From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XVIIb.

8. The decoration on the chest of Senebtisi’s anthropoid coffin. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XX.

Senebtisi was mummified. Her body was wrapped in several layers of linen, all of which were badly preserved when found. The entrails had been removed through a 21 cm long incision on the left side of her body. The wound was stuffed with a yellowish material. The body itself was filled with linen. The heart had been removed, wrapped in linen, and then placed back into the body. The brain was not removed.¹⁰ The entrails were placed in the canopic jars, where they were found treated with some kind of resin and wrapped in linen.¹¹

Senebtisi was adorned with an array of jewelry. On her head was a golden circlet composed of gold wire. It was made of three separate pieces of wire forming a chain of loops connected at the back of the head by a simple gold wire fastener.¹² Ninety-eight golden rosettes remained from a hair covering that was once perhaps placed in or on the wig. They were made of gold foil beaten over a core. Two different molds were used for the rosettes, one with sixteen petals and the other with twelve.¹³ Eighty-five rosettes were pierced with two holes so that they could be bound to the hair or wig of Senebtisi. Thirteen had a small strip of gold at the back to form some kind of attachment for the same purpose (Fig. 9).

9. Hair ornaments of Senebtisi, circlet and golden rosettes. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXI.

Around Senebtisi’s neck were three broad collars. Of these, one had end pieces in the shape of a falcon’s head (Fig. 10)¹⁴ and another had half-round end pieces (Fig. 11).¹⁵ Both collars consisted of several rows of tube-shaped beads. Along their outer edge was a row of drop-shaped beads. The original arrangement of the beads is not fully certain, as the strings had perished and the beads were found in considerable disorder. The end pieces of the collars were made of plaster and then gilded. The same technique was used for about two-thirds of the gold beads, while the others were made of faience with gold leaf. The material of these collars gives a strong impression that they were especially made for the burial and never worn in real life. This impression is confirmed by missing holes in the end pieces of the broad collar, which meant that no string could hold them together at the back. The same is certainly true for the third collar. It was made of copper and gilded with the decoration of imitation beads incised into the gold leaf.¹⁶

10. Falcon collar of Senebtisi (c. 25 cm wide). From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXV.

11. Broad collar of Senebtisi (c. 25 cm wide). From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXIVa.

Four necklaces were found. One consists of beads of various materials, including several sets of nine beads merged together to form one bigger unit. Twenty-five of these units were found interspersed with single beads in three rows. Hanging from this arrangement were twenty-five golden shells.¹⁷ A second necklace consists of two strings of feldspar beads. Between these strings are twenty-one (tall) sa signs of different materials.¹⁸ The sa sign is a hieroglyphic sign meaning “protection.” A third necklace consists of a single string of beads in the shape of a long vase, called hes in ancient Egyptian (Fig. 12). The beads were made of different materials. This necklace has a pendant in the shape of a shen sign.¹⁹ The shen sign was a popular motif, especially in the late Middle Kingdom but also in later periods. The exact meaning is unknown, but it may have offered some protection. As a pendant or amulet, it is indeed found in some late Middle Kingdom burials, almost becoming a standard object in the burial equipment of the period.²⁰ Of the fourth necklace, only one single carnelian bead was found, and it remains unknown what style of necklace it belonged to. Several further faience beads were found in the burial, and their exact function and position also remain unknown. The single carnelian bead is quite typical of burials of the time, and examples were found attached to anthropoid coffins. It is also known from its depiction on objects in pictorial friezes decorating coffins, and in that context is known as a sweret (Fig. 13).²¹ The exact magical function of this bead is not known, but it appears as a single bead on a string around the neck of the deceased on anthropoid coffins and mummy masks.²² “Sweri” is the Ancient Egyptian word for drinking, and there might be a connection. Perhaps the sweret bead was some kind of guarantee that the deceased would be able to drink (and eat) for all eternity. Others see it as protection against snakebites.²³

12. Necklaces of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXIII.

13. Necklaces of Senebtisi. At the bottom is the sweret bead. It seems unlikely that it was part of a bead necklace as reconstructed here. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXVI.

The sweret bead is also sporadically depicted on the inside of coffins.²⁴ Early Middle Kingdom coffins are often decorated on the inside with long religious texts but also with friezes of objects. In these friezes are shown objects that also appear in some tombs as burial goods. The pictures have captions providing us with the names of many of these objects. Not all objects depicted in friezes are known as burial goods, however, and other objects were only sporadically found in burials. The coffin friezes of the middle of the Twelfth Dynasty, in particular, often show objects that also appear in the court type burials. These are mainly royal insignia. This might indicate that royal rituals were copied by private individuals.²⁵ It therefore seems that there were two phases for royal insignia in private burials. In the middle of the Twelfth Dynasty they were painted on the inside of coffins. In the late Twelfth Dynasty the insides of coffins were no longer decorated. Instead, a selection of these items appears as real objects in the burial chamber next to the deceased. The picture is certainly more complicated, however. Decorated coffins were mainly found in provincial cemeteries. The royal insignia were mainly found in cemeteries of the royal residence. Furthermore, royal insignia already appear sporadically in earlier burials, often those of local governors.

Around the pelvis of Senebtisi there was an apron or kilt (Fig. 14).²⁶ It is decorated with rows of beads hanging from it and with the lotus and the papyrus at the upper ends. The apron therefore symbolized Upper and Lower Egypt, as the lotus and the papyrus were the symbols of these parts of the country. This type of kilt is also known from depictions of the king and was therefore a royal garment. It is also often shown on friezes of objects on early Middle Kingdom coffins and was therefore an essential part of a certain type of burial. On these friezes captions are also found, and from them the Egyptian name of the apron, besa, is known.²⁷ In the center of the girdle is a gilded wooden plate on which the name “Senebtisi” is written in black paint. The wood had perished when it was found, and it therefore remains unknown whether this piece once formed some kind of clasp. At the back of the girdle were the remains of a decorative “tail.” It too was made of wood and decorated with beads. In the friezes of Middle Kingdom coffins the tail appears as independent object and is called menkeret.²⁸ A carnelian swallow is typical of this type of burial and was perhaps once attached to the apron.²⁹ The swallow, often shown with a sun disk on the back, also appears in the Coffin Texts and is there called siat.³⁰ This type of apron with the swallow and the tail is a feature of several court type burials, but certainly not of all of them.³¹ Diana Graig Patch argued that the apron was worn as a symbol for the sun god Re’s daily birth. Indeed, a bead network, similar to the one on the apron, is visible on the solar barque of Re.³²

14. The royal apron of Senebtisi (c. 58.5 cm wide). From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXVII.

15. Armlets and anklets of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXVIb.

Senebtisi was wearing two armlets³³ and two anklets³⁴ composed of gilded wooden bars with faience beads strung between them (Fig. 15). They were evidently made for the burial, since they were not long enough to go around the arms or legs and there was no means of fastening them together, so they were simply placed on the arms and legs of the mummy.³⁵ Several other smaller objects and many more beads were found, but their exact function and arrangement remain obscure.

