Prince Rameses Mentuherkhopshef was thought to be the son of Rameses
IX and his is the only prince's tomb open in the King's Valley. It is
situated on the left-hand fork off the path to KV43 in the eastern
branch of the wadi and approached by a ramp.
Mentuherkhopshef's tomb is little more than a wide corridor, but is
worth visiting for it's delicate paintings and beautiful soft colours
on a white plastered background. On the left and right-hand walls the
prince is shown offering to various deities. One of the nicest aspects
of the tomb is the variety and detail in the costumes the young prince
is wearing, as well as many variations in the writing of his name. On
the figure of Thoth, the buckle of his belt contains the cartouche of
Rameses IX. The outer jambs of the entrance show three columns of
texts sketched in paint with two pairs of uraei (royal cobras) beneath
them.
The quarrying of the tomb was abandoned and its original dedication
texts show that it was first intended for a Prince Setherkhepshef and
was later taken over for Mentuherkhopshef.
The walls of the tomb are now covered by glass panels to protect them. |
