The third season of the TT 217 project investigating the tomb of Ipuy took place between 09.01.-05.02.2023. The team consisted of Kathrin Gabler (head of the team, Egyptologist), Eweis Abdelrady Ateya (restorer), Rahel Glanzmann (Egyptologist), Arabella Fristensky (MA student, Geology), Daria Kwiatkowski (MA student, Egyptology), Lukas Richner (archaeologist), Alina Zalunardo (MA student, Egyptology), Martin Ziegler (geologist).
The focus of the season lay on the cleaning, documentation and conservation of the tomb, in particular its courtyard. To prepare new architectural plans and to study the history of the monument, the investigation of the rock-cut chambers has started. Rooms VII, IV and II were completely cleaned, documented (with photos and photogrammetric models), and their geological stability was initially analysed. The cleaning of Room VII (after Davies 1927 the last room) was possible due to the close cooperation with the mission’s anthropologists led by A. Austin and the textile expert C. Spinazzi-Lucchesi. The cooperation partner of the ETH Zurich continued a geological stability assessment of the accessible parts of the tomb to secure future work as well as the monument by long-term preservation methods. The detailed analysis is performed by A. Fristensky in the framework of her MA thesis.
The re-opening of shaft P 1019 in the courtyard of TT 217 revealed important results for the internal chronology and building phases of the monument. The shaft is built within a collapsed burial chamber from an earlier period (probably 18th Dynasty) whose ceiling must have collapsed when preparing the rock terrasse (courtyard and entrance) of TT 217 in the early 19th Dynasty. While emptying the shaft, the two inner rooms (filled only with the debris of former cleaning in the 1920s), and partly the earlier collapsed chamber, many finds were made. These consist of New Kingdom objects (e.g. hieratic and figurative ostraca, many textiles, domestic and funerary items, around 70 decorated wall fragments), 3rd Intermediate Period finds (in particular coffin and cartonnage fragments, pottery) as well as objects linked to the modern history of the site (e.g. letters addressed to B. Bruyère, daily life items from earlier fieldwork). The extensive amount of objects will be documented within the next study season.
The documentation of the wall fragments mainly belonging to the polychrome decorated chapel has continued. Their professional consolidation, photographic documentation and inventory were completed (974 objects), their detailed description, measurement and drawing are on-going (308 pieces).
Members:
|
Supported by:
|
The season was kindly funded by Thames Valley Ancient Egypt Society, Josef und Olga Tomcsik Stiftung, Danish Institute in Damascus and the University of Basel.
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |