Chapter 26 – The Tomb
Evie slipped quietly through the town that had grown up on the West Bank of Thebes. In ancient times this area was mostly temples, workshops of embalmers and makers of funerary products. She needed to find a way to get to Ramses's tomb, which was in the northern side of the main valley of the Valley of Kings. She'd taken the time to change back into the baggy black pants and shapeless black dress she'd been brought to the yacht in before escaping her room. Satin evening gowns and three-inch heels were not recommended for flight. A quick search of Sir Randolph's room had resulted in the gun she'd used to threaten Jensen. Unfortunately it wasn't loaded and she hadn't been able to find any ammunition for it. Good thing the manservant hadn't called her bluff.
She thought briefly of her own interrupted dig. That, however, was in the other direction. It was further south, near the Temple of Merneptah, and the ancient village of Deir el-Medina, closer to the Valley of Queens. They'd given their diggers two weeks off, so the site was probably deserted. Even if she could get there, there would be no help to be found and she'd be twice as far away from the tomb of Ramses II than she was now.
Crossing the Nile to Thebes proper probably wouldn't help either. If she went to the Egyptian police with a story like this they'd probably lock her up. No, she needed to go directly to the tomb. She'd been there several times and thought she could find it, even at night. She just needed some transportation.
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Tia slowly drifted back to consciousness. She'd been dreaming again about the little boy with the beseeching eyes. She was lying on her back on a hard surface – stone maybe? She shifted her shoulders slightly and moved her arms, which had been lying crossed on her chest. When she opened her eyes, she saw stone walls and a stone ceiling, covered with ancient Egyptian carvings and paintings. Where was she? Blinking, she slowly sat up and looked around. The light was very dim. A couple of torches burned at one end of the long chamber, and a fat wax candle sat on the end of the stone slab she'd been lying on. A bier, she thought with sudden alarm. All around her were similar stone biers, all holding stone or wooden coffins. She was in a burial chamber! She hitched up the gold satin skirt of the gown she was still wearing, swung her legs over the side of the bier and slid to the floor.
Okay, she ordered herself, don't panic. If this is a room, it must have a door. She glanced at the end of the room with the torches. She'd try there first.
Tia had no idea how long she'd been awake. An hour? Two? She'd discovered the door to the chamber, the edges carefully hidden in the paintings that ringed the walls. Unfortunately, she couldn't find any way to open the door. It figures, she though disgustedly. Everyone on this side of the door was supposed to be dead. The mechanism to open it must be on the other side.
She sat down on her stone bier again and looked around. There were ten of the stone biers against one of the long walls, approximately six feet apart. Except for the one she was sitting on, all were occupied. Canopic jars were displayed at the feet of each mummy. Some were made from alabaster. Some were carved from stone. A few were made from some sort of clay – glazed and painted. There were hieroglyphics carved or painted on the jars and the biers. The names of the dead, she thought, and maybe something about their lives. Against the wall opposite were various statues of the gods, some in stone, some in pottery or wood. Most had gold or silver embellishments. One stone goddess was wearing some stunning jewelry. Small tables were set with dishes of gold and silver. A few small wooden chests were filled with jewelry and small trinkets – some gold with precious gems, some carved of ivory, bone or wood. One carved and gilded box she opened contained the mummified body of a cat. Obviously no one had ever discovered this chamber. No grave robber would have left the small, easily portable valuables set around the room.
She sighed and got up. No one would ever find her either. Maybe there was something here she could use to pry open the door.
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The sun was just coming up when Evie reached the entrance to the tomb of Ramses the Great. She patted the neck of the donkey she'd stolen and slid off his back.
The stone door was firmly closed, but footprints and scuffmarks in the dirt in front of it showed that someone, or several someones had been here recently. The key embedded in the door had been brushed clean. Walking up to it, Evie turned it carefully. After a moment, the door swung inward with a groaning sound. Evie picked up the lantern she'd stolen when she'd stolen the donkey and entered the tomb.
The tomb of Ramses II began with a short ramp, and then a left turn. From here a series of long split stairways led into long corridors. The first long corridor was decorated with scenes from the Litany of Re. The second corridor depicted scenes from the Amduat. After the second stair and second corridor, Evie made her way over a makeshift bridge that spanned the Ritual Shaft. This shaft, also decorated with scenes from the Amduat, was twenty feet deep. The rather rickety wooden bridge over this had obviously been constructed within the last ten years, probably by archeologists. After the shaft, she entered the room known as the Chariot Room. A third stairway in the center of this room led down to the third and last long corridor, decorated with scenes from the Opening of the Mouth Ceremony, which finally led into the antechamber. Evie swallowed hard and looked around. The tomb was essentially empty, and had been for years. Only the wall paintings and carvings remained. Major flooding had damaged many of these decorations beyond repair. Evie went up to one of the painted scenes and ran her fingers over it. She remembered what it looked like new. Ramses had held a party in this tomb when the paintings in the antechamber and the burial chamber had been completed. Several dozen of the courtiers had been invited. For an instant she could almost see the tomb, as it had been that night – the paintings bright and colorful, lit with dozens of torches. The party guests had been resplendent in their white linen gowns and robes, wearing bright jewelry and oiled black wigs. Servants with trays of wine goblets and fruit passed among the guests.
Evie shook her head and continued from the antechamber into the large square burial chamber, where Ramses's stone sarcophagus had once stood. She was here to find Tia, not to remember the past. Several annexes opened off from the burial chamber. The one Evie wanted was the one on the wall opposite the entrance, furthest to the left. The archeologists had never discovered the chamber she was headed for. She'd petitioned the authorities in Thebes for permission to excavate, but it had not been granted. Entering the left hand annex, she moved to the far wall and examined the carvings. Even though she knew it was there, it was difficult to find. Finally her fingers traced the outline of a small, star shaped key. Pushing it in, she turned it first one way and then the other.
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Author's Notes:
The descriptions of the tomb of Ramses II are accurate as to the floor plan and the decorations on the walls. (Except of course for the annex Tia had been left in, I made that one up.)
The Amduat documents the Sun God's journey through the twelve divisions of the underworld, beginning on the western horizon and reappearing as the newborn sun in the East. Means, "that which is in the underworld".
The Litany of Re is the two-part litany of the Sun. It is used in most tombs from Seti I onward.
The mummified cat that Tia finds is something that was pretty common. The Egyptians (those who could afford it anyway) often mummified household pets, particularly cats.
Having parties in the tombs was not unusual. It was a grand opportunity to show off your wealth.
Thanks to ephona, Liel, mrsblonde1503 and eris. I'm glad people are still hanging in there!