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Senenmut was the architect of
Hatshepsut's temple at Deir el Bahri. He was also a
Steward of Amun and tutor to the royal children. Although he had a completed
tomb at nearby Qurna, a second tomb was carved into the
rock near the temple.
This is the view
of Hatshepsut's temple as seen from the steps that lead
down to the unfinished tomb of Senenmut. Detail
stills
from the tomb are below.
We
had to ask the guard at the temple specifically to see
the tomb, and paid him extra baksheesh to unlock it and
accompany us. |
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There are three chambers. We did
not descend into the two unfinished chambers. The most significant
feature of the tomb is the astronomical ceiling, the
earliest found so far, although similar calendars have
been found on coffins lids from the Ninth Dynasty. The
star maps illustrated the 36 "decans"or stars,
that rose at sunrise, at ten day intervals. When he
exited the tomb through the false door, Senenmut could
then match the star with the decan calendar to determine
the date in the calendar.
The ceiling
painting is only partially completed with the original
sketches still visible.
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