Within the second coffin, but outside the anthropoid coffin, was found a set of staves and weapons (Fig. 16). These consisted of a double staff known as pedj-aha in ancient Egypt; a long heqa staff and a simple staff with a forked lower end called abet;³⁶ two was scepters, one wavy staff, and another more or less plain staff. Both was scepters had a stylized animal head on the top with eyes; one even had a broad collar painted under the head. This group also included two bows, a flail,³⁷ and a mace.³⁸ The flail was made of several conical beads attached to a wooden handle. The final object was a mace with a head made of aragonite (a type of stone). In the anthropoid coffin placed close to Senebtisi on her left side was also found a copper dagger,³⁹ placed within a partly gilded wooden sheath. The dagger was one of the most important items placed in certain burials of women in the late Middle Kingdom. In the Old Kingdom the dagger is already listed with other items also known from the late Middle Kingdom burials at the royal court.⁴⁰ The dagger was evidently seen as essential for a certain type of burial. Its religious or ritual meaning still remains obscure.

16. Scepters and flail. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXa.

Within the wrappings at the head of Senebtisi’s mummy was found a round disk about 8 cm in diameter made of a dark resinous material (Fig. 17). Similar objects are known from the burials of the royal women discovered next to the pyramid of Amenemhat II. The function of this object is unknown.⁴¹

Next to the coffin on the left or east side was a long box once containing another set of staffs and scepters. These were badly decayed; only the stone head of a mace was well preserved. Next to the long box stood two small boxes or shrines, each about 20 cm high. These are both highly exceptional objects, not recorded in other burials of this type. One wonders what they once contained. All that was found inside was the remains of cloth, but its original function could not be determined. There are several options. The shrines were found next to the box containing the royal insignia. Often these royal insignia are also depicted on coffins of about the same time or slightly earlier. These depictions always include crowns. Is it possible that actual crowns were placed in these small shrines? So far no such crowns have been found. The depictions do not make it clear from what material they were made, but it has been proposed that they were made of fur or some other lightweight organic material.⁴² According to this hypothesis, the crowns depicted in Egyptian art are highly stylized and might originally have looked quite different. This, however, is only a guess. Without further parallels these two boxes remain highly enigmatic. Another option is that they served as receptacles for material left over from the embalming process. There are indeed several cases where the embalming material received its own “burial.” This is always attested outside the tomb chamber, however, and not as close to the coffin as Senebtisi’s boxes.⁴³

17. Clay disk found under the head of Senebtisi’s mummy. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXVIIIh.

18. Inscriptions on the canopic box of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, p. 37, figs. 19–22.

19. The canopic jars of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXXIIIa.

On the east side of the coffin was a niche for the canopic box. The box was made of cedar, but like the coffins it was already badly decayed when found. The excavators were still able to copy most of the inscriptions, however. The box was inscribed on the east and west sides with short formulae that normally appear on canopic jars, while the texts on the north and south sides are without parallel on canopic boxes (Fig. 18). Within the box were four uninscribed canopic jars. The jars were made of stone, differing in color and size. In contrast, the heads atop the jars were made of wood and were painted.⁴⁴ These jars once contained the entrails of the mummy (Fig. 19).

Finally, the pottery from the tomb should be mentioned. Two hundred and six vessels were found (Fig. 20). Many of these were small model vessels perhaps specially made for the tomb. There were, however, also nine large dishes. Two of them still contained the bones of animals, evidently part of the eternal food supply or funeral meal for Senebtisi. Another dish was filled with many small saucers, and finally one filled with 125 small clay balls, perhaps imitating incense pellets. These dishes were perhaps normally used for serving food, especially meat.⁴⁵ They belong to the most common pottery vessels found in late Middle Kingdom tombs.⁴⁶ Other vessels found included a type of hemispherical cup that was most likely used for drinking water or other liquids and is very typical of the Middle Kingdom;⁴⁷ small plates that were perhaps for serving dried fruits;⁴⁸ and taller beaker-like vessels once perhaps containing liquid or fat.⁴⁹ All these vessels were most likely important for ensuring the eternal food supply.

20. The pottery from the tomb of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, p. 110, fig. 82.

Other vessels found were used in rituals. These include four small jars,⁵⁰ perhaps of a type called nemset. They were important for purification and are mentioned several times in Pyramid Texts:⁵¹ “You are cleaned with your four nemset and four aabet jars.”⁵² They also appear in the friezes of objects on the inside of Middle Kingdom coffins (Fig. 21).⁵³ Furthermore, eight examples of each of two different types of larger vessel were also found.⁵⁴ Susan Allen noted that the number four was important.⁵⁵ These eight vessels were either two sets of identical ritual vessels or four sets of vessels for rituals where the same form was used for two different functions. One option is that these are senu vases, placed under an idol of Osiris during the Khoiak festival.⁵⁶

We shall see that the burial of Senebtisi has many points in common with burials of royal women in the late Middle Kingdom. The pottery is different, however, and has more in common with the pottery found in private burials, while burials of royal women most often contained socalled “queen’s ware,” a pottery style typical of burials of royal women of the late Middle Kingdom copying Old Kingdom fine tableware. This comes as no surprise, since Senebtisi did not have royal status and was most likely not part of the royal family.⁵⁷

21. Two cultic vessels from the tomb of Senebtisi. From Mace, Winlock 1916, pl. XXIV.

Who Was Senebtisi?

Senebtisi bears the title “lady of the house.” On some items of her burial equipment she is also attributed with the second name Sathapy, “Daughter of Hapy.”⁵⁸ Beside this, nothing is known for sure about her. Senebtisi is one of the most common names in the late Middle Kingdom, so any identification with another woman of the same name known from other monuments must be highly speculative. Also, to the best of my knowledge, there are no attestations on other monuments for a woman with the double name Senebtisi Sathapy. Senebtisi therefore remains enigmatic. It can only be said for certain that she was a lady of high social status, as indicated by the high standard of her burial equipment.

The exact date of Senebtisi’s tomb is disputed. Kim Ryholt identified Senebtisi with the namesake grandmother of the Thirteenth Dynasty king Neferhotep I, arguing that the burial is similar to one of the king’s daughter Nubhetepti-khered and is close in style to royal court type burials.⁵⁹ However, court type burials are also well attested for nonroyal women. Furthermore, Senebtisi was not buried with “queen’s ware,” whereas most other king’s daughters had queen’s ware in the burial chamber. This seems to be another indicator that she was not royal, although this argument is weakened by the fact that the king’s daughter Neferuptah was also not equipped with this type of pottery. Neferuptah was buried at the end of the Twelfth or the beginning of the Thirteenth Dynasty.

More recent research supports the view that Senebtisi most likely lived in the late Twelfth Dynasty. Her coffin is inscribed with complete hieroglyphs, while coffins at the royal residence in the very late Twelfth Dynasty and Thirteenth Dynasty bear incomplete hieroglyphs.⁶⁰ The pottery found in Senebtisi’s burial is also more typical of the late Twelfth Dynasty,⁶¹ although it is problematic to provide such a close date for a tomb via the analysis of pottery.

