Between 1894 and 1895 Jacques de Morgan discovered several rich tombs
in the Dahshur necropolis. The first tombs were found during his 1894
excavations, around the pyramid of Senwosret III and contained the
burials of royal ladies, arranged in two galleries. Above the ground
the tombs were constructed in the form of small pyramids. Hidden
inside a burial chamber, de Morgan found the treasures of Princess
Sithathor, a daughter of Senwosret II, consisting of a rich cache of
jewellery which included a magnificent pectoral of Senwosret II (now
in Cairo Museum) and a scarab of Senwosret III as well as other items
of jewellery. Further down the same corridor de Morgan discovered the
jewels of Queen Meret, a daughter (or wife) of Senwosret III. This
included two beautiful pectorals and a range of scarabs and rings
bearing the names of Senwosret III and Amenemhet III.
During the next season de Morgan went on to excavate the area around
the west wall of the pyramid of Amenemhet II and uncovered further
royal burials. These revealed the tombs of Queen Khnemet and the
chancellor Amenhotep, as well as Princeses Ita, Itweret and
Sithathormerit. The elderly queen Khnemet was a wife of Senwosret II
and Princesses Ita and Itweret were daughters of Amenemhet II, whose
mummies were ornamented with many fine pieces of jewellery. Their
tombs were intact - missed by grave robbers, and have revealed
sumptuous examples of Middle Kingdom funerary trappings, which have
become an important part of the Cairo Museum collection.
De Morgan went on to uncover more exciting burials in his third season
at Dahshur, around the pyramid of Amenemhet III, including the
funerary shafts of twelve members of the royal family on the northern
side of the pyramid. One of these was the tomb of a little-known King
Hor-Awibre of Dynasty XIII, in which his famous wooden ka statue was
found. The statue, still in its wooden shrine is 1.75m high and is
extremely well-carved and well-preserved, still retaining its
life-like inlaid eyes. Hor-Awibre's tomb revealed more funerary
objects including an inscribed rectangular wooden coffin and a canopic
chest, alabaster and pottery vessels, an offering table and two
stelae.
Also in Amenemhet III's enclosure, de Morgan found a tomb of Princess
Nubhotepti-khered, possibly a daughter of King Hor-Awibre. Her burial
was decayed by dampness but otherwise undisturbed. In her stone-lined
burial chamber the princess lay in her gold-embellished wooden coffin
within its sarcophagus. Her jewellery was still in place on the mummy
and items of her funerary equipment surrounded the burial where they
had been placed 4500 years ago.
The skill shown in the production of these Middle Kingdom treasures
from Dahshur are among the greatest achievements in Egyptian art. |
