The Valley of the Kings  KV 02: Rameses IV

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KV 02 Rameses IV

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KV 02

Rameses IV
See Entire Tomb

Ka Side chamber Ka

Kb Gate Kb

Kb Side chamber Kb

Kc Gate Kc

Kc Side chamber Kc

About

About Site History Exploration Conservation

KV 2 is cut into the base of a hill on the

northwest side of the main Wadi of the
Valley of the Kings, just south of the
branch wadi leading to KV 1. The tomb
consists of three gently sloping corridors
(B, C, D) followed by a chamber (E), a
burial chamber (J), and a corridor beyond
(K) with side chambers Ka-c. The tomb is
decorated with scenes from the
Litany of Ra (corridor B, corridor C),
Book of Caverns (corridor D, corridor
K), Book of the Dead (well chamber E),
Book of Gates (burial chamber J),
Imydwat (burial chamber J), Book of
Nut (burial chamber J),
Book of the Night (burial chamber J),
Book of the Earth (gate Kb), deceased
and deities (corridor B, corridor K, side
chamber Ka , side chamber Kb, side
chamber Kc), and burial furniture (side
chamber Kb).

The original plan of the tomb was altered

after the death of the king, and the
chamber which would have been pillared
chamber F was used for burial chamber J.
Two plans of the tomb are known: a plan
of the whole tomb drawn on a papyrus
now in the Turin Museum (Cat. 1885), and
a sketch of the doorway of the tomb on
an ostracon found in the rubble at the
entrance.

Noteworthy features: Notable

architectural features of this tomb
include: the barrel-vaulted ceiling of
corridor D; the Ramp through the floor of
corridor D, gate E and chamber E; the
conversion of a pillared chamber into a
burial chamber; side chambers and
recesses off the rear corridor K. Also
unusual are the number of
Foundation deposit pits, although not all
were used. Decoration unique to this
tomb includes the representation of Shu
and Nut from the Book of Nut on the
ceiling of burial chamber J, the
mummiform figures in Ka and Kc, and
parts of the Book of Caverns , which
appear for the first time in the Valley of
the Kings. KV 2 is one of the few tombs
for which an ancient plan has survived.

The tomb was frequently visited in

antiquity, and graffiti are scattered
throughout the tomb. In general, each
visitor left his name, his profession, his
origin, and personal comments about the
tomb. There is a significant number of
Coptic graffiti, including representations
of saints and Coptic crosses.

KV 02 Plan, Sections, and

Axonometric

LOCATION

Valley of the Kings, East Valley

West Bank, Luxor

Elevation: 167.807
Northing: 99,723.763
Easting: 94,074.579
JOG map reference: NG 36-10
Modern governorate:
Qena (Qina)
Ancient nome: 4th Upper Egypt
Surveyed by TMP: Yes

OWNER

Rameses IV

OTHER DESIGNATIONS

13 [Champollion], 2 [Hay], 2
[Lepsius], B, plan A [Pococke], IIe
Tombeau à l'ouest [Description], N
[Burton]

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architectural elements in tombs
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+ More Details

HIEROGLYPHS

Rameses IV

niswt-bity HqA-mAat-Raw stp-n-Imn

sA-Raw Raw-msw HqA-mAat mry-Imn

108 Photos See All

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11 OF 108 12 OF 108

Book of Nut. More Details King's names and epithets over star pattern,
flanked by winged protective deities. More
Details

Image # 10536

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Articles

Historical Development of the

Valley of the Kings

The reasons New Kingdom kings chose

the East Valley of the Kings for their
burials are unclear.

History of the Valley of the Kings:

Third Intermediate Period to the
Byzantine Period

At the end of the New Kingdom, Egypt

entered a period of political and economic
decline.

Anatomy of a Tomb: Ancient and

Modern Designations for
Chambers and Features

What was in a royal tomb?

More

Bibliography

Aston, David. Pottery from the

Valley of the Kings: Tombs of
Merenptah , Ramesses III,
Ramesses IV, Ramesses VI and
Ramesses VII. Ägypten und
Levante 8 (1998): 137-214.

Badawy, Alexander. Les dessins

architectural chez les anciens
Égyptiens: Étude comparative des
representations égyptienne de
constructions. Cairo: Government
Press, 1048. P. 195.

Carter, Howard and Alan H.

Gardiner. The Tomb of Ramesses
IV and the Turin Plan of a Royal
Tomb. Journal of Egyptian
Archaeology. London 4 (1917): 130-
158.

Cauville, Sylvie and Mohammed

Ibrahim Ali. La Vallée des Rois:
Itinéraire du Visiteur. Leuven:
Peeters, 2014. Pp. 171-204.

Chabas, Françpos Joseph. Sur

un plan égyptien d’un tombeau
royal à Thèbes. Mélanges
égyptologiques 3, 2 (Chalon-sur-
Saône, 1862-1873): 175-202.

Daressy, Georges . Un plan

égyptien d’une tombe
royale. Revue Archéologique, sér.
3, 32 (1898): 235-240.

Davis, Theodore M. , Gaston

Maspero, Edward Ayrton,
Georges Daressy and E. H.
Jones. The Tomb of
Siphtah (= Theodore M. Davis '
Excavations, Biban el Moluk, 4).
London, 1908. Pp. 6-7, 28.

Demichelis, Sara. Le Projet Initial

de la Tombe de Ramsès IV? Papyrus
de Turin CGC 55002. Zeitschrift für
ägyptische Sprache und
Altertumskunde 131 (2004): 114-133.

Helck, Wolfgang.
Königsgräbertal. In: Wolfgang
Helck, Eberhart Otto and Wolfhart
Westendorf (eds.). Lexikon der
Ägyptologie. 7 vols. Wiesbaden,
1972-1992. (1980), 3: 515.

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Son of Rameses III

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partnership with the American University
in Cairo Egyptology Department, the
Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, and
The Getty Conservation Institute.

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