THE KING’S DAUGHTER SATHATHORIUNET

The first two kings of the Twelfth Dynasty were buried at Lisht, perhaps the cemetery of Itjtawy, the capital of the Twelfth and Thirteenth Dynasties. Amenemhat II, the third ruler of the dynasty, went north to Dahshur to build his pyramid, while the next king, Senusret II, instead went farther south, near to a place now called Lahun. Lahun is close to the Fayum, a river oasis connected to the Nile via a watercourse. The Fayum was originally a marshland not particularly suitable for agriculture. In the Middle Kingdom, however, the kings started to cultivate this region and built temples and other monuments there. Two royal pyramids were constructed close to the Fayum, one for Senusret II and another for Amenemhat III at Hawara, not far from Lahun.

Senusret II reigned for only about eight years. Perhaps he was already quite old when he ascended the throne. For that reason he might have chosen a small hill for his pyramid, so that less building material was needed to construct a pyramid of about the same scale as those of his father, grandfather, and great-grandfather. The pyramid measured 106 m at the base and originally rose to a height of about 48 m (Fig. 22). It was the first pyramid of the Middle Kingdom to be built mainly of mud bricks, although an inner “skeleton” of stone walls provided some stability and the pyramid was clad with limestone slabs. Another innovation was to the entrance, which was no longer on the north side but in this case south of the pyramid.

22. Pyramid of Senusret II at Lahun. Drawn by the author.

In 1914, the pyramid and its complex were excavated by William M. Flinders Petrie and Guy Brunton. South of the pyramid they discovered four shaft tombs; one of them was the hidden entrance to the king’s pyramid, the others most likely belonged to female members of the king’s family. All the tombs were found heavily robbed, and the name of the owner could be ascertained for only one tomb, with the modern number 8 (Fig. 23). This was the king’s daughter Sathathoriunet (“daughter of Hathor, of Denderah”).⁶² Her tomb was the smallest and had been robbed like the others, except for a niche that was found full of jewelry. The tomb consisted of a 6.6 m deep shaft. At the north end it opened into a small antechamber, about 1.5 m below the level of the shaft. A niche on the west side was found undisturbed, evidently overlooked by ancient robbers of the tomb. Next to the antechamber was the burial chamber, completely occupied by the big granite sarcophagus of the princess. At the southern end of the sarcophagus chamber, on the east side, was a further niche. Here was placed the canopic chest containing four inscribed canopic jars.⁶³ The texts on the jars provide the title of Sathathoriunet: “king’s daughter.” At the back on the east side is a further chamber, which was found looted but still contained some pottery shards, beads, and an alabaster and obsidian eye, perhaps from an anthropoid coffin. The most important object was a jar for purification water, typical of royal burials of the late Middle Kingdom. It bears a purification spell and also mentions Sathathoriunet (see Fig. 37 on p. 45).⁶⁴

23. Plan of burial chamber of Sathathoriunet with niche with jewelry boxes. Drawn by the author.

As already mentioned, the small niche in the first chamber was found undisturbed. Water had flooded the chamber, however, and so most of the organic material had perished by the time of the excavation. Petrie and Brunton soon realized the importance of this find. They recorded the find spots of all the objects in great detail and were able to reconstruct the contents of the chamber and even the jewelry and boxes found there. Most of the jewelry was bought by the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York and today forms one of the highlights of the collection.

Herbert Winlock, who worked for the Egyptian Department of the Metropolitan Museum, had a further look at the tomb and the treasures after they came to New York. He published a detailed study of this find. In the following description of the treasure I follow his reconstructions.

Winlock counted fives boxes in this small niche. From two boxes several inlays survived, and so he was able to reconstruct them with some certainty. The box labeled 1 by Winlock was originally about 44.5 cm long, 31 cm wide, and perhaps 37 cm high. It was decorated on the outside with ivory slabs showing stylized doors and djed pillars, six of the latter on the long sides and four on the short ends. The lid was curved and decorated with four Hathor heads with horns and a sun disk between them made of thin gold sheet. Between the heads were three slabs of ivory with the throne name, birth name, and Horus name of King Amenemhat III. The box was evidently crafted under the king and was perhaps a gift to the princess. It is among the most elegant examples of Middle Kingdom furniture (Fig. 24). Exact parallels have yet to be found, though some finds at Dahshur indicate the existence of similar boxes.

24. Jewelry box of Sathathoriunet (reconstruction). From Winlock 1934, pl. IB.

A second box was simpler but also decorated with ivory on the outside.⁶⁵ The long sides were decorated with most likely five stylized doors and the short ends with three. Inside the remains of this box were found alabaster jars for sacred oils. Boxes for such jars are more often of a different shape and much simpler, however, which suggested to Winlock that this box was originally made as a container for jewelry. A third box was perhaps decorated with gold foil and contained jars. This reconstruction again comes from Winlock, while Mace assigned the gold foil to the second box. Of a possible fourth box nothing survived, but it was reconstructed by Winlock, who believed that it once contained the crown of Sathathoriunet, not found in any surviving remains of a box or container. Made entirely of wood, the box had perished by the time the niche was excavated. The presence of a fifth box, although completely disintegrated when found, was identified from a pile of brown dust. Close to these faint traces were found copper nails without heads and others with golden heads. Some silver foil was also found in the same area. All this might indeed come from one box, which would have been the largest one in the niche. It was about 36.5 cm wide, 25.4 cm high, and at least 55 cm long. Within the remains of the box nothing was found, so one can only guess at its original contents, which must have been some organic material that decayed and left no traces. Brunton suggested that this box was for a wig.

The unique piece among the princess’s items of jewelry was her crown (Fig. 25).⁶⁶ It is a golden circlet decorated with a uraeus at the front and with fifteen rosettes all around. It has an diameter of 19 cm. The band of the circlet is 2.7 cm wide and about 0.4 cm thick. The uraeus is of gold with inlays of lapis lazuli (a semiprecious stone imported from Afghanistan), carnelian, and glazed material that had disintegrated to white powder when found. Attached to the circlet were golden “plumes.” Under the crown were found 1,251 small golden tubes. These were originally most likely part of the king’s daughter’s wig or hair cover. Similar crowns are known from depictions in the tomb of the local governor Ukh-hotep IV at Meir.⁶⁷ In one scene, several musicians are represented in front of the tomb owner. They are each wearing a similar crown, but slightly simpler, with just one plume shown at the back of a circlet and going up. They are shown at a religious festival, most likely in honor of Hathor, who was the main deity of Qis⁶⁸ (Meir was the cemetery of Qis). The interpretation of the plume is disputed. Staehlin regards it as the symbol of Ukh, who was an important deity and symbol at Meir, which is written with a symbol similar to the plume of the crown.⁶⁹ The Ukh symbol was also closely related to Hathor.⁷⁰

