KV57

Tomb KV57, located in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt, was used for the burial of Horemheb, the last Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty.

The tomb was located by Edward Ayrton in February 1908, who was working for Theodore Davis. Due to its location in the valley floor, the tomb was filled with debris that had been washed down in the occasional flash-flooding.

The tomb is markedly different from the other major Eighteenth dynasty royal tombs. It does away with the dog-legged construction, and has painted bas-reliefs, rather than simple painted walls. Passages from the Book of Gates appear for the first time. The decoration was not completed, even though the king ruled for twenty-eight years.

The sarcophagus of the king was constructed from carved, red quartzite, and was found with its lid broken. In it were contained bones and remains from several burials, none of them conclusively from Horemheb.

File:KV57 Horemheb.jpg

Isometric, plan and elevation images of KV57 taken from a 3d model

References

• Davis, Theodore M. The Tombs of Harmhabi and Touatânkhamanou. London: Duckworth Publishing, 2001. ISBN 0-7156-3072-5
• Reeves, N & Wilkinson, R.H. The Complete Valley of the Kings, 1996, Thames and Hudson, London.
• Siliotti, A. Guide to the Valley of the Kings and to the Theban Necropolises and Temples, 1996, A.A. Gaddis, Cairo.

External links

• Theban Mapping Project: KV57 - Includes detailed maps of the tomb.