Wadi A-4
Anonymous
Entryway A
See entire tombA deep shaft cut into a crevice of the terrace in the cliffs leads down to the tomb.
Chamber B
See entire tombA large undecorated chamber that lies on axis with the tomb's shaft. This chamber is almost double the size of chamber C and its eastern side is filled with debris.
Gate C
See entire tombThis gate is cut into the southern wall of chamber B and is rough and undecorated.
Chamber C
See entire tombThis chamber lies to the south of chamber B and is unplastered and undecorated.
About
About
Wadi A-4 is located at the base of the cliff at the end of a tributary branch of Wadi Jabbanat Al-Qurud called Wadi Sikkat Taqat Zayid (Howard Carter’s Wadi A). It is cut into a crevice of the terrace south of shaft tomb Wadi A-3 and Baraize’s cliff tomb (Wadi A-2). It consists of a shaft entrance (A) that leads into two undecorated, consecutive chambers (B and C). Chamber B is almost double the size of Chamber C and its eastern side is filled with debris. The tomb owner is unknown.
The tomb was first noted by Howard Carter during his survey of the Western Wadis in 1916-1917 and he states that the tomb was probably ‘open since early times’. Elizabeth Thomas surveyed and mapped the tomb in 1959-1960. She notes that the lack of objects and rough state of the tomb probably indicates that it was unfinished. The tomb was surveyed by the Theban Mapping Project in 1982, but could not be fully mapped due to the debris inside. The last survey was conducted in 2013-2014 by the joint mission of the New Kingdom Research Foundation (NKRF) and The Cambridge Expedition to the Valley of the Kings. Piers Litherland, director of the mission, notes that the tomb has only ever been partially cleared and would benefit from further scrutiny. Due to its close proximity to Hatshepsut’s cliff tomb (Wadi A-1) and Baraize’s cliff tomb (Wadi A-2), Wadi A-4 has been dated to the 18th Dynasty.
Site History
The tomb was constructed in the 18th Dynasty and it is unclear whether it was abandoned or emptied at a later date.
Dating
This site was used during the following period(s):
Exploration
Conservation
Site Condition
The tomb is currently filled with debris and would benefit from further scrutiny. It position at the base of the cliff in Wadi A, however, means that it is at risk of being reburied by debris falling from the cliff or being carried in by flooding.
Articles
Tomb Numbering Systems in the Valley of the Queens and the Western Wadis
Latest Discovery in Wadi C (2022)
Geography and Geology of the Valley of the Queens and Western Wadis
Bibliography
Carter, Howard. A Tomb prepared from Queen Hatshepsut and other Recent Discoveries at Thebes. The Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, 4 no. 2/3 (1917): 107-118.
Lilyquist, Christine with contributions by James E. Hoch and A.J. Peden. The Tomb of Three Foreign Wives of Tuthmosis III. New York: The Metropolitan Museum of Art, 2003.
Litherland, Piers. The western wadis of the Theban necropolis: a re-examination of the western wadis of the Theban necropolis by the joint-mission of the Cambridge Expedition to the Valley of the Kings and the New Kingdom Research Foundation, 2013-2014. London: New Kingdom Research Foundation, 2014.
Thomas, Elizabeth. The Royal Necropoleis of Thebes. Princeton: privately printed, 1966.