25. The crown of Sathathoriunet. From Brunton 1920, pl. V.

Another fine piece of jewelry found in the tomb is the pectoral with the throne name of Senusret II as the central element (Fig. 26).⁷¹ Inlaid with carnelian, lapis lazuli, and turquoise, it is a masterpiece of ancient Egyptian gold work. The piece is a work of inlays set in a golden frame in cloisonné work, a technique whereby a gold foil outline shape is fixed to a metal base, forming cells that are filled with glaze or semiprecious stones.⁷² In ancient Egypt, the technique reached its peak in the Middle Kingdom with these pectorals. The center is formed of the hieroglyphics for the throne name of Senusret II: Khakheperre. On either side is a Horus falcon with a sun disk on its head. Each falcon has one leg resting upon a shen ring, while the other leg is raised to the sign meaning “million years” in the middle of the composition under the cartouche. This sign consists of a man sitting on the ground and holding in each raised hand a palm rib, the sign for “year.” Furthermore, from the right arm of the sitting figure hangs a tadpole, which is the hieroglyphic sign for one hundred thousand. On each of the heads of the falcons is a sun disk with a uraeus cobra. From the body of the cobra hangs an ankh sign, the symbol for “life.” Altogether, the pectoral can be read as: “The sun god is granting millions and hundreds of thousands of years of life and duration for King Khakheperre.” The back of the piece, though not visible when worn, shows the details of the composition engraved into the gold and is again of the highest quality.

26. Pectoral of Sathathoriunet with the throne name of Senusret II. The picture shows the pectoral in the condition in which it was found. Detail from Petrie Museum archive, PMAN 1820.

27. Second pectoral of Sathathoriunet with the throne name of Amenemhat III. From Brunton 1920, pl. VIIC.

A second pectoral⁷³ is an almost identical copy of the first one, but with the throne name of Amenemhat III: Nimaatre (Fig. 27). It is again made of gold, with inlays in carnelian, lapis lazuli, green faience, and amethyst. Although the craftsmanship of this piece is still high, it has been noted that one generation after the first pectoral a certain decline is detectable. Semiprecious stones are replaced by glazed materials, and the falcons look slightly clumsy in comparison to those on the first pectoral.⁷⁴ Both pectorals were part of a necklace consisting of drop-shaped beads and simple ball-shaped ones, or at least these beads were found close to the pectorals.

28. Motto pendants. Petrie Museum archive, PMAN 1802.

These pectorals with their strings of beads are the only necklaces found in the treasure. All the other jewelry was for the arms, hands, fingers, and waist. Five motto clasps should be mentioned (Fig. 28). The function of the five mottoes is somewhat enigmatic. These are basically hieroglyphic signs making up short sayings (mottoes) executed as fine jewelry in gold with inlays in semiprecious stones. Two of them show a shen ring.⁷⁵ A third is composed of the hieroglyphs aw and ib, meaning “joy.” The fourth shows two sa signs (“protection”), an ankh sign (“life”), and a neb sign (“all”), together reading “All life and protection.”⁷⁶ The last one has the ib sign in the center (“heart”), two netjer signs (“god”), and the hetep sign (“satisfied”) at the base.⁷⁷ This group reads: “The hearts of the two gods are satisfied.” These motto clasps are quite small, the largest being just 2 cm high. On the back of each are two tubes, evidently for holding the mottoes on a string. No beads that might have belonged with these mottoes were found, however; they might have been strung on some kind of organic material and perished in the damp burial environment. Two rings adorned with a scarab were also found. Rings are not so common in the Middle Kingdom and are most often just a piece of wire with a scarab. Proper rings appear only later. One of the rings found here is remarkable for the finely crafted scarab made of gold, lapis, and carnelian. The back shows a stripe pattern in blue and is in cloisonné work.⁷⁸ One scarab was found without ring and is made of lapis lazuli. It bears the throne name of Amenmehat III.⁷⁹

29. Armlets of Sathathoriunet with the throne name of Amenemhat III. From Winlock 1934, pl. X.

30. Lion amulets perhaps once used in armlets, modern reconstruction. Drawing by Paul Whelan.

The princess had two armlets and two anklets (Fig. 29). The armlets were made of beads with several bars holding them in place and a centerpiece serving as the clasp with the titles and the throne name of Amenemhat III: “The good god, lord of the two lands, Nimaatre, may he live forever.” The pieces are again composed of inlays set into a golden frame in cloisonné work.⁸⁰ Most of the examples for this technique were found in the burials of high-status women discussed here. This indicates that the technique was perhaps restricted to a small number of workshops or was at least quite expensive, so that only people at the royal court were able to afford it.

31. Bird claw, most likely a pendant from an anklet. Detail from Petrie Museum archive, PMAN 1820.

32. Girdle with cowry shells of Sathathoriunet. From Winlock 1934, pl. VIII.

33. Elements of two girdles united for photographing. The photo was taken shortly after the excavation. Petrie Museum archive, PMAN 1801.

Almost identical armlets were found in the treasure of Mereret in Dahshur. The armlet itself consisted of thirty-seven rows of very small beads, with bars between them providing some stability. The two anklets of the princess were similar but without the richly adorned and inscribed clasps. Another armlet was adorned with two golden figures of lions.⁸¹ This reconstruction, however, is far from certain (Fig. 30).

Two other anklets are simpler in design and consist of plain amethyst and golden ball beads with golden bird claw pendants (Fig. 31).⁸² Winlock originally reconstructed them as one necklace,⁸³ but there are depictions in tombs of the period indicating that claw pendants were worn around the ankles.⁸⁴

The princess had two girdles. One of them consisted of eight golden cowry shells (Fig. 32).⁸⁵ The other was a chain of seven double leopard heads, also made of gold, perhaps once connected by amethyst beads and further double, but smaller, leopard heads, most likely originally arranged between the larger ones (Fig. 33).⁸⁶ The cowry shell girdle in particular is also known from other tombs of royal and high-status women of this time.

Next to the jewelry several cosmetic objects were found. The first of these was a partly gilded mirror with a golden Hathor head at the top of the handle (Fig. 34).⁸⁷ Two razors were found with two whetstones for sharpening them (Fig. 35),⁸⁸ and there were three cosmetic jars, all cylinder-shaped with a wider top part. These were made of obsidian with gilded rims; a fourth one is smaller but also with a gilded rim (Fig. 36).⁸⁹ A small saucer made of silver has the shape of a shen ring.⁹⁰ Two copper blades of two knives were also found.⁹¹

34. The mirror of Sathathoriunet. From Winlock, Lahun, pl. XV.

35. Razors of Sathathoriunet and whetstones. From Brunton 1920, pl. X.

In a separate box were found eight similar vessels made of Egyptian alabaster⁹² and not gilded.⁹³ They are described as not highly polished. The contents, a pinkish substance, was still visible in a few of the vessels. These eight jars are typical of highstatus burials of the late Middle Kingdom. In other tombs the lids of the jars are inscribed with the names of the seven sacred oils (compare the description of the burial of Ita, below).

