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The tomb of Meryra is part of a group of tombs located in Amarna, Upper Egypt. Placed in the cliffsides, the graves are divided into north and south groupings; Meryra's burial, identified as Amarna Tomb 4 is located in the northern cluster. The tomb chapel is the largest and most elaborate of the noble tombs of Amarna. It, along with the majority of these tombs, was never completed.[1] The rock cut tombs of Amarna were constructed specifically for the officials of King Akhenaten in the 18th Dynasty. Norman de Garis Davies originally published details of the Tomb in 1903 in the Rock Tombs of El Amarna, Part I – The Tomb of Meryra.[2] The Amarna tombs still stand intact though in various states of weathering and iconoclasm or deliberate defacing. They are each different in lay-out and depictions depending on their professions for the King and yet many have repetitive patterns in common. Meryra's tomb has a unique narrative because of his career as the High Priest of Aten.
Meryra
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| Meryra in hieroglyphs | ||||||
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| Era: New Kingdom (1550–1069 BC) | ||||||
Meryra served as the High Priest of the cult of Aten, a new religious tradition instituted by King Akhenaten. This belief system placed exclusive emphasis on sun worship in the form of Aten, or the solar disc, a deity encapsulating the idea of many gods into the essence of the sun.[3]He adopted the solar god "Ra" in his name to show his allegiance to Atenism. Meryra's gift of a tomb testifies to his worthiness to Akhenaten as perhaps the singular High Priest of Aten.[4] Not all officials at Amarna had tombs. Having a tomb at Amarna reflected closeness with Akhenaten, due, in part to demonstrating a commitment to Akhenaten's institution of Atenism.[5] He had been promoted to the Chief Priest at a high point of his career as a "Seer," of the Aten religion. He held the title "Fanbearer on the Right Hand of the King" as a status of his closeness to royalty. He once held the title "Hereditary Prince," but perhaps had to abandon it when he became High Priest.
The tomb provides information regarding the personal life of Meryra, and The Great Aten Temple. Just inside the entrance from the antechamber to the columned hall is decorated with a full-size depiction of Meryra wearing four gold collars of honors around his neck adoring the Short Hymn to the Aten.[4] Plate XXXVII Inner Wall Eastside.
Directly opposite is the wall space that shows Meryre's wife, Tenra, making offerings to the sun-disc. Familial references are limited to depictions of his wife, Tenra, who is described as “a great favorite of the Lady of the Two Lands.” Lady of the Two Lands refers to Nefertiti, the queen of Akhenaten. A queen in a tomb itself is rare in Egyptian tomb art however Nefertiti has large images with the king throughout most the Amarna tombs. However, this elevation of an elite woman in full-size depiction in Meryra's tomb is unique to all other female spouses in Amarna tombs. She wore linen and had a perfume cone on her wig that mirrors the head decoration of New Kingdom burial art.[6] Inner Wall Westside.
Tomb Layout
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The tomb was found in relatively good condition compared to the other tombs of Amarna. The tomb consists of four sections: the antechamber, the hall of columns, a second hall, and the shrine. There were originally four columns holding up the ceiling in the hall of columns but two were removed during the Coptic era. The second hall and the shrine were never completed. However, architecturally it is possible to see where the original cubed blocks were about to be extracted. from this outer hall.[7] The entrance to the tomb was originally decorated with inscriptions to the Amarna Royal family and the deity Aten. These decorations have either been destroyed, or are hidden by the modern doors protecting the tomb entrance.
The antechamber itself is unique to the other Amarna tombs and shows Meryre offering prayers to Akhenaten, and the five cartouches of the King, Nefertiti and the Aten on the lintel. Giving the god Aten a royal cartouche was an invention of Akhenaten.[4] (Davies/P-9) The door jambs are inscribed with funerary prayers for Akhenaten and the Aten.
Tomb Decorations
[edit]The sculptured reliefs of Meryra's tomb were done in a new artistic style instituted under Akhenaten. The technique of modeling in plaster which was used; consisted of the images initially being cut in sunken relief directly into the stone for lasting effect, and then covered by a layer of plaster, which was finally painted over.[8] There are six walls of relief that covers five subjects.[4] The subject of the scenes were also unique.
