Egypt Travelogue - Pharaonic Thebes - I

THE VALLEYS OF KINGS AND QUEENS

The next day, we set for the ancient city of Thebes, modern day Luxor, before the sun woke up. This was indeed the most interesting part of my journey to Egypt. On our way to Luxor, we had the opportunity to take a glimpse into the country life and I must say the Egyptian rural life is not very different from ours. Our first stop was at a place what locals call Mamnoon. Mamnoon is a place with two incomplete pharaonic statues with archaeological work in progress. 

The Valley of the Kings. Click by Danish Henry

What came next is one of the oldest and largest royal necropolis in the world – the Valley of the Kings. The Valley of the Kings is a set of mountains (with the al-Qurn dominating others) with 62 known underground tombs for the Pharaohs. These underground tombs, as elaborate they can be, have dedicated burial rooms, stone sarcophaguses and security systems against tomb robbers. The walls of the tombs are decorated with pictorial representation of the King’s life.   The tombs are an archetype of fine craftsmanship, artistic minuteness and geologic mastery.  Interestingly, the length of a tomb indicates the life span of a king. We visited the tomb of Ramses II, Ramses IV and Merenptah.

A FEMALE  KING - HAPSHETSUT

Behind is the Tomb of Hapshetsut.
Click by Marija Abramovic

Close by is the tomb of King Hapshetsut – paradoxically a female and a King. The Tomb, unlike other tombs in the Valley of the Kings is not underground, has recently been preserved by the Polish government.