Girish Mahajan (Editor)

Giza West Field

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Giza West Field

The Giza West Field is located on the Giza Plateau, to the west of the Pharaoh Khufu’s pyramid. It is divided up into smaller areas, such as the cemeteries referred to as the Abu Bakr Excavations (1949-50, 1950-1,1952 and 1953), and several cemeteries named based on the mastaba numbers such as Cemetery G 1000, Cemetery G 1100, etc. The West Field contains Cemetery G1000 – Cemetery G1600, and Cemetery G 1900. Further cemeteries in this field are: Cemeteries G 2000, G 2200, G 2500, G 3000, G 4000, and G 6000. Three other cemeteries are named after their excavators: Junker Cemetery West, Junker Cemetery East and Steindorff Cemetery.

Contents

Cemetery G 2100

Cemetery G 2100 was first excavated by Lepsius in 1842. The first tomb to be cleared was the mastaba owned by Merib (G 2100). In 1905/6 the Harvard-Boston Museum expedition excavated this cemetery and further excavations date to 1912-13 and 1931-32. The cemetery consists of four rows of large mastabas:

  • The western most row consists of the mastabas of Merib (G 2100 I), Sedit (G 2100) and Nefer (G 2110).
  • A second row consists of the mastabas of Seshatsekhentiu (G 2120), Khentka (G 2130).
  • The third row consists of mastabas G 2135 (Unknown), G 2140 (Unknown) and G 2150 (Kanefer)
  • The fourth row consists of the mastabas of Kaninisut I (G 2155) and G 2160 and G 2170 (both owners unknown)
  • The other smaller mastabas were built among these larger structures. The presence of Reserve heads and slab stela points to the reign of Khufu for the construction of the earliest of the tombs in this cemetery.

    Cemetery G 2300

    The family complex of Senedjemib Inti makes up an important part of this cemetery. Senedjemib Inti (G 2370) was vizier and chief architect to King Djedkare Isesi. His son Senedjemib Mehi (G 2378) followed in his footsteps as the vizier and chief architect under Unas, and eventually another son named Khnumenti (G 2374) became vizier under Teti. A man named Mer-ptah-ankh-meryre Nekhebu (G 2381) may be a grandson of Inti. Nekhebu's sons Mer-ptah-ankh-meryre Ptahshepses Impy and Sabu-ptah Ibebi were buried in this cemetery as well.

    Junker Cemetery East

    This cemetery was excavated by Hermann Junker for the Akademie der Wissenschaften in Vienna, Pelizaeus-Museum Hildesheim and University of Leipzig Expedition. The toms are not numbered and are named after their owner.

    Steindorff Cemetery

    This cemetery contains mostly brick-built mastabas. The cemetery was excavated by Georg Steindorff for the University of Leipzig and Pelizaeus Expedition (1903–07). Several of the tombs were later excavated by Hermann Junker.

    References

    Giza West Field Wikipedia