36. Examples of cosmetic vessels of Sathathoriunet. From Brunton 1920, pl. IX.

37. Vessel for pure water, from the tomb of Sathathoriunet. From Petrie, Brunton, Murray 1920, pl. XXV, 7.

Also found in the tomb was a jar made of alabaster inscribed with a magical spell connected to pure water (Fig. 37).⁹⁴ This type of inscribed jar is not common and is restricted to royal women and kings. The spell appears in later times as part of the second nightly hour of the “hour vigil.”⁹⁵ This is the ritual in which Osiris was embalmed with the help of other deities. Whether the spell and the jar were already related to the hour vigil in the Twelfth Dynasty is not certain. It is possible that this spell is an important text in a purification ritual, later used in the hour vigil. Indeed, the purification of the body of the deceased was an important part of preparing the mummy in the purification tent.⁹⁶ The spell reads: “King’s daughter Sathathoriunet, receive this cool water which is from the land that begets everything that lives, all those things that this land gives; indeed, it is the land that begets everything comes forth. May you live on them, may you receive upon them. May you live and revive upon them. May you live and revive upon this breath that is within it. It begets you, and you come forth. You live on all that is desired and perfect that is therein.”⁹⁷

Several pottery vessels were found in the burial of Sathathoriunet. They included large bowls, small fat-based cups, a beaker-shaped jar, a hemispherical cup, and a bottle.⁹⁸ The pottery belongs to a type most recently called queen’s ware and most often found in burials of late Middle Kingdom royal women. It is made of Nile clay and highly crafted. It is covered with a red coat, but not so well fired, providing a somewhat patchy surface color. Altogether the pottery seems to copy Old Kingdom tableware known as “Meydum ware.” The Middle Kingdom craftsmen, however, did not manage to match the Old Kingdom quality.⁹⁹

Who Was Sathathoriunet?

Sathathoriunet is so far known only from her burial. The only title she bore was “king’s daughter.” Her burial place next to the pyramid of Senusret II might indicate that she was closely related to him and therefore perhaps his daughter. The name of the king was found on some objects from her tomb. Also found in her burial were more than one object bearing the name of Amenemhat III. This might indicate that she died under this king. In some publications Sathathoriunet is also called queen.¹⁰⁰ She did not, however, bear the title “king’s wife.” Her identification as a queen might go back to Brunton, who wondered whether she was a queen on the grounds that her crown was adorned with a uraeus.¹⁰¹ There is so far no evidence that the uraeus was restricted to queens.¹⁰² Indeed, there are examples where a king’s daughter wears a uraeus. From the late Middle Kingdom comes the scarab of the king’s daughter Nubhetepti, on which she is shown standing and with a uraeus.¹⁰³ Another example is a rock relief depicting the early Thirteenth Dynasty king Sobekhotep III and his family. Here too, the daughters are depicted with a uraeus.¹⁰⁴ The uraeus is the symbol of the goddess Wadjet, who was one the crown deities and therefore represented kingship. While it is possible to argue that Sathathoriunet was king’s wife later in her life, being “promoted” after parts of her burial equipment were made, this argument does not work for the women on the scarab and on the rock relief, where the depictions and the titles belong together. From this evidence it is safest to say that Sathathoriunet was a daughter of Senusret II who died under Amenemhat III. She might not have been the youngest when she died, but there is no evidence that she was ever a king’s wife.

BURIALS AT DAHSHUR

Dahshur is a modern village near Saqqara, about thirty kilometers south of Cairo (Fig. 38). In the Old Kingdom it was the location of the two pyramids of Snofru, first king of the Fourth Dynasty. There were also cemeteries of officials serving the king. After Snofru, Dahshur was no longer used as a cemetery for kings, though officials, perhaps not the highest ranked, were still buried there. All other rulers of the Old Kingdom were buried farther north, at places such as Gizeh, Abusir, and Saqqara. This change is not necessarily as great as it may seem from the changing place names, as the division between Dahshur and Saqqara is a modern one. In ancient times, the region from Abusir in the north, down to Dahshur, and even beyond to Magzhuna in the south formed one big cemetery, with concentrations of tombs and mastabas around the royal pyramids.

38. Map of Dahshur. Drawn by the author.

In the Middle Kingdom the cemetery of Dahshur again became important. Amenemhat II, who ruled around 1900 BCE, was the third king of this dynasty. He built his pyramid at Dahshur. His son Senusret II was buried somewhere else, but Senusret III and Amenemhat III built their grand pyramids again at Dahshur. Most pyramids of the ensuing Thirteenth Dynasty have also been found at Dahshur. Excavations in recent years have also shown that there were huge cemeteries for officials of the Twelfth and early Thirteenth Dynasties at the site. They have not yet been explored, because Dahshur was for a long time a military zone and not available to excavate. This has changed only in the past few years with new American, German, and Japanese expeditions.

In 1894, however, the French archaeologist and director of the Egyptian Antiquities Service Jacques de Morgan excavated at Dahshur. Next to the pyramid of Amenemhat III de Morgan found two undisturbed burials. They were placed within a chain of burial shafts perhaps already built under Amenemhat III. It is unclear whether burials took place in his reign and were looted early on or the shafts were left empty and used only in the Thirteenth Dynasty. At present the latter option seems more likely, as there is no published trace of any Twelfth Dynasty use. Two burials belong to the Thirteenth Dynasty. One is that of King Hor, well known from his wooden statue now in the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and among its highlights; the other is that of the king’s daughter Nubhetepti-khered. In the same campaign de Morgan also excavated at the pyramid of King Senusret III. Around the pyramid he found the tombs of royal women, and in two he discovered untouched jewelry boxes.

BURIALS NEXT TO THE PYRAMID OF AMENEMHAT II

In the expedition of 1894 to 1895 de Morgan excavated at Dahshur near and in the pyramid of King Amenemhat II (Fig. 39). The pyramid is so poorly preserved that even its exact measurements are not yet known for certain. It is sometimes called the “white pyramid” because the remains of the limestone cladding dominate the color of the otherwise shapeless rubble heap of pyramid remains.

West of the pyramid, de Morgan found three underground galleries, each of which contained two burials. In one gallery were the tombs of the queen Keminub and the “treasurer” Amenhotep.¹⁰⁵ Both were found disturbed. The burials belonged to the late Thirteenth Dynasty, perhaps around 1700 BCE.¹⁰⁶ Only inscribed fragments of the coffins were found, or at least these are the only objects mentioned and depicted in the excavation report. They provide us with the names of the tomb owners.

39. Amenemhat II pyramid complex. The undisturbed burials are to the west. Drawn by the author.

The other galleries were found undisturbed, still containing a remarkable set of objects. They belonged to Ita and Khenmet and to Itaweret and Sathathormeryt (Fig. 40). In each of these galleries two burials were found belonging to women, three with the title “king’s daughter.” For a long time it was assumed that they were daughters of Amenemhat II and buried during his reign, but the evidence of the pottery in the tombs indicates that they were most likely buried under Amenemhat III. In one of the burials a scarab was found with the name of Amenemhat III. The relationship of these women to Amenemhat II is thus unclear, though it is still possible to argue that they were daughters of that king, who died and were buried one or two generations later.¹⁰⁷

In the first excavation season de Morgan documented the burials of King Hor and Nubhetepti-khered in some detail; the documentation of the other four tombs in the second season appears superficial, leaving modern researchers with many open questions. Only for the tomb of Khenmet did de Morgan present a plan and remark that all the burials were similar in layout.¹⁰⁸ However, it is easy to criticize the work of de Morgan today. Ideally modern archaeologists working in Egypt will photograph and draw all objects found, but in the nineteenth century archaeology was still in a phase of development. Excavations were often still seen as enterprises to acquire objects for museum collections. The publications are often very selective and concentrate on objects and architecture the excavators regarded as important. In Egyptian archaeology at that time this was more or less standard.

