During the reign of the famous pyramid builder, Khufu, private
tomb decoration began to expand. At this point, chapels bearing
carved and painted scenes and inscriptions on interior walls
of limestone were added inside the core of mastaba structures.
One good example of such a tomb is located in the Eastern
cemetery at Giza (G 7140). It belonged to a priest from the
reign of Khufu named Khufukhaf I, who was also his son. On the
back of one of the casing stones displaced from the east face
of this mastaba style tome, quarry marks appear to contain a
date indicating that it was build in the 23rd year of Khufu's
reign.
This tomb consists of an entrance corridor, a vestibule, a
main room or chapel and a burial chamber. It is located just
east of the pyramid of Queen Henutsen, who is thought to
perhaps be his mother, and very near the tomb of Meresankh
III. Queen Henutsen's pyramid is the middle
of the three secondary pyramids of Khufu.
 
Left: Khufukhaf and his mother, probably Henutsen, receiving offerings
Right: The east wall of the main room depicting offerings in three registers
 This tomb shows remarkably well-crafted, large-scale
figures of the deceased and his wife, Nefretkau, in a number
of poses and wearing different costumes, along with other
individuals. The bas-reliefs of this small tomb are very
refined and perfectly preserved, although there is not a trace
of color. Also depicted are countless offerings, made
magically available for eternity by virtue of being carved in
stone. However, these carved offerings were not
completely relied upon by the deceased. There were also models
found, such as that of a beer vessel, just a few centimeters
in height, which bore the same offering spells as the carved
and painted two dimensional representations. Yet, there was
also found in the tomb and actual beer vessel.
 
Left: Khufukhaf receives a lotus flower from a young woman who is probably one of his daughters
Right: Khufukhaf I embraced by his wife, Nefret-Kau
Specific scenes include, on either side of the door in the
vestibule, two large representations of the deceased with his
mother (left) and son (right) as Khufukhaf receives offerings.
The theme of these scenes continues into the next main room,
were there is also a false door. In the northern  part of this
room, arranged on five panels, is a procession of people
bearing offerings from the possessions of the deceased, who is
shown accompanied by his wife.
On the west wall of this main room is a beautiful door,
with jambs and lintels decorated with bas reliefs and texts,
that lead to the burial chamber. However, the burial chamber
itself is undecorated, and most probably dates to a later
period.
 
Left: Doorway to the burial chamber
Right: The burial chamber, which is probably a latter addition
Resources:
| Title |
Author |
Date |
Publisher |
Reference Number |
|
Art of Ancient Egypt, The |
Robins, Gay |
1997 |
Harvard University Press |
ISBN 0-674-00376-4 |
|
Atlas of Ancient Egypt |
Baines, John; Malek, Jaromir |
1980 |
Les Livres De France |
None Stated |
|
Complete Pyramids, The (Solving the Ancient Mysteries) |
Lehner, Mark |
1997 |
Thames and Hudson, Ltd |
ISBN 0-500-05084-8 |
|
Early Dynastic Egypt |
Wilkinson, Toby A. H. |
1999 |
Routledge |
ISBN 0-415-26011-6 |
|
Illustrated Guide to the Pyramids, The |
Hawass, Zahi; Siliotti, Alberto |
2003 |
American University in Cairo Press, The |
ISBN 977 424 825 2 |
|
Treasures of the Pyramids, The |
Hawass, Zahi |
2003 |
American University in Cairo Press, The |
ISBN 977 424 798 1 |
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