| Deir el-Medina | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Egyptian: Set Ma'at | ||||
"Place of Truth" | ||||
 Southwestern view of the workmen village's ruins at Deir el-Medina.© | ||||
| Location | Deir el-Medina, Theban Necropolis | |||
| Coordinates | 25°43′41″N, 32°36′05″E | |||
| Region | Upper Egypt | |||
| Nome | Waset | |||
| Main deities | Ptah, Meretseger, Hathor | |||
| Monuments | Temple of Hathor | |||
Deir el-Medina (Egyptian Arabic: دير المدينة, "Monastery of the City") is an ancient Egyptian workmen's village which was home to the artisans who worked on the tombs in the nearby Valley of the Kings during the New Kingdom (ca. 1550–1080 BCE).[1] The settlement's ancient name was Set Ma'at ("Place of Truth"), and the workmen who lived there held the title "Servant in the Place of Truth". During the Christian era, the temple of Hathor was converted into a church from which the Egyptian Arabic name Deir el-Medina is derived.[2]
Excavation[]
A significant find of papyri was made in the 1840s in the vicinity of the village and many objects were also found during the course of the 19th century. The archaeological site was first seriously excavated by Ernesto Schiaparelli between 1905–1909 which uncovered large amounts of ostraca. A French team directed by Bernard Bruyère excavated the entire site, including village, dump and cemetery, between 1922–1951. Unfortunately through lack of control it is now thought that about half of the papyri recovered were removed without the knowledge or authorization of the team director.
Around five thousand ostraca of assorted works of commerce and literature were found in a well close to the village.[3] Jaroslav Černý, who was part of Bruyère's team, went on to study the village for almost fifty years until his death in 1970 and was able to name and describe the lives of many of the inhabitants.[4] The peak overlooking the village was renamed "Mont Cernabru" in recognition of Černý and Bruyère's work on the village.[5]
Layout[]
Workmen's village[]
Workmen's tombs[]
Sanctuary to Ptah and Meretseger[]
The Sanctuary to Ptah and Meretseger, located on the path between the workmen's village and the Valley of the Queens, was established towards the end of the Nineteenth Dynasty with active religious practice in the early Twentieth Dynasty. The sanctuary was probably a popular place to worship two local deities: Ptah of Ta-Set Neferu, the patron god of craftsmen (such as the tomb builders) and the Valley of the Queens, and Meretseger, the goddess of the Qurn and the Theban Necropolis. At the shrine, offerings could be made in front of rock-cut stelae.
Temple of Hathor[]
Under Ptolemy IV (r. 221–204 BC) a temple dedicated to the goddess Hathor was constructed just to the north-east of the workmen's village. The temple and its mudbrick enclosure still stand today. Prior to the Ptolemaic temple's construction, the site had already been dedicated to Hathor since the New Kingdom with a shrine.[6] The walls inside the temple depict the weighing of the heart, which is common on funerary papyri but very rare on temple walls, and contains one of very few depictions of the god Anubis wearing a crown, in this case the Double Crown of Upper and Lower Egypt.
Cultural life[]
History[]
List of tombs[]
Here follows a list of tombs discovered at Deir el-Medina.
| Designation | Owner | Title | Period |
|---|---|---|---|
| DM 1066 | Any | Servant in the Place of Truth | |
| DM 1066 | Semen | 18th Dynasty | |
| DM 1099 | Khunefer | 19th Dynasty | |
| DM 1102 | Tjanefer | 19th Dynasty | |
| DM 1102 | Qenherkhepeshef | Royal Scribe, Scribe in the Place of Truth | 19th Dynasty |
| DM 1138 | Nakhy | Servant in the Place of Truth | 18th Dynasty, Amenhotep IV |
| DM 1159 | Hormose | Foreman in the Place of Truth | 20th Dynasty |
| DM 1159A | Sennefer | Servant in the Place of Truth | Late 18th Dynasty |
| DM 1164 | Amak | Servant in the Place of Truth | 19th Dynasty, Ramesses II |
| DM 1166 | Unknown | 18th Dynasty | |
| DM 1200 | Amenemhat | Gatekeeper | |
| DM 1200 | Amenwa | ||
| DM 1200 | Siwadjet | Servant in the Place of Truth | |
| DM 1352 | Setau | Servant in the Place of Truth | 18th Dynasty, Amenhotep IV |
See also[]
References[]
- ↑ Oakes 2006, p. 110.
- ↑ Bierbrier 1989, p. 125.
- ↑ Cremin 2007, p. 91.
- ↑ Strouhal 1992, p. 187.
- ↑ Romer 1984, p. 209.
- ↑ McDowell 2002, p. 4.
- ↑ 7.00 7.01 7.02 7.03 7.04 7.05 7.06 7.07 7.08 7.09 7.10 7.11 7.12 7.13 Baikie 1932.
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 8.5 "Theban Tombs". Archived from the original on 2016-11-09. Retrieved 2007-04-29.
Bibliography[]
- Baikie, J., 1932: Egyptian Antiquities in the Nile Valley. Mentheun & Co, London.
- Bierbrier, M.L., 1989: The Tomb-builders of the Pharaohs. American University in Cairo Press.
- Cremin, A., 2007: Archaeologica: the world's most significant sites and cultural treasures. Frances Lincoln.
- McDowell, A.G., 2002: Village Life in Ancient Egypt: Laundry Lists and Love Songs. Oxford University Press.
- Oaks, L., 2006: The Illustrated Encyclopedia of Pyramids Temples & Tombs of Ancient Egypt. Previously Published as Sacred Sites of Ancient Egypt. Southwater.
- Romer, J., 1984: Ancient Lives Daily Life in Egypt of the Pharaohs. Hold, Rinehart and Winston.
- Strouhal, E., 1992: Life of the ancient Egyptians. Editorial Galaxia.