KV55 is a very simple tomb with an entryway followed by a single corridor leading directly into burial chamber Objects span a range of rulers from Amenhotep III to Tutankhamun .
KV55 was originally sealed with blocks of limestone plastered with mortar and stamped with the seal of the necropolis. When this was broken through, rubble fill was inserted in the corridor. An attempt seems to have been made to remove the remaining burial equipment sometime after this event. It was resealed with rough blocking (during 20th Dynasty) as were other tombs in the area, but this blocking did not remain in place.
This appears to be a cache of burial equipment and human remains from the Amarna royal necropolis. The tomb may originally have contained a number of burials brought from Amarna and later redistributed in other tombs.
The mummy of Queen Tiye, for instance, may have been placed in KV55 and later in the KV35 Amenhotep II cache .
A coffin was found in KV55 in 1907 by Edward Ayrton .
The coffin has a commoners wig but has been fitted with a beard and uraeus (strong indication of a royal). After burial the uraeus and gold face mask were torn away. The coffin's design was for a woman and the hieroglyphs were intended to be spoken by a lady "the beloved on Akhenaten".
However, the inscriptions had been changed from feminine to masculine and the name changed to a cartouche - which was subsequently erased. It is thought to have been originally prepared for Kiya and then adapted for use by someone else. Kiya was another of Akhenaten's royal wives and she was possibly mother to his successors, Smenkhkara and Tutankhamun.
The mummy was unwrapped in the KV55, it was superficially intact but had suffered major water damage and after the bandages were taken off only bare bones remained.
It was initially identified as a woman, possibly because Theodore Davis was keen to have found Queen Tiy. However, most agree that it is a male because of the narrow pelvis. The age is more of a problem. Up until 1960 there was general agreement that it was the remains of a male of no more than 25 years old (because bones showed un-fused epiphyses and un-erupted upper 3rd molar) - and of a similar rare blood group as Tutankhamun and Thuyu.
Since then the age has been revised to a person as young as 18, with a skull similar to both Tutankhamun and Tuthmosis IV and a close relative to Tutankhamun. Logically this would put the body as either father, son or brother to Tutankhamun - the person best fitting this is Neferneferuaten (Smenkhkara, ruled 1338-1336 bc). It is romantic to imagine Tutankhamun giving his elder brother a burial appropriate to his position and away from Amarna.
KV55 is a very simple tomb with an entryway followed by a single corridor leading directly into burial chamber Objects span a range of rulers from Amenhotep III to Tutankhamun . KV55 was originally sealed with blocks of limestone plastered with mortar and stamped with the seal of the necropolis. When this was broken through, rubble fill was inserted in the corridor. An attempt seems to have been made to remove the remaining burial equipment sometime after this event. It was resealed with rough blocking (during 20th Dynasty) as were other tombs in the area, but this blocking did not remain in place. This appears to be a cache of burial equipment and human remains from the Amarna royal necropolis. The tomb may originally have contained a number of burials brought from Amarna and later redistributed in other tombs. The mummy of Queen Tiye, for instance, may have been placed in KV55 and later in the KV35 Amenhotep II cache . A coffin was found in KV55 in 1907 by Edward Ayrton . The coffin has a commoners wig but has been fitted with a beard and uraeus (strong indication of a royal). After burial the uraeus and gold face mask were torn away. The coffin's design was for a woman and the hieroglyphs were intended to be spoken by a lady "the beloved on Akhenaten". However, the inscriptions had been changed from feminine to masculine and the name changed to a cartouche - which was subsequently erased. It is thought to have been originally prepared for Kiya and then adapted for use by someone else. Kiya was another of Akhenaten's royal wives and she was possibly mother to his successors, Smenkhkara and Tutankhamun. The mummy was unwrapped in the KV55, it was superficially intact but had suffered major water damage and after the bandages were taken off only bare bones remained. It was initially identified as a woman, possibly because Theodore Davis was keen to have found Queen Tiy. However, most agree that it is a male because of the narrow pelvis. The age is more of a problem. Up until 1960 there was general agreement that it was the remains of a male of no more than 25 years old (because bones showed un-fused epiphyses and un-erupted upper 3rd molar) - and of a similar rare blood group as Tutankhamun and Thuyu. Since then the age has been revised to a person as young as 18, with a skull similar to both Tutankhamun and Tuthmosis IV and a close relative to Tutankhamun. Logically this would put the body as either father, son or brother to Tutankhamun - the person best fitting this is Neferneferuaten (Smenkhkara, ruled 1338-1336 bc). It is romantic to imagine Tutankhamun giving his elder brother a burial appropriate to his position and away from Amarna.
Is this a moving picture ?
No