Tomb of Ramesses III (3) : The Last powerful King

Ramesses III, son of Setnakht, then resumed work on KV11. James Bruce was the first European traveler to enter this cemetery in 1768. He was so amazed by the painted figures of the blind harpists that he named it the Grave of the harpists. Nowadays, the tomb of Ramesses III is considered one of the most visited tombs in the Valley of the Kings as there are many wonderful inscriptions and paintings that can be seen on this tomb.

King Ramesses III was the second ruler of the Twentieth Dynasty, and the last great pharaoh on the throne. Ramesses III, son of Setnakht, ruled Egypt for 31 years. Shortly before his death, there was a plot to kill him by several members of his family including one of his underage wives, Queen Tiye.

It was essentially an attempt to ensure her son’s accession to the throne. The trial of this conspiracy is shown on the walls of his mortuary temple at Medinet Habu. Setnakht began the process of the grave, then abandoned it and headed to KV14, where he was buried.

The Architecture of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The tomb of Ramesses III consists of four corridors that open into a double vestibule ending in the burial chamber, which includes four small side rooms, one in each corner, and the ceiling of the burial chamber is supported by eight columns. The first plan of the tomb, from the entrance to Corridor D, was the work of Setnakht, but when workmen unexpectedly broke into the adjacent tomb (KV 10), the tomb of Amenemses at about the same time that Setnakht died, the work was abandoned. He was buried in tomb KV 14 instead.

After that, Ramesses III resumed work on tomb KV 11 as his burial place. His workers shifted the tomb’s axis about 2 meters west to avoid KV 10 and continued digging into the mountain. The result was one of the longest tombs in the King’s Valley: KV 11 extending 188 meters from entrance to end. The tomb has some distinctive architectural and decorative elements, as Ramesses III added a series of small side rooms, the walls of which were carved with sacred scenes, to the first two corridors of the tomb of Ramesses III.

They were used to house part of the burial equipment. On the walls we found representations of objects that may have been kept In these rooms (food offerings, the king’s weapons, jars, and other utensils). On the walls of one of these side rooms are images of two famous lyre players singing the praises of the pharaoh before the god Atum.

The Entrance of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The tomb of Ramesses III is entered through an L-shaped staircase. The lower sloping staircase is original, but the upper staircase was added in 2003 to protect the tomb from flooding. The sun disk with the scarab and Ra-Horakty adorns the tomb gate. Above the gate on the side walls of the entrance is a column carved in the shape of a very unique and beautiful cow’s head.

Corridor B of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The left (east) wall of Corridor B includes scenes depicted for Setnakht. Here is a picture of the king standing with the god Ra-Horakhty, next to some texts from Ra’s supplications. Then there are two low gates on each side of the corridor that lead to small rooms that were cut out and decorated for Ramesses III.

One of these rooms (the left room) includes the most unique scene ever depicted in a royal tomb, the scene consists of two registers representing scenes from everyday life such as brewers, bakers, butchers, cooks and leather workers plying their trades. On the side walls of the second side room are twelve sailboats, then texts from the Song of Ra on the front wall.

Corridor C of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

On the walls of Corridor C of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11), the Litany of Ra continues and decorates the ceiling. At the top of the right and left walls are 74 manifestations of the sun god. Then, near the end of the walls, scenes from Chapter 151 of the Book of the Dead appear. Along the sides of the corridor are eight uniquely decorated side rooms, many of which includes  scenes from the Book of the Dead, while others have no religious significance.

Corridor DI of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The quarry workers of Setnakht stormed the tomb of Amenemes and abandoned their work at this point. King Ramesses III moved the tomb from the KV 11 axis to the west before continuing to dig new passages to the south, when he decided to complete the tomb as his own burial place. The king stands, wearing the crown of Lower Egypt, offering incense to the gods Atum and Ptah, on the left (east) wall. On the front wall, King Ramesses III is shown standing and offering incense in front of the figure of Ptah, Sokar and Osiris.

Corridor D2 of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

In Corridor D2 in the tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11), the floor rises and the corners of the corridor turn to the left. These are indications that the quarrymen were unaware of how close they were to the tomb of Amenmeses. Both the left and right walls of aisle D are decorated with texts, mostly from Amdwat; Four o’clock on the left wall, five o’clock on the right. Along the left wall, there is a large snake with four legs and three heads. On the right wall, a boat carrying Ra-Horakhty and eight other figures is being pulled through the underworld.

Chamber E of the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The well chamber (Chamber E) includes representations of various deities along the top of its walls. On the right side stand Osiris, Hapy, Qebehsenuf, Nephthys, Serqet, and Iunmutef. On the left side stand Osiris, Imsety, Anubis, Duamutef, Isis, and Iunmutef.

Chamber F of the Tomb of Ramsses III (KV 11)

The walls of the four-columned Room F of Tomb KV 11 are decorated with scenes from the Book of Gates. Five o’clock is on the left (eastern) side of the room and six o’clock is on the right (western) side. On the back wall is a double scene showing the king making sacrifices to Osiris. On each side of the four columns, Ramesses III appears making sacrifices to different gods, such as Ptah, Ra-Horakhty, Khepri, Atum, Thoth, Geb, and Shepsy.

The Rest of Chambers in the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

The corridor and rooms G, H, I and J of KV 11 as well as side rooms JA, D, K and L contain scenes and texts from the opening of the Mouth Rite, the Book of the Celestial Cow, the Book of the Dead and the Fifth Hour of the Book of the Gates.

The Sarcophagus of Ramesses III in KV 11

The large red granite sarcophagus of King Ramesses III was recovered by the British Consul, General Henry Salt, and then sold to the Louvre in 1823. The sarcophagus lid with a relief statue of the king was found by Giovanni Belzoni in 1815 and sold to the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge. The mummy of Ramesses III was found in the KV 35 cache in Deir el-Bahri in 1881.

FAQS about the Tomb of Ramesses III (KV 11)

Where is Ramesses III buried?

Valley of the Kings

The tomb of Ramesses III in the Valley of the Kings has been open since ancient times. In modern times, it has attracted visitors since the 1790 publication of James Bruce’s drawings of two harps which were depicted in a small room in the second aisle.

Does Ramesses III have a mummy?

To solve the mystery of the mummy’s murder, researchers conducted a CT scan on the mummy of Ramses III, and found wounds on his neck (stars).

What was Ramesses III best known for?

Ramesses III is known for his program of domestic construction, promoting law and order, as well as his tree planting programme. Ramesses III built one of the largest mortuary temples in western Thebes, now called Medinet Habu.

Where is Ramesses  III’s body?

Tomb KV11 is the tomb of Ramesses III. It is situated in the main valley of the Valley of the Kings.

What was found in Ramesses III’s tomb?

An investigation into the finds revealed that some of the items belonged to the original burial equipment of Pharaoh Ramesses III. This was a big surprise, as no one expected such finds in a tomb that had been open since ancient times. In 2014, when the project began, a piece of a granite coffin lid was found.