TT33 (tomb)

Theban tomb TT33
Burial site of Pediamenopet
Location	El-Assasif, Theban Necropolis
Discovered	Prior to 1737
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[1]
Pediamenopet in hieroglyphs

The Theban Tomb TT33 is an ancient Egyptian tomb. Located in El-Assasif, it is part of the Theban Necropolis on the west bank of the Nile, opposite to Luxor. The tomb is the burial place of the Ancient Egyptian Pediamenopet, who was Prophet and Chief Lector Priest during the 26th Dynasty.^[2]

Although it was open when Richard Pocoke visited the area in 1737 (he thought it was a subterranean palace) it was more fully examined and excavated in 1881 by Johannes Dümichen from the University of Strasbourg.^[3] Located not far from Deir el-Bahari, it is larger than most of the more famous pharaohs' tombs that are found in the necropolis. It is composed of twenty-two rooms connected by long corridors and distributed on three levels extending twenty metres below the level of the ground.^[4]

The tomb owner served one or more pharaohs during the 25th to 26th dynasty time period, and amassed enough wealth and power to build a labyrinthine tomb covered with hundreds of metres of frescoes and hieroglyphics.^[5]

The tomb was and still remains the largest known non-royal site in the necropolis as of 2008.^[6] TT33 consists of multiple rooms, reached by flights of steps, ramps and vertical shafts.

During 2004–2005, University of Strasbourg professor Dr. Claude Traunecker and Annie Schweitzer explored the chambers of the huge tomb. The official reopening was attended by notable officials from Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities and other archaeologists working in the area, among them Francesco Tiradritti. Further planned work will concentrate on the cleaning, restoration and conservation of the tomb, which has been engraved with many important scripts, such as the Book of the Dead.^[7]

References

1. Porter and Moss, Topographical Bibliography: The Theban Necropolis, pg 50 - 56
2. Baikie, James (1932). Egyptian Antiquities in the Nile Valley. Methuen.
3. "Lecture: TT33 Padiamenope ala Petamenophis".
4. Thomas Weidenbach (2007). La tombe 33, un mystère égyptien, Franco-Germany documentary (55 minutes).
5. "Amunirdis Research weblog, 2009-02-05".
6. http://www.archaeologychannel.org/content/film/festival2008/Tomb33.htm
7. "Opening the Tomb of Petamenophis and more". Egyptology News weblog. Dec 2005.

Coordinates: 25°44′05″N 32°36′44″E / 25.7346°N 32.6122°E