Monday, January 5, 2015

the original plan of the tomb of Ramses IV


    Ancient Egypt: Groundplan of a rock tomb

This fragmentary papyrus was first described by Lepsius. It depicts the ground plan of the rock tomb of Ramses IV, gives measurements of the various rooms and hints at the surrounding mountains (which in reality are white limestone). The rightmost part of the papyrus showing the entrance has been lost, as has the bottom half, but assuming a symmetrical outlay of the tomb the missing parts can easily be filled in.
    The scribe used the traditional Egyptian way of including in the drawing all the aspects thought to be of importance, changing points of view: the double-winged doors and seem No true scale is used: The drawing of rooms and niches etc is approximate, giving an idea of their relationships rather than their dimensions.

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