Part three of a four-part series on the Third Intermediate Period (TIP) in Egypt for the Kemet Klub. The TIP has been much misunderstood. Spanning roughly four centuries it is a period characterised by cycles of division and reunification within the country, and also the influence of foreigners, particularly various groups of ‘Libyan’ settlers, and the emerging new power in the south, the kingdom of Kush. Individuals from both groups came to rule Egypt as pharaoh at various times. Archaeological and textual evidence for the period is fragmentary and has proven difficult to reconcile with other sources, particularly the king list provided by the historian Manetho. We now have a much improved understanding of how Egypt changed during the TIP, of what was distinctive about it, and in particular how Egypt was influenced by the foreign groups. Also vice versa, much more so perhaps, to the extent that even though we refer to parts of the period as the ‘Libyan’ or Kushite’ periods, Egypt was still very much Egypt. I regularly give lectures online like this one, on a variety of themes connected with Egypt and the ancient world. For more info or to register for the next one please go to https://chrisnaunton.com/online-lectures/ Hope to see you at the next talk!

1. THE ROYAL TOMBS OF TANIS
AND
THE MISSING THIRD
INTERMEDIATE PERIOD TOMBS
Dr Chris Naunton / @chrisnaunton
chrisnaunton.com/online-lectures/

2. Pierre Montet

3. Valley of Kings

4. Valley of Kings Tanis

5. Valley of Kings

6. Valley of Kings

8. Main Temple Area,
Tanis

9. Tanis, Royal
Tombs during
Montet’s
excavations,
March 1939
From Gold of
the Pharaohs:
Catalogue of
the Exhibition of
Treasures from
Tanis

10. February 1939
SW corner of the
Amun temple
complex
Pavement, gold
cloisonné buckle,
shabtis of
pharaoh
‘Sheshonq’
Lifted pavement…

11. NRT I:
Decorated
walls with
cartouches of
a pharaoh
‘Osorkon’

12. Montet:
“I had the earth and stones blocking the entrance
removed, and went down into a square chamber with
walls covered with figures and hieroglyphics; this led into
another chamber with a large sarcophagus emerging from
the earth which filled three quarters of two rooms...
Everyone is overjoyed. I had Hassanein’s team come with
all the carts so that we could clear this remarkable
structure as quickly as possible.”
Quoted in Reeves, Ancient Egypt. The Great Discoveries

13. NRT I
1: enormous but empty sarcophagus
2: empty
1
2
1
2
3
4

14. 3: Middle Kingdom sarcophagus reinscribed for Takeloth I

15. 4: burial Chamber of Osorkon II and Prince Hornakht

16. Sarcophagus lid,
Prince Hornakht,
son of Osorkon II

17. Royal Tombs, Tanis

18. Royal Tombs, Tanis
NRT INRT III

19. Valley of Kings NRT III

20. NRT III:
Cartouches of Pasebkhaenniut
(Psusennes)

21. NRT III:
Chamber contained
shabti figures, alabaster
jars, bronze ornaments,
At right, a falcon-headed
coffin of solid silver, lying
on a plinth in between
two badly decomposed
mummies…

22. Central chamber (5),
NRT III
Grave goods as found,
17 March 1939
Drawing by J. L.
Fougerousse
From Gold of the
Pharaohs: Catalogue
of the Exhibition of
Treasures from Tanis

23. Hekakheperre Sheshonq IIa

24. Hekakheperre Sheshonq IIa

25. Hekakheperre
Sheshonq IIa
Coffin opened in
presence of King
Farouk
From Goyon, La
Découverte des
trésors de Tanis

26. Hekakheperre Sheshonq IIa
From Gold of the Pharaohs:
Catalogue of the Exhibition of
Treasures from Tanis

27. Hekakheperre Sheshonq IIa

28. Montet was occupied for remainder of the 1939
season in the clearance of this chamber
Also noticed two concealed entrances in the W
wall – one presumably containing the burial of
Pasebkhaenniut / Psusennes himself…