Traditionally, tombs in the New Kingdom contained decorations dedicated to the owner of the tomb, such as depictions of family members and ancestors, or scenes about the owner's amusement or domestic life.[8] This tradition was not carried out in the tomb of Meryra, or the other tombs of Amarna, which instead focused almost exclusively on Akhenaten and worship of the Aten. Davies acknowledges the tombs of Amarna were often difficult to identify as little emphasis was placed on the owner. This contrasts sharply with the dominant tradition of New Kingdom tombs in which cartouches and images of the ruling king were marginal aspects to the tomb, sometimes not even identified.[8]The reliefs in the Tomb of Meryra are decidedly centered upon praising Akhenaten, and Meryra himself only appears marginally, sometimes indistinguishable from other minor figures carved in the relief. Despite this, Meryra maintains a constant contextual presence in the scenes, even if not being explicitly portrayed
.After the death of Akhenaten, depictions of his rule and religion were destroyed because they were considered to be heretical. In Meryra's tomb, Akhenaten and Nefertiti’s features have been consistently erased but their bodies and gestures can still be seen defined beneath the Aten's rays. The desecration is confined to these individuals, and the names and figures of the princesses remain untouched.
Descriptions of the Walls
[edit]South Wall- Eastside
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The first scene that draws your interest is set in a strategic place as you enter. "The Royal Family Making Offerings to the Sun" by Davies in Plates XXII This scene in Meryra's tomb centers the royal couple in large-size sculptures which can suggest an illusion of royal presence. This is another example of the motif of "The Offering King" as seen in the doctrine of the Atenist in most Amarna tombs.[9]
The Aten is uniquely painted with curved arcs that Davies saw as clouds because of the hieroglyph sign. He offered that perhaps this image was a larger version of the worshipping scene on the East Wall. Plate XXVii It is a large offering table beneath the Aten full of the bounty of food for eternity.
There is lots of polychrome color still visible enough to show the large scale image of King Akhenaten leading his Queen Nefertiti and two eldest princesses, all painted brownish-red when most women were painted yellow and only men were depicted in this color. The faces of the King and Queen are mutilated as are the cartouches of the Aten and the royal couple.
The princesses, Meritaten and Meketaten play ritual sistrums wearing sidelocks of youth while the Royal Couple raise an arm in worship over the abundance. They are all draped in white linen. In previous tomb art, the owner stood before his own offering table but in Akenaten's reformations, beneath the table, the smaller bowing figure of Meryre receives his blessing.
East Wall
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In the immediately preceding scene, Akhenaten officially declares Meryra as the High Priest of Aten. Davies titled this subject "The Investiture of Meryra as High Priest." Plate VI. The scene depicts the King bestowing the office on Meryra; in the pattern of "King as Benefactor" in the reward scene of Meryra in the courtyard. He is bestowed with gold collars of fortune, tiny. but everlasting.[9]
In the text of this relief, Akhenaten addresses Meryra with the proclamation, "Behold, I am attaching you to myself, to be the Greatest of Seers of the Aten, in the House of Aten, in Ahket-aten."[10] In this statement, the reliance on Akhenaten in Atenism is referred to in a physical sense, as Akhenaten pledges to "attach" to him. This is similar to the contact the royal family has with the Aten, which is always carved in deep sunken relief above the King and Queens' heads as a sun which is furnished with hands, or ankhs extending from its rays. One purpose of the ankhs is to literally fill the recipient through the senses of touch and smell to protect and breathe in life and prosperity of the Aten.[11]
The Amarna tombs depict buildings in great detail and the Palace and a horizontal view of the Great Aten Temple is engraved, yet void of color today; on this wall. Meryra's tomb also shows a vibrant-life of the Central City on this wall.
Despite being the High Priest of Aten, Meryra was not recognized with the power to access the Aten, an exclusive ability of Akhenaten. There are two large scaled views of the Royal Family on upper and lower registers in this scene. The second subject is "The Royal Family Worshipping in the Temple" titled by Davies Plate VII.
West Wall
[edit]In the subject Davies titles "A Royal Visit to the Temple", Plate XXII; Akhenaten and Nefertiti are depicted paying a visit to Meryra at the Great Aten Temple. The Royal Couple are centered in the pattern of "Royals Driving Chariots" which appears five more times in four other Amarna tombs.[9] A large scale Queen Nefertiti holds the reins of her own horse in her gold chariot following King Akhenaten in larger image. Their faces and upper bodies are no longer visible except in tracing. Their cartouches along with the Aten have been destroyed. In the registers behind them, their four princesses follow driving their own chariots followed by the royal retinue from the palace. The damage to two of the princesses is natural and not deliberate..
