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Valley of the Kings

Site, Luxor (ancient Thebes) · also called Wadi el-Muluk, Biban el-Muluk, KV, Kings' Valley

The Valley of the Kings holds the richest painted religious texts in Egypt: the books that guided a dead pharaoh through the night, written on the walls of New Kingdom royal tombs on Luxor's West Bank.

From about 1500 to 1070 BC, kings were buried in rock-cut tombs in this desert valley. More than 60 are known, numbered in the order they were recorded, so Tutankhamun's is KV62. Only some are open at any time. They change in rotation, and a few need a separate ticket.

The walls do not show daily life. They follow the sun god through the twelve hours of the night, a journey the dead king hoped to share. The main texts are the Amduat ('What is in the Underworld'), the Book of Gates and the Litany of Ra, with the Book of Caverns and the Books of the Day and Night in later tombs.

Styles change along the valley. Early tombs use simple cursive signs on a plain background, like an unrolled papyrus; from Horemheb and Seti I onward the walls were carved in relief and brightly painted. Late Ramesside tombs went back to painting on plaster over rougher stone, often in a hurry.

At Valley of the Kings

Monument

Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62)

KV62 has one painted room, the burial chamber, where you can read the cartouches of Tutankhamun and of Ay, the king who buried him. The young king's mummy still lies in the tomb.

Monument

Tomb of Seti I (KV17)

KV17, the tomb of Seti I (c. 1290–1279 BC), shows royal hieroglyphs at their best: almost every wall is carved in fine raised relief and painted, from the entrance down to the burial chamber.

Monument

Tomb of Ramesses VI (KV9)

KV9 is known for its burial chamber ceiling, where the sky goddess Nut swallows and gives birth to the sun among the texts of the Books of the Day and Night. Begun for Ramesses V, it was taken over by Ramesses VI (c. 1140 BC).

Monument

Tomb of Thutmose III (KV34)

KV34 holds the whole Amduat written in simple cursive hieroglyphs, as if a papyrus had been unrolled on the walls. It is the tomb of Thutmose III (c. 1479–1425 BC), hidden high in a cleft in the cliffs.

What to see and read

Tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62)

A small tomb with one painted room, and the king's mummy still inside.

Tomb of Seti I (KV17)

The longest and most finely carved tomb in the valley, open only at times.

Tomb of Ramesses VI (KV9)

The sky goddess Nut stretched twice across the burial chamber ceiling.

Tomb of Thutmose III (KV34)

High in a cleft in the cliff, with the full Amduat drawn in stick-figure signs.

Graffiti of ancient visitors

Greek and Roman tourists came here too and scratched their names in several open tombs.

Names you can find here

Signs to look for

  1. Cartouche V10 The cartouche ring holds the king's name on doorways, pillars and sarcophagi.
  2. Sun N5rꜥ The sun disc is everywhere, as Ra on his boat and at the start of throne names.
  3. Goddess Maat C10mꜣꜥt The goddess Maat often kneels with spread wings at tomb entrances.
  4. Star N14sbꜣ The star fills the blue ceilings of the corridors and burial chambers.

Reading the hieroglyphs here

  • No flash. Rules on phones and cameras change, so check your ticket before taking photos.
  • Read the Amduat in three bands: the sun god's boat sails along the middle one.
  • Light is low; take several steady photos of one wall rather than a single shot.

Point your camera at a wall Hiero Lens boxes the signs and names them, on your phone; nothing is uploaded. On worn stone, trace a sign over the photo.

Questions

Which tombs are open in the Valley of the Kings?

It changes through the year. The main ticket covers a few tombs, and Tutankhamun's, Seti I's and some others need their own ticket.

What do the hieroglyphs in the royal tombs say?

Mostly the sun god's night journey: the hours of the night, the gods met there and the gates the king must pass. They were meant to help the king be reborn with the sun each morning.

Where it is

Open in OpenStreetMap · Written from published sources and not yet checked on site by our team: displays and open tombs change.