29. Montet returns in Jan 1940 (despite outbreak of war)
Follows W exterior
wall from NRT I
Discovered free
standing tomb NRT IV
– contained decorated
sarcophagus of
Psusennes’ successor,
Amenemope
But it’s empty…

30. Royal Tombs, Tanis
NRT INRT III
NRT IV

31. Concealed doorways…
Removing wall at R
revealed massive
granite blocking stone
on bronze rollers…
Drawing by J. L.
Fougerousse
From Gold of the
Pharaohs: Catalogue
of the Exhibition of
Treasures from Tanis

32. NRT III
5. Burial of Sheshonq IIa
5

33. Sacrophagus of Psusennes I, orig made for Merneptah (19th Dyn)

34. Inside the outer sarcophagus:
a second, inner sarcophagus
of granite…
From Gold of the Pharaohs:
Catalogue of the Exhibition of
Treasures from Tanis

35. Then a silver coffin…
L: From Gold of the Pharaohs: Catalogue
of the Exhibition of Treasures from Tanis

36. Then a gold
board, and death
mask
From From
Goyon, La
Découverte des
trésors de Tanis

37. Psusennes I

38. Psusennes I

39. Montet was now in a race against time with WW2
underway
King Farouk persuaded him to open the second
concealed chamber
Decoration around blocking included images of
Amenemope
Again removal of walls reveals huge bocking stone on
rollers…

40. Burial chamber of
Amenemope as found
From Gold of the Pharaohs:
Catalogue of the Exhibition
of Treasures from Tanis

41. Amenemope,
Death mask

42. 5
NRT III
Chamber to south led to burial
of a son of Psusennes –
Ankhefenmut (3, empty)
12
3
4
Photo: Karl Harris (thanks Karl!)

43. Valley of Kings

44. 5
NRT III
One final chamber in NRT
III – existence only
deduced when architect
realised there was a
space unaccounted for…
5. Burial of Sheshonq IIa
1. Psusennes I
2. Amenemope
3. Ankhefenmut
12
3
4

45. Burial of General
Wendjebauendjed
L: Patera of gold and silver
bearing the name of
Psusennes I; found in the
tomb of Wendjebauendjed

46. NRT V (top right)
Plan via
Wikimedia Commons

47. NRT V:
Decorated chambers containing
sarcophagi of:
Usermaatre Setepenre Sheshonq III
And
Hedjkheperre Setepenre Sheshonq IV

48. Valley of Kings

49. NRT III, 5
Burial of sheshonq IIa
& two other mummies
& an ‘Entassement d’ouchabtis’
Including some with names of:
Siamun (L), Psusennes II (R)
Images: Gold of the Pharaohs

50. NRT-II
Undecorated
Contained:
limestone sarcophagus
remains of three coffins
fragments of canopic jars
w the name Usermaatre-
Setepenre - can only be
Pami (22nd Dyn).

52. Musical Tombs?
Amenemope’s
sarcophagus found in
NRT IV
– his tomb? –
but burial in NRT III, 2,
inside sarcophagus
made for Psusenne’s
wife, Mutnodjmet
Plan via
Wikimedia Commons

53. Musical Tombs?
NRT III: decorated for Psusennes
I but built later than NRT I?
Modification to original plan
(bottom image) caused NRT III
to break into adjoining wall of
NRT I?
Earlier king (Psusennes) in later
tomb?
Plans from Rohl, A Test of Time

54. Musical Tombs?
Prevalence of
inscriptions of Osorkon II
in NRT I suggests he had
his father, Takeloth I,
brought here from
elsewhere…
R: Image and cartouches
of Osorkon II in burial
chamber of Takeloth I

55. Musical Tombs?
Perhaps NRT was
originally built for a
pharaoh earlier than
Takeloth I and Osorkon
II, even earlier than
Psusennes I
…Smendes I?
Amenemnisu?
(both missing)
Plan via
Wikimedia Commons

