Ancient Egypt - Valley of the Kings

1. Tombs were built in the Valley of the Kings for the New Kingdom kings.

2. New ruling families came from Thebes and wished to be buried near there.

3. Chose west of the Nile for the tombs because sunset symbolised death and the sun set over the tombs in the Valley of the Kings.

4. Valley of Kings used for burials for around 500 years from 1540 BC onwards.

5. Experimented with new tombs cut in rock that were not as easy to find as the pyramids.

6. Valley of Kings was chosen because had natural pyramid shape with the peak of Al Qurn over it to ensure pharaoh’s access to heaven.

7. Wives, children and favourite nobles were buried alongside the Pharaohs in Valley of Kings.

8. Tombs consist of a series of halls and corridors going deep into the earth and ending in a burial chamber where the body was placed.

9. Treasures surrounded it and tomb paintings of gods and goddesses helped with the journey through the Underworld.

10. False doors put on tombs to trick grave robbers, but despite elaborate precautions, nearly all the tombs were robbed in ancient times.

11. Earliest tomb in Valley of Kings was that of Thutmose I and the tomb of Rameses III is one of the largest in the valley.

12. One of the greatest rulers, Amenhotep III, who ruled for forty years and built the palace at Luxor, is buried in Valley of Kings.

13. First tomb to be discovered in Valley of Kings was that of Rameses VII.

14. In 1995 the tombs of the sons of Rameses II were found to extend into one hundred and twenty rooms.

15. Up until 2006 sixty-two tombs had been discovered, the last of which was that of Tutankhamun in 1922.

16. Tutankhamun’s tomb had been covered by the rubble generated by the excavation of another tomb.

17. In 2006 a new tomb was found very close to Tutankhamun’s.

18. An American team of archaeologists who were working on another tomb discovered a shaft leading to a door.

19. Inside there were sarcophagi, funerary masks, five mummies and alabaster jars with the seals intact.

20. They are hopeful it could possibly be the tomb of Queen Nefertiti.