The eighth season of work in the Theban tomb of Senneferi (TT99) took place from 1 December 1999 to 2 January 2000. I wish to thank Dr Gaballa and the Permanent Committee of the SCA for permission to work, and also thank in Luxor Sabri Abdel Aziz and Mohamed el-Bialey for putting this permission into practice. The inspector attached to the Mission was Abdel-Rahman Ahmed Hassan, and we are particularly grateful to him for his help and assistance which made the season so successful.
Members of the mission were: Dr Nigel Strudwick (Field Director), Mrs Helen Strudwick (Assistant Director), Miss Julie Dawson (Conservator), Miss Bridget Leach (Conservator), Dr John Taylor (Coffins specialist), Dr Pamela Rose (Ceramics specialist), Dr Gillian Pyke (Ceramics specialist), and Dr Alan Clapham (Archaeobotanist).
The work was planned as a study season, the archaeological work on the tomb having been completed in 1998. Work was concentrated on conserving, examining and documenting the thousands of objects found in the previous six seasons of work. The results may be grouped as follows.
Three large pieces of the funerary shroud of Senneferi and four groups of smaller fragments were treated by Julie Dawson. The linen is inscribed in hieroglyphs in red and black ink. There are traces of yellow pigment on the lower border.
The linen is in a highly fragile state. The fibres are brittle and friable, especially in areas where there is dark staining (probably from the products of body decomposition), and there are a few small patches where the fibres are carbonised. There has also been a considerable amount of insect attack. The pieces were very crumpled making it impossible to read the text or to determine the true size of the fragments.
A humidity tent was constructed for each piece of linen, which was supported within the tent on a layer of archival support fabric. As the humidity was raised and the fibres began to relax, the creases were gradually eased out and the weave aligned and held in position with weights. The fibres were too frail to allow complete removal of the creases and in some of the heavily stained areas at the edges were too friable to be unfolded at all.
A few small repairs were made to loose fragments at the edges with tiny Japanese tissue strips attached with 2% Methocel AC4 (methyl cellulose) in de-ionised water.
The pieces were supported on archival-quality fabric-covered boards and a system of storage boxes was created which permits further examination and photography of the textiles without jeopardising their long-term preservation.
More than 500 fragments of a Book of the Dead papyrus of Senneferi had been found in the 1998 season. Approximately half of them were conserved and mounted by Bridget Leach this season. The fragments appeared to be in reasonable condition but were very fragile, brittle, curled up and twisted.
The individual pieces were placed in a humidification tray. This tray consisted of a layer of damp blotting paper over two layers of goretex (goretex: a membrane of polytetrafluoroethylene on a fabric backing). This material only allows water vapour to pass through it so that humidification is gentle with no water droplets. The tray is then covered with polythene. After approximately 15 minutes the fragments were flexible enough to untangle and straighten out.
When the fragments were reasonably flat they were repaired with small tabs of Japanese paper using methyl cellulose adhesive (Culminal MC 2000, 4% in water). This process was repeated until the papyri were realigned and repaired adequately. They were then placed between two sheets of thick blotting paper with an interleaving layer of Bondina (a fine 100% polyester fabric) under a light glass weight. After 24 hours the fragments were dry and ready to be mounted in an archival box containing layers of acid-free card, good quality rag paper and soft tissue to protect the papyrus surface were cut to the size of the box.
This season saw preliminary study of the pottery from the three chambers at the bottom of Shaft I by Pamela Rose and Gillian Pyke. These rooms produced over 500 kg of pottery which was tentatively identified as part of the burial of Senneferi when excavated during the 1998 season.
The pottery was separated into groups based on technology and fabric, and the sherds belonging to each were weighed as a means of characterising the deposit. These vessels included many fineware jars, bottles and pilgrim flasks, large silt storage jars, amphorae and a few imported vessels as well as four canopic jars, all of which are consistent with the presumed date of the burial, late in the reign of Thutmose III. There are an estimated 120 vessels in total, several of which were inscribed with hieratic labels. These labels were kindly examined by Dr Briant Bohleke of Chicago House, and some indicate that these vessels contained wine and seeds.
Joins were made between sherds in each level and between levels, showing that fragments of many of the broken pots were scattered throughout these rooms. A more detailed examination of the material was carried out to determine the number of vessels present. Examples of each vessel type were drawn and photographed to provide a basic record of this important group of pottery.
In addition to portions of the coffins of Senneferi, the shafts of Tomb 99 yielded approximately 17,000 fragments of wooden coffins and cartonnage mummy-cases dating to the Third Intermediate Period and later.
On the basis of this material, it has been possible to identify four main phases of post-New Kingdom activity in the tomb:
Late 21st dynasty: This period is represented by very small fragments of anthropoid coffins with the characteristic polychrome decoration and deep orange-yellow varnish. Variations in the decoration of the surviving pieces suggest that from two to four burials had been placed in the tomb in this period.
22nd dynasty: Fragmentary cartonnage mummy-cases represent perhaps six to eight burials characteristic of both the earlier and later 22nd Dynasty. Many fragments of black-painted wooden coffins without decoration may represent the remains of the outer cases in which the painted cartonnages were placed.
25th dynasty: This period saw the reoccupation of the tomb for the burial of the Fourth Priest of Amun Wedjahor in the reign of Shabaka. Wedjahor was provided with a set of coffins; fragments of the intermediary and inner coffins (both anthropoid) from this set survive. Horempe, the son of Wedjahor, was also buried in the tomb, and fragments of a full set of coffins for him have been identified. Fragments of additional coffins dating to the same period may represent those of other relatives of Wedjahor.
26th dynasty: The latest phase of burial attested in Tomb 99 is the mid-late 26th Dynasty. Coffin fragments point to the burial of at least four individuals in this period, in outer and inner anthropoid coffins with polychrome decoration.
In most cases, the surviving fragments of decoration represent less than 50% of the original surface area of the coffins, in other cases considerably less than this. This suggests that the coffins may have been brought out of the shafts and broken up for use as firewood, leaving behind those portions which were not usable as fuel.
Alan Clapham examined the funerary garland found in the 1994 season, and which probably dates to the Third Intermediate Period. He has made a number of provisional identifications of the component elements.
The remainder of the objects were examined by Nigel and Helen Strudwick. Tomb elements: last year fragments from a limestone stela and a granite false door which were originally in the tomb were identified. These fragments have now been brought together and it is hoped that photographic montages will enable some idea of the original form to be proposed. Burial of Senneferi: This has proved to be a closed context, with minimal corruption from material not associated with the tomb-owner's burial. We have discovered that Senneferi had in his burial at least three stone vessels, two of alabaster and one of a hard black stone, which contained probably oils and perfumes. Of particular interest is the identification of two strange objects, noted in the last report, as ivory adzes used in the Opening of the Mouth ritual; further objects probably also are to be associated with this ritual. A number of wooden boxes were identified, including parts of his canopic chest (the pottery jars have been mentioned above). Later burials: all main categories of material have been examined, including amulets, beads, canopic jars, and various shabti and canopic boxes. Other than shabtis, the range of material from these burials is not large, and does seem to suggest that the contents of many burials might have been removed before the later ones were added.
These objects have all now been sorted and grouped logically, and work has begun on producing documentation for the publication. They are also being packed and stored with a view to their final storage when work on the tomb is completed. An eighth wooden box was obtained this year for this purpose.
This has been a most successful study season, and the amount of work done has vastly exceeded our initial expectations. A programme of work is now in place for what we hope will be one more study season in which all outstanding issues can be resolved.
Nigel Strudwick
2 January 2000