The Valley Of The Queens
is located on the Western Bank with the Mountain Of Thebes providing a natural
pyramid in the background. It is located on the southern edge of the Theban
necropolis. It is about 1 1/2 KM SouthWest of The Valley Of The Kings. Ancient
Egyptians called it "Set Neferu" meaning Seat Of Beauty. Only a few of the
eighty tombs are open to the public. During the 18th Dynasty princes and
queens were buried in the valley, while in the 19th Dynasty only queens were
buried here.
Nefertari was the favorite wife of several of the wives to Ramses II who
was one of the greatest of the pharaohs. The tomb of Nefertari is probably
the most beautiful of all of the tombs in The Valley Of The Queens. It is
a wonderful structure with very unusual decorative motifs and colored scenes
showing Nefertari with long transparent flowing garmets and beautiful jewelry.
She is shown as a thin waisted woman with a beautiful face. The tomb is decorated
with a ceiling of yellow stars upon a blue background representing the heavens.
The tomb was discovered by the Italian archeologist Schiaparelli in 1904.
It has a long staircase leading from its entrance down into a hall measuring
17 x 17.5 feet. Inside the hall is a rock cut bench and a cavetto cornice
to hold funeral items. Unfortunately, rainwater has leached into the tomb
over the years and salt deposits have ruined much of the plaster layers in
the tomb. Extensive restoration work has been done to the paintings and steps
have been taken to stop the leaching. |
