Academy
Understanding the Valley of the Kings
What the royal tombs were for, why their decoration changed and why the tombs open to visitors are not always the same.
A New Kingdom royal cemetery
The Valley of the Kings on the Theban west bank became the principal burial area for many New Kingdom rulers. Royal tombs were cut into the limestone cliffs and developed through a sequence of corridors, chambers and ritual spaces. Their forms changed across dynasties and even within the reigns of individual kings.
Texts and images were part of the burial programme
Royal tomb decoration draws on funerary compositions concerned with the sun god’s nightly journey, the underworld and royal regeneration. Not every tomb contains the same texts or layout. Changes in decoration are useful evidence for changing royal funerary ideas.
The workers lived nearby
The skilled community at Deir el-Medina included the workmen, scribes and families associated with the royal tomb project. Their settlement and private tombs offer a rare body of evidence for the people who produced royal monuments as well as for their own religious lives.
What a visitor should know
The open tomb list changes for conservation and operational reasons. Some tombs require separate tickets. Physical conditions also differ: stairs, slopes, heat and narrow corridors can be significant. A good visit chooses tombs for both their historical value and the guest’s comfort rather than simply chasing the longest list.