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..."one sees Anubis embalming the sacred fish of Latopolis, instead of the usual human mummy... the scene is unique in its genre..."
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Rare are the artists and craftsmen working in the "Set-Ma'at" ("the place of truth", that is to say the Valley of the Kings) who received the distinguished privilege to have the right to dig for themselves a monument of eternity... and who had the means to do it.
These tombs are all grouped on the west side of the Theban mountain looking towards Deir el-Medineh.
Khabekhnet, the owner of tomb TT 2, was the eldest son of the worker Sennedjem, whose tomb bears the name TT 1 and is situated next that of his son and the lady Iineferti. Khabekhnet's tomb dates from the beginning of reign of Ramesses II (19th Dynasty). His tomb is situated above of the one of his father and next to the one of his brother Khonsu (cited in the tomb).
We deal therefore with a member of a great and powerful family of craftsmen whose fortune lasted at least two generations, without which of course we would not know why it was so important.
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 Plan |
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The tomb courtyard is entered from the east and surrounded by a stone wall on three sides. At the back of the court three stelae were originally erected, remains of two of which still show some text, as well as a superstructure which once supported a pyramidion.
There are two entrances into the cliff face. That on the right leads into a chamber where a stairway leads down to several rooms, notably a burial chamber with preserved painted decoration. The doorway on the left forms the entrance to a two-chambered chapel with reliefs and statues. Both chapels and attached shafts and underground chambers were pillaged long ago.
In the right-hand chapel above the stairway are three statues carved from the rock representing a deity with a solar disc, presumably Re, the cow-headed goddess Hathor protecting a king in the centre, and Osiris (view 6). The stairway goes down to a small chamber from which by means of four steps, the larger vaulted burial chamber can be entered.
This measures 2.70 metres in height and 5.40 x 2.60 metres in area. This chamber is decorated with scenes painted on plaster in the monochrome style-yellow and black on a white ground.
To the right of the doorway on the east wall, Khabekhnet and his wife Sahte kneel in adoration of the god of writing Thoth, lord of Hermopolis, in the form of a squatting baboon with a disc on his head (view 8). Khabekhnet offers an udjat-eye to the god and holds two ankh-signs and a sa-amulet in his hands.
THE SOUTH WALL
The south wall of the tomb contains three painted scenes (view 9).
The upper register under the vault shows a kneeling figure of the goddess Isis with arms and wings outstretched and an udjat-eye.
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 View 10 |
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Below the division marked by the continuous line of horizontal text are two scenes. On the left the hawked-headed god Kheper-Re, with an ankh-sign on his feet and an ankh-sign and a was-sceptre on his knees, and the god Osiris, lord of the West, holding his customary crook and flail, kneel in front of the nome-sign of Latopolis (Esna) .
On the right (view 10) one sees Anubis embalming a sacred fish of Latopolis instead of the usual human mummy on a funeral bed surmounted by a canopy. This scene is unique in its genre. It was discovered at the same time as a very curious ensign standard (see below). The fish has been called "the Abet fish of lapis lazuli". According to Bruyère may probably be closely associated, in orthographic and mythological terms, to the Abdu fish of the Book of the Dead. Why was a fish chosen for representation? It is necessary to first remember that the Lepidote is well known as an icon of Osiris. Then this fish is venerated in Latopolis (or Lépidontopolis), the city to which Khabekhnet is attached.
Fish is a well known image of the idea of rebirth. So the representation (notably in ceramics) of a fish holding in its mouth a stem of a lotus in full bloom, is the image of Osiris that, from the beginning of the aquatic darkness, seizes the peduncle of the flower that is going to bloom at the surface of the water. One also finds representations of fish in numerous tombs, for example in the scenes of hunting by harpoon: the deceased captures two fish of which one represents "yesterday" and the second "tomorrow" (to see the tomb of Nakht for example). Some scarabs carry the association with Osiris and the sun being born Khepri, symbol therefore of the phases of transformation of the deceased.
THE NORTH WALL
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 View 17 |
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The north wall of the burial chamber parallels the south wall.
Isis, Nephthys kneels in the upper register with arms and wings outstretched. There is an udjat-eye in the lower corners of the scene. In the lower register, the jackal-headed god Anubis is shown in the centre embalming a human mummy, presumably a representation of the deceased Khabekhnet himself. The mummy lies on a bier below which are a canopic chest surmounted by a jackal and a mirror.
Isis and Nephthys kneel on shen-signs on the right and left of the bier behind each of which is a tree goddess holding a plaque with the name and title of Osiris, god of the dead (view 17)
THE RIGHT SIDE OF THE WEST WALL
There are three very distinctive scenes on the right side of the west wall.
