Egypt
- In The Field: More About Giza Tombs
Egypt State Information Service A collection of tombs that belong to workers who built Khufu's pyramid has been discovered in the area of the workmen's tombs on the Giza plateau, Culture Minister Farouk Hosni announced on Sunday 10/1/2010. Hosni...
- Importance Of New 5th Dynasty Tombs Found In Saqqara Area
International Herald Tribune A pair of 4,300-year-old pharaonic tombs discovered at Saqqara indicate that the sprawling necropolis south of Cairo is even larger than previously thought, Egypt's top archaeologist said Monday. The rock-cut tombs were...
- Saqqara - A History Hidden In Stones
Nauka w Polsce The titles of functions performed in the state, facts of everyday life, descriptions of ceremonies - this is the type of information that can be found on the stones used by ancient Egyptians to decorate their tombs and estates. Such inscriptions...
- Interview With Dr. Zahi Hawass
http://149.48.228.121/wgbh/nova/pyramid/excavation/hawass.html This interview dates back to the late 1990s, but I had not come across it before, and it has some nice content. It is a low-news day so I have thrown it in on the offchance that it might be...
- Who Built The Pyramids?
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/As usual with items from the Egyptian Gazette, I have copied the entire piece because it won't be online for more than a couple of days at most. This item is by Zahi Hawass:"Many people from all over the world...
Egypt
Hawass: Cemetery of the Artisans
http://www.gom.com.eg/gazette/comments/detail_4_48.shtml
Another fleeting article on the Egyptian Gazette website - this time Zahi Hawass describes, briefly, working at the artisans' tombs:
"One day, while working in the workers’ cemetery, we discovered the beginnings of a ramp outlined with low walls of limestone rubble. This ramp led directly to the upper part of the escarpment, where we found more tombs, larger and more elaborate than those in the lower cemetery, looking out over the valley below.
Many were completely rock-out and had a stone facade in front of a low cliff face; others were freestanding mastabas of limestone and mud brick. The artifacts and statuary in these tombs was of higher quality than those from the lower cemetery, and the inscriptions told us that the people buried here were of higher status than those below, holding titles such as “Inspector of Dragging Stones,” “Inspector of the Craftsmen,” “Inspector of the Sculptors,” “Chief of the Estates,” “Overseer of the Linen,” “Overseer of the Tomb Makers,” “Overseer of the Harbor,” and even “Overseer of the Side of the Pyramid.” The most important title found here was “Director of the King’s Work.” I believe these are the tombs of the artisans who designed and decorated the pyramid complexes and the administrators who oversaw their construction. Based on the pottery, names, and titles found in this cemetery, my conclusion is that it was begun as early as the reign of Khufu and continued in use through the end of Dynasty 5, from about 2589 to 2345 BC. "
Many were completely rock-out and had a stone facade in front of a low cliff face; others were freestanding mastabas of limestone and mud brick. The artifacts and statuary in these tombs was of higher quality than those from the lower cemetery, and the inscriptions told us that the people buried here were of higher status than those below, holding titles such as “Inspector of Dragging Stones,” “Inspector of the Craftsmen,” “Inspector of the Sculptors,” “Chief of the Estates,” “Overseer of the Linen,” “Overseer of the Tomb Makers,” “Overseer of the Harbor,” and even “Overseer of the Side of the Pyramid.” The most important title found here was “Director of the King’s Work.” I believe these are the tombs of the artisans who designed and decorated the pyramid complexes and the administrators who oversaw their construction. Based on the pottery, names, and titles found in this cemetery, my conclusion is that it was begun as early as the reign of Khufu and continued in use through the end of Dynasty 5, from about 2589 to 2345 BC. "
See the above page for the remainder of this article - but it won't be around for more than a day or two.
- In The Field: More About Giza Tombs
Egypt State Information Service A collection of tombs that belong to workers who built Khufu's pyramid has been discovered in the area of the workmen's tombs on the Giza plateau, Culture Minister Farouk Hosni announced on Sunday 10/1/2010. Hosni...
- Importance Of New 5th Dynasty Tombs Found In Saqqara Area
International Herald Tribune A pair of 4,300-year-old pharaonic tombs discovered at Saqqara indicate that the sprawling necropolis south of Cairo is even larger than previously thought, Egypt's top archaeologist said Monday. The rock-cut tombs were...
- Saqqara - A History Hidden In Stones
Nauka w Polsce The titles of functions performed in the state, facts of everyday life, descriptions of ceremonies - this is the type of information that can be found on the stones used by ancient Egyptians to decorate their tombs and estates. Such inscriptions...
- Interview With Dr. Zahi Hawass
http://149.48.228.121/wgbh/nova/pyramid/excavation/hawass.html This interview dates back to the late 1990s, but I had not come across it before, and it has some nice content. It is a low-news day so I have thrown it in on the offchance that it might be...
- Who Built The Pyramids?
http://www.algomhuria.net.eg/gazette/5/As usual with items from the Egyptian Gazette, I have copied the entire piece because it won't be online for more than a couple of days at most. This item is by Zahi Hawass:"Many people from all over the world...