57. Canopic chest of Sheshonq I,
Neues Museum, Berlin
‘House of Millions of Years’ of
Sheshonq I ‘that is in Hut-ka-
Ptah’ (= Memphis)
Image via Wikimedia Commons

58. Tomb of chief Priest of Ptah in Memphis,
Sheshonq, son of Osorkon II
Egyptian Museum, Cairo

59. Valley of Kings

60. Main Temple Area,
Tanis

61. Tell Basta /
Bubastis,
dromos

62. Lange, E, ‘King
Shoshenqs at
Bubastis’
Egyptian
Archaeology 37
(2010): 19–20.

64. Date Leontopolis 22nd Dynasty Takeloth II / Osorkon III line U Eg Opponents of Takeloth II Hermopolis
865 Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon II
860
855
850
845
840
835 Hedjkheperre Setepenre Takeloth II
830 Usermaatre Shoshenq III Sibast
825 Usermaatre Setepenamun Pedubast
Sibast / Siese
820
815
810 Usermaatre Setepenamun Iuput I
805
800 Usermaatre Meriamun Shoshenq
VI
795 Hedjkheperre Shoshenq IV Sibast Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon III
790
785
780 Usermaatre Setepenre/amun Pimay
775 Akheperre Sheshonq V
770 Usermaatre Setepenamun Takeloth III
765
760 Hedjkheperre Shoshenq VIa Siese
755
750 Rudamun
745
740 23rd Dynasty
735 Sehetepibre Pedubast
730 Usermaatre
Setepenamun Iuput
II Si-Bast
Osorkon IV Peftjauawybast Nimlot

65. Medinet Habu, Thebes

66. OIP 21. The
Excavation of
Medinet Habu,
Volume 1:
General Plans
and Views. Uvo
Hölscher. 1934.
Via
oi.Chicago.edu

67. Tomb of Harsiesi
OIP 66. Post-
Ramessid
Remains. The
Excavation of
Medinet Habu,
Volume 5. Uvo
Hölscher.
Originally
published in
1954.
Via oi.Chicago.edu

68. Tomb of Harsiesi
OIP 66. Post-
Ramessid
Remains. The
Excavation of
Medinet Habu,
Volume 5. Uvo
Hölscher.
Originally
published in 1954.
Via oi.Chicago.edu

69. Theban king
Hedjkheperre
Setepenamun
Harsiesi
Meryamun
(temp. Osorkon II)
Sarcophagus lid,
Egyptian Museum

71. Chapels of the
God’s Wives of
Amun,
Late Libyan
Period, 25th and
26th Dynasties
Medinet Habu

72. Date Leontopolis 22nd Dynasty Takeloth II / Osorkon III line U Eg Opponents of Takeloth II
865 Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon II
860
855
850
845
840
835 Hedjkheperre Setepenre Takeloth II
830 Usermaatre Shoshenq III Sibast
825 Usermaatre Setepenamun Pedubast
Sibast / Siese
820
815
810 Usermaatre Setepenamun Iuput I
805
800 Usermaatre Meriamun Shoshenq
VI
795 Hedjkheperre Shoshenq IV Sibast Usermaatre Setepenamun Osorkon III
790
785
780 Usermaatre Setepenre/amun Pimay
775 Akheperre Sheshonq V
770 Usermaatre Setepenamun Takeloth III
765
760 Hedjkheperre Shoshenq VIa Siese
755
750 Rudamun
745
740 23rd Dynasty
735 Sehetepibre Pedubast
730 Usermaatre
Setepenamun Iuput
II Si-Bast
Osorkon IV Peftjauawybast
Three papyri, dating
from the end of the
26th Dynasty /
beginning of the 27th
mention a tomb of
‘king Osorkon’ on the
west side of the river
at Thebes…

73. Next: Kings of Kush / the Twenty-fifth Dynasty…