On the left Khabekhnet stands in adoration while behind his wife Sahte, holding lotus flowers, holds an offering in three bunches. Before them on a stand is a water-pot cooled by a lotus behind which sit the god Ptah and the goddess Tefnut (view 13).
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 View 14 |
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In the centre scene, set apart by vertical texts naming Khabekhnet and Suro, Khabekhnet dressed as a priest in a leopard skin holding a brazier and followed by his wife adores the seated figures of the deified King Amenhotep I wearing an atef-crown, another form of the same king wearing a blue crown, and the queen mother Ahmes-Nefertari (view 14).
In the lower register, the jackal-headed god Anubis is shown in the centre embalming a human mummy, presumably a representation of the deceased Khabekhnet himself.
Isis and Nephthys kneel on shen-signs on the right and left of the bier behind each of which is a tree goddess holding a plaque with the name and title of Osiris (view 17).
THE EAST WALL
The eastern wall is decorated with three scenes on the left side of the doorway.
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 View 24 |
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On the left the jackal-headed god Anubis and the goddess Hathor The final scene on the right side depicts the goddesses Neith and Selkit wearing their distinctive crowns. They pour libations before the god Horus here depicted in the form of a hawk (view 21).
The eight scenes on the vaulted roof of the chamber are less well preserved and are better reproduced by the drawings in Bruyere's publication. A double scene on
the east wall above the entrance doorway shows on the left the deceased Khabekhnet being escorted by Anubis towards his tomb topped by a small pyramid (view 24). Khabekhnet's ba flies through the tomb.
On the right side, the deceased is in worship in front of the seated representation of the god with head of an ibis, Thot, who carries an Ankh-cross and a Ma'at-feather and a cobra on his forehead (view 32).
| THE CHAPEL ON THE LEFT-HAND SIDE |
The chapel on the left-hand side of the courtyard consists of two rooms which are decorated in incised relief and not painted. The religious scenes include the appearance of Khons and his wife before Osiris and the judgement of the dead, a depletion of the funeral, of the temple of Mut in Karnak (view 34).
Before the doorway leading from the first to the second chamber are statues of Khabekhnet and his wife Sahte with their children and grandchildren depicted on the sides and another pair statue (view 36).
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 Standard |
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The chapel, its furniture, and the underground chambers had been robbed a long time ago
Nevertheless, an interesting object was discovered among the remnants which were strewn on the ground of the chapel, it represents an ensign standard 24 cm high. This standard includes, represented on the platform at the top, two animals. The first doesn't pose any problem. Its scales are blue, its tail and its fins are red-brown and striped in dark transverse bands. Although the Lates or the Tilapia can be candidates, the comparison with the wall painting would recommend keeping the same kind for this fish, and therefore should be considered as a Lepidote.
The animal, it causes more of a problem with its identification, because of its broken muzzle.
It could be taken for a cat because of its posed attitude, being prepared to bound and also because the relationship between cats and fish exist in other tombs (as in that of Nakht). But the morphology of the animal is more the one of a canine than of a feline, the image reinforced by its black colour with a blue ribbon with red edges around its neck, as notably found with Anubis.
Besides the context of this object is obviously funerary, and not one of the profane scenes of daily life which the Egyptian artists loved.
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 Ushabti |
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A strong mythological and geographical argument finally exists: Abydos is one of the main holy cities connected with Osiris, but also with Anubis, whose local predecessor was another divinity with head of canine: Khenty-imentyu ("the opener of ways"); and in Abydos a cult of the Lepidote fish also existed.
So it can be supposed that the presence of these two animals on the emblem can be considered as a representation of Anubis watching over the mummy of Osiris, Khabekhnet having probably entered into professional contract with the Abydiene mythology which he associated with that of Latopolis. Such a degree of religious culture is very astonishing for a character who has a very modest social standing. It is possible to lost in conjecture regarding this situation.
A Ushabti box and some of the funeral servants which it contained have been recovered and have been displayed at the Metropolitan Museum of Arts.
Original page created by Thierry Benderitter
© Copyright OsirisNet 2006 |
| Bibliography
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- Bertha Porter & Rosalind Moss,
Topographical bibliography of Ancient Egypt, Vol I,
Griffith Institute 1994
- Bruyère Bernard : Tombes thébaines
de Deir el Medineh à décoration monochrome,
MIFAO, vol LXXXVI, 1952
- Bruyère Bernard : L'enseigne de Khabekhnet
BIFAO 28, 1929, p 41 - 48
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