Amenophis II reigned from 1427 to 1401 BC. His tomb was the 35th one discovered in the Valley of the Kings.
This tomb had just re-opened last month after being closed to the public for five years. There were still men on the scaffolding near the entrance cleaning the ceiling, and we could smell fresh paint that turned out to be varnish on the new wooden stairs.
The entry passageway has more than 90 steps slanting downward, and is built over a large pit that was meant to trap grave robbers. It's one of the deepest tombs in the Valley of the King. Amenophis' designer was tricky! Not only did he have this big pit to deter unwanted visitors, but also led them to believe that the tomb was never finished because the paintings abruptly ended. The hallway had a few lined drawings next to the unfinished painted images, and the next room was completely void of any drawings, designs or color, just rough hewn rocks. Yet, the secret passageway was there to the sharp left, down below, and led to the beautiful, pastoral burial chamber. Persistent grave robbers did find it after all, and stole the pharaoh's treasures. But, they never found his sarcophagus. French archaeologists found his mummy with a garland of flowers around his neck intact in his sarcophagus!
In fact, when this tomb was discovered in 1898, archaeologists found not only the mummy of Amenophis II, but also his son Webensenu, his step-mother Queen Tiy, and 13 other royal mummies in a tiny, unmarked side room of the burial chamber. The priests had apparently hidden them together afraid that the grave robbers would loot the mummies if left in their burial chambers.
This tomb was markedly different from the others, in color and style of art. The primary hue is a soft blue. There are the standard other colors, such as the yellows and reds, but they appear muted and darker hued like the blue. Pillars stand in the burial chamber. On each squared pillar is a large drawing of a life-sized figure of the king performing ritual acts for a different god, such as Hathor, Anubis and Osiris.
It was the first time that the king was painted with the gods in a tomb, and was subsequently added on future pillars and walls in tombs. The figures are drawn in black on a beige background, with minimal color, and almost look cartoonish. Striking. The pillared art is bordered with stripes of white, black and red.
Along the walls in the burial chamber is the entire text of the Book of Amduat, written in hieroglyphics, and illustrated with more line drawings. Above, is a blue ceiling with a zillion yellow starfish stars. On the floor in the center of the burial chamber sits the original sarcophagus. Reddish-brown in color, the sarcophagus is decorated with hieroglyphics, and images of gods in gold and black. (No, his mummy is no longer in there.)