40. One of the gallery tombs found near the pyramid of Amenemhat II. They belonged to Itaweret and Sathathormeryt, as published by de Morgan. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 118.

Each princess was placed in a set of three coffins. There was an outer stone sarcophagus and within it a wooden rectangular coffin, partly covered with gold foil. This wooden coffin was simply decorated on the outside with two eyes and gold foil, but without any inscriptions. Only on the inside of the coffin were there long religious texts, some already known from the pyramids of the Old Kingdom and therefore labeled “Pyramid Texts” by Egyptologists. Within this wooden rectangular coffin there must once have been an anthropoid coffin. All traces of any of the anthropoid coffins had already been lost when the burials were excavated, only the gold foil once covering their outsides and the inlaid eyes being preserved. De Morgan failed to recognize these anthropoid coffins, but their presence can be assumed from better preserved parallels and from the description given by de Morgan in the excavation report. Next to each anthropoid coffin was a set of royal symbols and weapons also often connected with royalty.

THE BURIAL OF THE KING’S DAUGHTER ITA

The first gallery excavated by de Morgan’s team was found on 12 February 1895 and belonged to the king’s daughters Ita and Khenmet.

The gallery consisted of a long corridor with the tombs of the women cut underneath. When found, the corridor was completely filled and blocked with stones. The tomb of Ita¹⁰⁹ consisted of two chambers, each just over 2 m long and 1 m wide and high. One chamber was fully occupied by the sarcophagus, while the other contained the burial goods. A small entrance, more a hole in the ground than a door, gave access from the corridor to the chamber for the burial goods, which is exactly under the corridor. The chamber for the sarcophagus was next to it and was entered via the roof, where there were the big blocks used to close it. The sarcophagus was most likely already in place when the whole complex was built; perhaps even the middle wooden coffin was placed here before the burial, leaving only Ita’s mummy in her anthropoid coffin to be interred.

As already indicated, Ita’s body was laid to rest in a set of three containers. The first was an outer sarcophagus in the form of a simple rectangular box with a vaulted lid with two raised ends. Then there was a partly gilded middle coffin (Fig. 41) inscribed only on the inside, and finally an innermost anthropoid coffin. The middle coffin was decorated on the outside with wedjat eyes and on the inside with religious texts written only in hieroglyphs in different colors.¹¹⁰ Several of them are spells spoken by Nut and Geb.¹¹¹ The inner coffin was most likely made of thin wood with a fine plaster skin and overlaid with a substance described as bitumen.¹¹² The head had eyes inlaid with silver and a headdress in blue with golden bands. The breast was decorated with a broad collar, to judge from the beads of the collar described by de Morgan.¹¹³

The body of Ita was adorned with an array of jewelry and other objects. She had a richly decorated dagger, which stands as one of the masterpieces of Egyptian metalwork (Fig. 42). Its handle consists of three parts. The pommel (the end of the handle) is crescent-shaped and made of lapis lazuli. The handle proper is covered with thirty rosettes. The lower end of the handle is made of gold and frames the upper end of the blade. The sheath of the dagger was made of some organic material, with only the mouth and lower end made of gold. It was most likely made specifically for the burial. The lower end of the handle was made of gold, a material too weak to support the pressure of the blade when used.¹¹⁴ The dagger was found near a girdle with a silver fastener.¹¹⁵ Daggers with a crescent-shaped pommel are of a type known from the Near East.¹¹⁶

41. The middle coffin of Ita. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 109.

42. The dagger of Ita. From de Morgan 1903, pl. VII.

Around Ita’s neck was a broad collar with round terminals in silver and many beads of semiprecious stones, such as lapis lazuli, carnelian, and turquoise.¹¹⁷ The terminals were simple and undecorated. Ita’s body was adorned with several armlets and bracelets. There was a small figure of a swallow, perhaps once belonging to a girdle and not uncommon in this type of burial. From depictions it is known that such figures were attached to an apron. They also appear in the friezes of early Middle Kingdom coffins and are called zait.¹¹⁸ Under the head of the mummy was a small disk of black earth of unknown function.¹¹⁹ Ita was perhaps also adorned with a royal apron, but the short excavation report is not really conclusive on this point.¹²⁰ Placed on the left side of Ita were several weapons and royal insignia, including a flail, a mace, and scepters. Again, these objects were only briefly mentioned in the publication.

In the second chamber of the burial further burial goods were found. Under a big plate there was a set of bronze tools (Fig. 43). In the southeastern corner of the chamber was an uninscribed canopic box containing a set of four canopic jars, also uninscribed. The jars have human heads; three are shown with a beard, the fourth without. From the Middle Kingdom onward, canopic jars were placed under the protection of the four children of Horus: Amset, Qebehsenuef, Hapy, and Duamutef. In the Middle Kingdom Amset was a female deity, and therefore the canopic jar under her protection had a head without a beard, while the other three—all male deities—are shown with a short beard.

43. Tools of Ita. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 106.

The burial goods also included a box containing vessels for the “seven sacred oils.”¹²¹ In fact, it contained eight vessels, seven for the oils and a further one as some kind of placeholder. The lids of the vessels are inscribed with the names of the oils. The names are “best of ash-oil,”¹²² “nekhenem-oil,”¹²³ “hekenu-oil,”¹²⁴ “iber-oil,”¹²⁵ “best of Tjehenu-oil” (perhaps best translated as “best of Libyan oil”),¹²⁶ “tuaut-oil,”¹²⁷ “sefetj-oil,”¹²⁸ “setji-hab” (“smell of the festival”).¹²⁹ Only iber-oil does not belong to the classical list of the seven sacred oils. For most of the oils we just know the names and have only vague ideas about the plants or animals they were made from. The ash-oil came from the ash tree, not yet identified with certainty but often identified with the cedar tree. The sefetj-oil also comes from the same ash tree and was often imported from Syria. Hekenu-oil was perhaps made of peppermint and imported into Egypt.¹³⁰

The seven sacred oils often appear in religious texts such as the Pyramid and the Coffin Texts.¹³¹ This does not mean, however, that these texts appear on all coffins. The Coffin Text spell 934 mentioning all oils is attested on only two coffins of the early Middle Kingdom.¹³² Nevertheless, the seven sacred oils are depicted on a high percentage of Middle Kingdom coffins with an inner decoration, quite often at the head end of the coffin, demonstrating the importance of the oils for the deceased.¹³³

Another object was an incense burner or lamp consisting of a plate and a cover (Fig. 44).¹³⁴ These burners are well known from depictions in Old Kingdom tombs but are rarely found as original objects. In the tomb of Ita a set of tools was also found. Such tools are typical of Old Kingdom burials of the ruling class at the royal residence.¹³⁵ Is it possible that Ita copied—at least in parts—an Old Kingdom burial?

44. Incense burner of Ita. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 107.

Who Was Ita?

Ita is possibly also known from a monument outside her tomb. In Qatna (Syria), fragments of a sphinx were found and dated by style to Amenemhat II or even slightly earlier. On this monument Ita is called “member of the elite, beloved king’s daughter of his body.”¹³⁶ It remains an open question whether the princesses from the two monuments are one or two individuals. The Ita from Dahshur was most likely buried under Amenemhat III. This is about thirty years after the death of Amenemhat II, something that is certainly possible or even to be expected. As the daughter of the king, Ita was one generation younger than him and likely to have died one generation after him.¹³⁷ The name Ita, however, is not uncommon in the Middle Kingdom,¹³⁸ and the identification remains uncertain.

THE TOMB OF KHENMET

The burial¹³⁹ of the king’s daughter Khenmet¹⁴⁰ was found next to that of Ita and was arranged along the same lines (Fig. 45). In her small burial chamber there was a sarcophagus made of quartzite. In this outer container was placed a wooden coffin that was not inscribed on the exterior but had texts written on the inside. These inscriptions are almost identical to those found on the inside of Ita’s coffin. The innermost coffin was anthropoid, but it was heavily decayed when found. Again, de Morgan did not realize that the remains belonged to a coffin and described them as part of the mummy. The anthropoid coffin must have been similar to that of Ita’s. Following the description in de Morgan’s publication, the coffin was covered with a substance described as bitumen, and the head, or more likely just the wig, covered in blue and gold. The eyes were inlaid in silver.¹⁴¹ Under the head was placed a clay disk.

On Khenmet’s body were found several items of jewelry. They are described in the excavation report, and many of them are shown with photographic images. There are no drawings, however, of the exact find spots of these pieces. Furthermore, the reconstruction of single items is often highly problematic.

Around Khenmet’s neck was a broad collar with falcon head terminals. The heads were made of hollow gold. The eyes were inlaid, while the eyebrows and the mouth were made of lapis lazuli. The collar proper was composed of 103 pieces in the shape of ankh, djed, and was signs.¹⁴² These are made of gold foil and inlaid with different materials. The outer edge of the collar was most likely fringed with drop-shaped beads. Perhaps coming from a choker (see Fig. 49) are two smaller falcon terminals and an array of hieroglyphic signs, many of them connected with royalty, such as two vultures, each on a neb sign, two cobras on two neb signs, or two bees. Today they have been reconstructed as a narrower form of broad collar.¹⁴³ However, the small size of the terminals might better fit a choker.

45. The tomb chamber of Khenmet. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 105.

On each arm Khenmet wore five bracelets. There were two clasps adorned with the sa sign from a pair of bracelets.¹⁴⁴ Furthermore, de Morgan mentions a massive undecorated gold bracelet and another consisting of beads of various materials. On the left side of the anthropoid coffin, a mace and several staves were found, typical of this type of burial, but again not described in detail. Outside the sarcophagus, on the southern side, were found a gilded wooden dagger and a staff, neither well preserved.

This was not the only jewelry to be discovered in the tomb; other examples were found in the small chamber next to the sarcophagus chamber. Here, there must have been a box with another set of personal adornments,¹⁴⁵ constituting one of the most remarkable sets of gold objects ever found in Egypt.

First of all are two crowns. One consists of a series of flowers each with four leaves. Each flower is connected via gold wires on which smaller flowers are attached.¹⁴⁶ The flowers were made of gold with inlays of carnelian, lapis lazuli, and turquoise (Fig. 46). The second crown is heavier and consists of a series of eight identical elements. In the middle are a rosette and two flowering rushes. Further rosettes connect these elements. On top of the rosette is again some kind of flowering rush, and there is a royal vulture. All pieces are made of gold and inlaid with carnelian, lapis lazuli, and turquoise. On the front is a vulture made of gold leaf with inlaid eyes of obsidian. Attached to the back is a tree (Fig. 47).¹⁴⁷ Both crowns are dominated by the colors gold, red, and blue.

46. First crown of Khenmet (diameter c. 18 cm). From de Morgan 1903, pl. IX.

47. Second crown of Khenmet (diameter c. 20.5 cm). Cairo CG 52860. From Vernier 1925, pl. XXII.

48. The “foreign” jewelry of Khenmet (medallion in the center c. 2.85 cm). From de Morgan 1903, pl. XII.

The most remarkable items in Khenmet’s jewelry box were gold pieces of unknown function but perhaps belonging to a necklace (Fig. 48). These pieces appear un-Egyptian in character and were most likely produced somewhere in the Aegean, perhaps specifically on Crete.¹⁴⁸ With these pieces appears for the very first time in Egypt the gold-working technique of granulation, whereby small gold balls are attached to another gold surface. This technology was very common in antiquity but was forgotten in medieval times and only rediscovered in the twentieth century. It was developed in Mesopotamia and reached Egypt in the late Middle Kingdom. The technology was only rarely employed in the Middle Kingdom, being more common in the New Kingdom.¹⁴⁹ The centerpiece of the group in Khenmet’s tomb is a round golden pendant with glass inlays depicting a cow.¹⁵⁰ Perhaps attached to it were golden open-work rosettes fully covered with granulation.¹⁵¹ There are two smaller rosettes and two bigger ones. Two stars are not open-work. The same is true of a golden butterfly.¹⁵² All these pieces are covered with granulation. Other pieces in this set include several golden shells and several pieces resembling stylized flies. Finally, there are more than twenty small birds¹⁵³ and golden chains already broken and repaired in ancient times.¹⁵⁴ The birds in particular have close parallels with Minoan treasure found on the Greek island of Aigina, confirming the impression that this jewelry was not made in Egypt.¹⁵⁵

Perhaps also of foreign workmanship are several ribbed beads that do not appear with any frequency in other Middle Kingdom burials but are found in the Near East and the Aegean, notably at Byblos and in the Aigina Treasure.¹⁵⁶ Other pieces of jewelry from Khenmet’s burials include several motto clasps, similar to those found in the burial of Sathathoriunet (Fig. 49).¹⁵⁷

49. Jewelry of Khenmet with choker at bottom. Cairo JE 31113–16 (cat. 107). Photo: Juergen Liepe.

The other objects in the tomb include a set of canopic jars and a large series of pottery, most of it especially made for the burial. There was also a simple wooden box with the seven sacred oils. The box had a short inscription in hieratic (the cursive script of the hieroglyphs): “oil.”¹⁵⁸ The vessels are inscribed on the lid and on the vessel proper with the names of the oils, similar to the ones on the vessels in the burial of Ita, described above. They still contain the remains of the oils, now mostly reduced to powder.¹⁵⁹ Many pottery vessels were also found. Among this group was a large beer or water jar typical of the late Middle Kingdom, which provides a rough date for the burial under Amenemhat III.¹⁶⁰ The other pottery vessels found and recorded include two large plates, model vessels, bowls, and bottles. The pottery likely belongs again to the late Middle Kingdom queen’s ware also known from other burials of royal women.¹⁶¹ Bones of cattle and birds were evidently the remains of a funerary repast or the symbolic eternal food supply.

