For
the first time, an almost 4000 year-old funerary garden is uncovered in Draa
Abul Naga necropolis on Luxor’s west bank. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.
During
excavation work in the area around the early 18th Dynasty rock-cut tombs of
Djehuty and Hery (ca 1500‐1450
BCE) in Draa Abul Nagaa necropolis, a Spanish archaeological mission unearthed
a unique funerary garden.
Mahmoud
Afifi, head of the Ancient Egyptian Antiquities sector at the Ministry of
Antiquities told Ahram Online that the garden was found in the open courtyard
of a Middle Kingdom rock-cut tomb and the layout of the garden measures 3m x 2m
and is divided into squares of about 30cm.
These
squares, he pointed out, seem to have contained different kinds of plants and
flowers. In the middle of the garden the mission has located two elevated spots
that was once used for the cultivation of a small tree or bush.
At
one of the corners, Afifi continued, the roots and the trunk of a 4,000
year-old small tree have been preserved to a height of 30cm. Next to it, a bowl
containing dried dates and other fruits, which could have been presented as
offerings, were found.
“The
discovery of the garden may shed light on the environment and gardening in
ancient Thebes during the Middle Kingdom, around 2000 BCE,” said Jose Galan,
head of the Spanish mission and research professor at the Spanish National
Research Council in Madrid.
He
explained that similar funerary gardens were only found on the walls of a number
of New Kingdom tombs where a small and squared garden is represented at the
entrance of the funerary monument, with a couple of trees next to it. It
probably had a symbolic meaning and must have played a role in the funerary
rites. However, Galan asserted, these gardens have never been found in ancient
Thebes and the recent discovery offers archaeological confirmation of an aspect
of ancient Egyptian culture and religion that was hitherto only known through
iconography.
Moreover,
he pointed out, near the entrance of the Middle Kingdom rock-cut tomb, a small
mud-brick chapel measuring 46cm x 70cm x 55cm was discovered attached to the
façade. Inside it three stelae of the 13th Dynasty, around ca 1800 BCE, were
found in situ.
He
explained that early studies reveal that the owner of one of them was called
Renef‐Seneb, and
the owner of the second was “the citizen Khemenit, son of the lady of the
house, Idenu.” The latter mentions the gods Montu, Ptah, Sokar and Osiris.
“These
discoveries underscore the relevance of the central area of Dra Abul Naga as a
sacred place for the performance of a variety of cultic activities during the
Middle Kingdom,” asserted Galan. The
Spanish mission has been working for 16 years in Dra Abul Naga, on the West
Bank of Luxor, around the early 18th Dynasty rock-cut tombs of Djehuty and
Hery.
