The New Kingdom cemetery on the southern edge of the Saqqara necropolis has been opened for the first time following restoration, reports Nevine El-Aref On the parched desert on top of a sand hill south of the ancient necropolis at Saqqara lie a number of honey-coloured limestone tombs. Carved out of the rock during the New Kingdom, these tombs belonged to top officials and nobles of the 18th and 19th dynasties, when Egyptian rulers played vital roles in the nation's history. Among those pharaohs were the monotheistic Akhnaten, his son Tutankhamun, and the great Ramses II. On Monday, hundreds of foreign and Egyptian journalists, photographers and TV presenters gathered at the cemetery to witness its official inauguration by the minister of state for antiquities, Zahi Hawass. The necropolis contains the tombs of Tutankhamun's famous treasurer, Maya, and his general, Horemhab, who later became pharaoh in his own right. Also there lay the Steward of the Temple of Aten, Meryneith; the Royal Butler to both Akhenaten and Tutankhamen, Ptahemwia; the Overseer of the Treasury of Ramses II, Tia- Tia; and the Overseer of the Harem under Pharaoh Tutankhamen, Pay, and his son Raia. Mohamed El-Shekha, head of the projects section at the ministry, said that the tombs had deteriorated quite badly and had all been given a comprehensive restoration. The walls have now been reinforced and the cracks repaired, and the reliefs have been consolidated and covered with glass to protect them from handling by visitors. New wooden and iron gates have been installed at every tomb to strengthen security, and stone paving slabs have been laid outside the tombs so as to facilitate the visitors' path around the necropolis. A site management plan for the Saqqara site is now under development in an attempt to enhance its value as a tourist destination. This will involve better signage and facilities, as well as promotion of local community involvement and an improved security presence. At the ceremony, Hawass announced frankly that the opening of the newly-restored tombs was a means to encourage tourists back to Egypt. "Tourists might come and enjoy touring around these spectacular tombs that have never been opened to the public before," Hawass told reporters. He added that the great thing about Egypt was "you can come here a dozen times and see different things each time." One thing that did not change with the revolution was that Egyptians believed in hospitality and in the basic values of respect for human life and safety. "It is just as safe for visitors to come here now as it has ever been -- and what is more, the opportunity to visit a country where democracy and transparent, open government are coming to life for the first time in many, many decades is not one that should be missed," Hawass said. He also announced that, with the help of the army, 22 monuments on the West Bank of Luxor had been cleared of all the recent encroachments that had appeared in the post-revolutionary period, when many people built houses or expanded their alabaster factories over archaeological sites and tombs. One of the worst examples of this was a house built between two of the most famous nobles' tombs on the West Bank, the tombs of Rekhmire and Ramose. Not only were such buildings a hazard to the sites, but they were also built illegally and without permits. Hawass also promised that all remaining encroachment would be removed within a month. Most of the newly-inaugurated tombs were first discovered in 1843 by Richard Lepsius, but were not fully excavated until an Anglo-Dutch mission began excavating there in 1975. The Dutch team from Leiden University, led by Geoffrey Martian, is excavating at the site and is rediscovering and restoring these amazing tombs. Maya and Horemhab were very important officials during one of Egypt's most tumultuous periods, the Amarna Period. During this time, Pharaoh Akhenaten closed Egypt's most important temples in Luxor and moved the capital to a new city out in the desert that he named Akhetaten, now known as Tell Al-Amarna. He even changed the principal state god from Amun to the sun-disk, Aten. When Akhenaten died, his son Tutankhamun inherited the throne and decided to restore order to Egypt by moving the religious capital back to Luxor and reinstating the god Amun. Aten and Tell Al-Amarna were abandoned. In order to make all of these changes, Pharaoh Tutankhamun needed the assistance of his treasurer and his general. The treasurer, Maya, was essential in restoring Egypt to her pre-Amarna glory. He helped the pharaoh to reopen the temples in Luxor, as well as build new temples and shrines to Amun to show he was dedicated to restoring order to Egypt. Maya's colleague Horemheb was responsible for restoring order abroad. Although his tomb was left unfinished, visitors will now be able to see the mud-brick pylon with spectacular relief fragments, as well as courtyard images of Maya and his wife Merit, who was also buried in the tomb, receiving offerings. Horemhab began building his tomb in Saqqara while he was a general in Tutankhamun's reign. During this time, Horemheb would have been one of the most important men in Egypt. He was responsible for the foreign affairs of an empire trying to regain power after the difficult Amarna period. His tomb was built and decorated in the typical Amarna artistic style, and the interior design shows that it was intended as a funerary temple. However, after the death of Tutankhamun and his immediate successor, Ay, Horemhab became pharaoh of Egypt and abandoned his tomb at Saqqara in favour of a more prestigious spot in the Valley of the Kings on Luxor's west bank. Even so, all the hard work on this beautiful tomb in Saqqara was not wasted, Hawass pointed out, since his wife, Mutnodjmet, was buried there. The details of this tomb, which is the largest in this New Kingdom cemetery, are fascinating. There visitors can see that the ureaus, or headdress of the pharaoh, was added to depictions of Horemheb after the original reliefs were made to show that he had eventually worn the crown. There are also depictions of Horemheb worshipping Maat, Re-hor-akhty and Thoth as well as scenes celebrating his military victories. Along with these two famous tombs, four others have been opened to the public. One is the tomb of Meryneith, who was the Steward of the Temple of Aten and the Scribe in the Temple of Aten during the reign of Akhenaten and after the king's death. He was also the High Priest of Aten and at the temple of the god Neith. His tomb is built of mud brick encased in limestone blocks. In the very back of the tomb are three chapels for offerings for the cult of Meryneith. The central one shows a scene of metal workers and the bases of two small columns. Hawass believes that a mud-brick pyramid may have originally stood here. Another is the Tomb of Ptahemwia, the "Royal Butler, One of Clean Hands" to both Akhenaten and his son Tutankhamun. He was responsible for bringing the pharaoh's food and drink, and his tomb contains the prestigious title of "The Beloved of the Pharaoh". Ptahemwia's tomb is made of mud brick encased in limestone, and contains three chapels. In one of these chapels a total of 56 coffins from the New Kingdom were found. Most of these contained the bodies of children who had been affected by disease. The tomb of Tia-Tia, an important official under Ramses II, honours his position as Overseer of the Treasury. Tia was married to one of Ramses II's sisters, who was also named Tia. Tia's tomb was used as a mortuary temple to the god Osiris and contains depictions of Tia and his wife making a pilgrimage to Abydos, the cult centre of Osiris. The tomb of Pay and his son, Raia, was the last to be inaugurated. Pay was the Overseer of the Harem under Pharaoh Tutankhamun, while his son Raia began his career as a military officer but took over his father's post after the latter's death. Pay's tomb consists of a chapel opening onto a pillared court with three offering chapels. Raia added a courtyard and two stelae, and actually made renovations to the tomb before he was buried there. The two stelae were brought to Berlin when Richard Lepsius discovered them in 1928.