The most remarkable find, however, is a wooden figure of a swan.¹⁶² This is not a common burial object in the late Middle Kingdom or any other period of Egyptian history. Indeed, so far there are only two other published examples, both found in the nearby tombs of Itaweret and Sathathormeryt. Swans are not common animals in Egypt, and it seems that ancient Egyptians did not clearly distinguish between them and geese. Furthermore, a depiction of a swan or goose appears on a coffin excavated at Riqqeh dating to about the same time as the burial of Khenmet.¹⁶³ In the tomb of Senet, mother of the vizier Intefiqer, two geese fly in front of the Abydos boat transporting Intefiqer and Senet.¹⁶⁴ From the New Kingdom there is further evidence for such creatures. In New Kingdom royal tombs wooden figures of geese or swans have been found, as for example in the tomb of Tutankhamun.¹⁶⁵ In the Book of the Dead a picture of a goose sometimes appears apparently relating to a spell,⁹⁵ and in one instance this has the title “Spell to become a goose.”¹⁶⁶ Another figure that often appears in the Book of the Dead is the “Great Cackler,” also sometimes depicted in Book of the Dead papyri. In the Pyramid Texts the deceased king flies as a goose to the sky.¹⁶⁷ He flew there because it was believed that the king moved to the sky in order to become one of the imperishable or circumpolar stars in the northern night sky. These are the stars visible throughout the year and the entire night, while most of the other stars are visible only at certain seasons due to the movement of the earth on its axis around the sun. Evidently, this is again a religious belief taken from the royal sphere, not often attested in private contexts. Not surprisingly, on the coffin lid of Khenmet is a spell expressing the wish that she might become an imperishable star.¹⁶⁸

Who Was Khenmet?

Not much is known about Khenmet. On her middle coffin she is called “king’s daughter.” On her canopic box she is “king’s daughter” and “the one united with the white crown.”¹⁶⁹ Nonetheless, no name is written on this box. This is strange, because it is rare for no proper name to appear on such an important object. It is possible that the title “the one united with the white crown” (Khenmet-nefer-hedjet) was indeed a proper name, as also suggested for some other women.¹⁷⁰ If so, Khenmet was perhaps just the short version of Khenmetneferhedjet. The name Khenmet appears within her tomb only on the coffin. Finally, a king’s daughter with the name Khenmet is known from a cylinder seal and from a statue found in Ugarit.¹⁷¹ All these objects might belong to the same woman.

Because of the crown with the vulture it has been assumed that Khenmet was a queen.¹⁷² She does not bear the title “king’s wife,” and it might be on the safer side simply to say that she was a king’s daughter, perhaps a favorite daughter of her father and therefore equipped with this amazing array of jewelry. However, the vulture is not yet attested for king’s daughters with the exception of coffins and mummy masks.¹⁷³ The vulture might therefore indicate that Khenmet indeed became queen late in her life, after most of her funerary equipment had been made.

THE SECOND GALLERY AT DAHSHUR

The second gallery excavated at Dahshur,¹⁷⁴ west of the pyramid of Amenemhat II, belongs to the king’s daughter Itaweret and a woman called Sathathormeryt. The description of these burials in the excavation report of de Morgan is very short, and it is therefore quite hard to get a clear picture of these tombs, although their layout seems to be more or less identical to those of Ita and Khenmet. The tomb of Sathathormeryt will not be described here, as the published excavation report for it is extremely short and lacking in detail. The other, and the first, burial in that gallery belonged to Itaweret,¹⁷⁵ who was placed in a sarcophagus of red granite, described as being of rare perfection. Within the sarcophagus was again found a wooden coffin, decorated only on the outside with gold foil and wedjat eyes. It was inscribed on the inside with texts identical to those on the coffins of the other women buried here. Inside this wooden coffin there must have been an anthropoid coffin. The mummy itself was adorned with anklets and armlets and with a broad collar with simple rounded terminals.¹⁷⁶ Next to the mummy were not only the expected royal insignia, such as a flail, a mace, and a bow, but also a hoe and other wooden objects described as gilded, but alas not depicted in the excavation report.

50. Wooden swan from the tomb of Itaweret. From de Morgan 1903, fig. 123.

In the small chamber next to the sarcophagus chamber was found an interesting array of objects known from only a few burials of this period. These include a life-size wooden swan (Fig. 50),¹⁷⁷ round and rectangular tables, wooden gilded sandals, a board on which was found a mirror, a diadem made of beads, and four blades partly decorated with gold. Other objects discovered include an inscribed canopic box and a box with eight vessels for the seven sacred oils.¹⁷⁸ The eighth vessel served as a placeholder in the box, as was common with other boxes of this type.

51. Map of Hawara. Drawn by the author.

THE TOMB OF NEFERUPTAH

In 1936 the Egyptian Egyptologist Labib Habachi made soundings in the region of Hawara (Fig. 51) and discovered mud-brick structures. Habachi was at that time inspector of antiquities in the Fayum, but he was transferred shortly afterward to another inspectorate and was therefore not able to continue his work there. It was not until 1956 that the site was excavated by Nagib Farag, who was inspector for the Fayum at that time.¹⁷⁹ Farag found the undisturbed tomb of the king’s daughter Neferuptah, a princess already known from other sources, and the remains of her burial equipment within the pyramid of Amenemhat III at Hawara.

The tomb of Neferuptah¹⁸⁰ was found in a region with a high ground-water level. As a result, all of the organic material had already perished by the time her tomb was opened. Even the body of the princess was gone; not even her bones survived.

The tomb of Neferuptah consisted of one big chamber separated by a huge block into two parts. In the larger room was the sarcophagus, decorated at the bottom with a palace facade and bearing a short inscription mentioning the titles and the name of Neferuptah (Fig. 52). This type of sarcophagus is known from several other royal tombs of the late Middle Kingdom.¹⁸¹ Only a few of them have inscriptions, in particular several examples belonging to royal women buried next to the pyramid of King Senusret III at Dahshur. All the known sarcophagi of kings were uninscribed. The palace facade at the bottom of the sarcophagus is most likely a copy of the niche/palace facade of the Djoser complex at Saqqara, showing the same number of gateways on the front.

52. The burial chamber of Neferuptah with the main objects found (reconstruction). Redrawn by the author after Farag, Iskander 1971, fig. 6.

The sarcophagus of Neferuptah is the largest of its type. It measures 3.06 m long, 1.54 m wide, and 2.31 m high (including the lid). It is made of red granite.¹⁸² The short inscription on the sarcophagus reads: “An offering given by the king to Osiris, lord of life, for the ka of the member of the elite, the great one of the hetes-scepter, the great one of honor, the beloved king’s daughter of his body, Neferuptah, true of voice.”