The polychrome is still visible in the two horses dressed in plumes of colored ostrich feathers carrying their royal charges in golden chariots.[9] In 1922, Howard Carter found six gold chariots in the tomb of Tutanhkamen, Akhenaton's likely son and eventual successor.
It is uncertain if Meryra is included in this image and the description of the scene has been destroyed. Davies speculates that the scene either shows Akhenaten on his way to the temple to appoint Meryra as the High Priest of Aten, or it is simply as example of Meryra honored with the presence of the King and Queen at the temple and exercising his office for them.
The final depiction in register is Meryra in the pattern of "Returning Home" that most Amarna tomb owners showed.[9] He is shown in miniature returning to his estate in his own chariot displaying his gold collars. We see female musicians, and bowing household servants all welcoming him back as he arrives. As the art was not focused upon Meryra, maintaining a strong contextual importance allowed for Meryra to still be bestowed w3ith honor and praise.
This processional begins at the palace and ends in the vertical depiction of the Great Aten Temple on the West-Northwest Wall. Either situation serves to promote the role and importance of Meryra, even though the scene seems to be immediately focused upon Akhenaten.
A variety of texts were found in the tomb, including prayers to be said by visitors to the tomb as offering prayers, as well as religious texts, such as the Hymn to the Aten. The Great Hymn to the Aten, ascribed to Akhenaten himself celebrates the Aten as the universal creator of all life. Although similar to hymns to Amun, the Hymn to the Aten reflects the originality of Akhenaten's perception of his solar religion.[12]
The Amarna Revolution in Ahketaten; lasted only a dozen years and ended with the death of the king and the city abandoned. Yet the career of Meryra and the other tomb officials continued. It is possible that Meryra went on to Memphis where he was a Steward at the temple of Aten and then a First Priest of Neith. In 2001, another tomb with his new name was found in Saqqara. He was now the High Priest of the Goddess Neith and his new name was Meryneith.[13]
See also
[edit]- ^ Redford, Donald, B. "The Sun-disc in Akhenaten's Program: Its Worship and Antecedents, IJournal of the American Research Center in Egypt". 13. (1976), 47-61, https://www.jstor.org/stable/40001118. (accessed October 29, 2010).
- ^ Davies, Norman de Garis (1903). The Rock Tombs of El Amarna, Part I: The Tomb of Meryra. London, Boston.: Egypt Exploration Society.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Kemp,Barry J.. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization. New York: Routledge, 1989.
- ^ a b c d Davies, Norman de Garis. The Rock Tombs of El Amarna. Part I. The Tomb of Meryre. London, Boston: Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1903. Facsimile in Internet Archive
- ^ Redford, Donald, B. "The Sun-disc in Akhenaten's Program: Its Worship and Antecedents, IJournal of the American Research Center in Egypt". 13. (1976), 47-61, https://www.jstor.org/stable/40001118. (accessed October 29, 2010).
- ^ Davies, Norman de Garis (1903). The Rock Tombs of el Amarna Part I The Tomb of Meryra. Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund London, Boston: Egypt Exploration Society. pp. Plate XXXVI.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link) - ^ Stevens, Anna (2020). Amarna: A Guide to the Ancient City of Akhetaten. Cairo, New York: The American University in Cairo Press. pp. 92-93 BK collaborator. ISBN ISBN 978 977 416 982 3.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: invalid character (help) - ^ a b c Davies, Norman de Garis. The Rock Tombs of El Amarna. Part I. The Tomb of Meryre. London, Boston: Offices of the Egypt Exploration Fund, 1903. Facsimile in Internet Archive
- ^ a b c d e David, Arlette (2021). Renewing Royal Imagery: Akhenaten and Family in Amarna Tombs. Brill Press Leiden; Boston. ISBN 978 90 04 44050=0.
{{cite book}}: Check|isbn=value: invalid character (help) - ^ Murnane, William J., Meltzer, Edmund S,Texts from the Amarna period in Egypt. Scholars Press: 1995.
- ^ Redford, Donald, B. "The Sun-disc in Akhenaten's Program: Its Worship and Antecedents, IJournal of the American Research Center in Egypt". 13. (1976), 47-61, https://www.jstor.org/stable/40001118. (accessed October 29, 2010).
- ^ Kemp,Barry J.. Ancient Egypt: Anatomy of a Civilization. New York: Routledge, 1989.
- ^ van Walsen, Rene (2014). The Tomb of Meryneith at Saqqara. Turnhout. ISBN 978 2 503 54876 0.