KV 47 (Siptah)

General Site Information
Structure: KV 47
Location: Valley of the Kings, East Valley, Thebes West Bank, Thebes
Owner: Siptah
Other designations:
Site type: Tomb

Description

KV 47 is located in the southwest branch of the southwest wadi. The tomb consists of three gently sloping corridors (B, C, D), followed by a chamber (E), a pillared chamber (F), two subsequent corridors (G, H), and a chamber (I) that leads through a passage with abandoned lateral cuttings for a burial chamber (J1). These are followed by the actual unfinished burial chamber J2, containing a granite sarcophagus. The entrance of the tomb consists of a ramp with divided stairs. The tomb was left unfinished. Only the first corridors and chamber were plastered and decorated with scenes from the Litany of Ra (corridors B and C), Book of the Dead (corridor C), Imydwat (corridor D), representations of the deceased with Ra-Horakhty (corridor B), the sun disk on the horizon (gate B) and winged figures of Ma'at (gate B, gate D).

Noteworthy features

Pillared chamber F is succeeded by two corridors G and H instead of the usual corridor and stairway.

A cutting for the side of a burial chamber was begun in corridor J1, but had to be abandoned when workers broke into KV 32. The burial chamber J2 has no side chambers.

Site History
The tomb was the burial place of Siptah, and judging by the objects in the tomb, of his mother, Queen Tiaa. The cartouches of the king were erased, then restored with paint. Hartwig Altenmüller and Anthony Spalinger believed the erasures took place at the end of Dynasty 19, either for religious or political reasons.

KV 47 was reused during the Third Intermediate Period and robbed in antiquity.

Edward Russell Ayrton was the first to excavate KV 47 in 1905. Because of the safety risk posed by the bad condition of the rock, he dug no further than chamber I. In 1912, Harry Burton resumed the excavation and started to work in chamber F, clearing from this point to burial chamber J. The tomb is currently under study by Projekt MISR:

The mummy of Siptah was found in the tomb of Amenhetep II (KV 35) by Victor Loret in 1898.

Dating
This site was used during the following period(s):

New Kingdom, Dynasty 19, Siptah
Third Intermediate Period, Dynasty 21 (Reburial of Siptah's mummy in KV 35)

History of Exploration
Ayrton, Edward Russell (1905): Discovery (made for Theodore M. Davis)
Ayrton, Edward Russell (1905-1907): Excavation (conducted for Theodore M. Davis)
Jones, Ernest Harold (1907): Epigraphy
Burton, Harry (1912-1913): Excavation
Carter, Howard (1922): Excavation (conducted around entryway A)
Supreme Council of Antiquities (1994): Conservation
Supreme Council of Antiquities (1994): Excavation
MISR Project: Mission Siptah-Ramses X (1999-): Conservation
MISR Project: Mission Siptah-Ramses X (1999-): Epigraphy
MISR Project: Mission Siptah-Ramses X (1999-): Excavation

Conservation
 -  Conservation history: During summer 1994, the Supreme Council of Antiquities undertook a program to clear the remainder of the tomb, repair damage and open it for tourists. In addition to cleaning the painted relief and filling in gaps with plaster, damaged gates D and E and their lintels were repaired. The pillars in pillared chamber F had been damaged by past flooding and were largely replaced by limestone blocks. Wood walkways were laid over the floors (and on unexcavated debris in corridors G and H). Glass panels were erected over the painted decoration and new lighting was installed.
 -  Site condition: The first part of the tomb is well preserved. Beyond corridor D, the walls have suffered of structural damage.

Printable Tomb Drawings

Axis in degrees: 172.04
Axis orientation: South

Site Location
Latitude: 25.44 N
Longitude: 32.36 E
Elevation: 185.16 msl
North: 99,410.433
East: 93,997.048
JOG map reference: NG 36-10
Modern governorate: Qena (Qina)
Ancient nome: 4th Upper Egypt
Surveyed by TMP: Yes

Measurements
Maximum height: 5.3 m
Minimum width: 1.79 m
Maximum width: 13.72 m
Total length: 124.93 m
Total area: 501.42 m²
Total volume: 1560.95 m³

Additional Tomb Information
Entrance location: Base of sloping hill
Owner type: King
Entrance type: Ramp
Interior layout: Corridors and chambers
Axis type: Straight

Decoration
Painting
Sunk relief

Categories of Objects Recovered
Human remains
Tomb equipment
Vessels
Writing equipment