Tomb KV43 is the tomb of Pharaoh Thutmose IV in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt. It has a dog-leg shape, typical of the layout of early 18th Dynasty tombs. KV43 was rediscovered in 1903 by Howard Carter, excavating on behalf of Theodore M. Davis.
Discovery and location of Tomb KV43
Howard Carter discovered this tomb in January 1903 as part of the systematic clearance of a small valley that runs west of Ramesses III’s tomb (KV3). The Antiquities Service conducted these excavations on behalf of Theodore Davis. An alabaster vase inscribed with the name of Thutmose IV had been encountered partway up the valley in 1902, leading Carter to suspect he was close to the tomb.
By January 1903, investigations reached the base of a sheer cliff; here, the bedrock rose to form a natural platform levelled to take the tomb cutting. On this platform, in front of the tomb entrance, two intact foundation deposits containing alabaster vessels and model implements were uncovered; one of them, an alabaster saucer, had been usurped from Hatshepsut.
The discovery of these items, along with others also bearing the king’s name, confirmed this was the tomb of Thutmose IV. On 18 January 1903, the entrance was cleared enough to permit an exploration; Davis had already left for Aswan, and Carter, unable to contact him, resolved to enter the tomb anyway, inviting American amateur Egyptologist Robb de Peyster Tytus along for the inspection.
The layout of Tomb KV43
The tomb follows the design and layout of KV35 but is more precise in its cutting and alignment. The first three corridors end in a deep well with a chamber at the bottom. The axis then turns 90 degrees with the first pillared hall, which leads, with stairs and a sloping corridor, to the antechamber and burial chamber. Four storerooms are arranged symmetrically on either side of the burial chamber. Upon departure from KV35, the far end of the burial chamber is lowered to form a “crypt” for the sarcophagus. An innovative feature of this tomb is the presence of magical niches seen in all tombs from later 18th and 19th dynasties.
Investigation
The tomb had been thoroughly robbed in antiquity, and Carter found the entrance passage partly filled with debris and broken artefacts. Robbers had penetrated the blocked and painted doorway to the first pillared hall. More tangible evidence of their presence was encountered in the hall: a rope made of palm fibre was still secured around one of the columns, with its end reaching the bottom of the well-shaft. Evidence of double-sealing was encountered in the antechamber; seals bearing the name of Horemheb occurred in addition to the original ‘jackal over captives’ necropolis seal on a partially blocked doorway.
Contents
The pharaoh’s red stone sarcophagus was still in the burial chamber, covered in yellow-filled text and figures. Its lid was propped up beside it, supported by slabs of stone and the sculpted wooden head of a cow. The coffin and lid have rounded heads, and square foot ends. Nephthys, with arms raised, is on the head end, while Isis, in the same attitude, is at the feet. The sides depict the king with Anubis, accompanied by text. The sarcophagus only contained two wooden figures, as the king’s mummy had been found five years earlier among the royal mummies cached in KV35.
The burial chamber also contained the body of a chariot, once covered in silver leaf and decorated with scenes of the king slaying enemies, an archer’s gauntlet made of red and green leather, parts of a colourful tapestry-woven garment with the name of Amenhotep II, black-painted statuettes of the king, fragments of stone vases, broken fan handles, and portions of a cedar wood throne.
Inspection of the side chambers yielded varying results: Chamber Ja (see plan) only contained the mass of linen wrappings from a mummy; Chamber Jb contained victual mummies of meat and birds; Chamber Jc contained broken jars and large quantities of grain; Chamber Jd contained masses of broken faience vessels and shabti, along with the unwrapped mummy of a young boy propped up against the wall. This boy is likely Prince Amenemhat, whose canopic jars were found in the tomb. Canopic jars of a Princess Tentamun were also found, indicating that she was once interred in her father’s tomb. No trace of blocking or sealing was found at the entrances of these chambers, so they were likely closed with wooden doors, long since looted, as evidenced by sockets and a wooden lintel on Chamber Ja.
Decoration
Only two rooms in this tomb were decorated: the upper part of the well-shaft and the antechamber. The ceilings of both areas are decorated with yellow stars on a blue background. In the case of the well, only two walls are entirely decorated: they begin with a kheker-frieze, and the left wall depicts Thutmose before Osiris, Anubis, and Hathor. The other wall is unfinished and depicts Anubis. In the antechamber, likewise, only two walls are painted and have the same repeating decorative scheme of the king depicted before various gods.
Graffiti
Two hieratic inscriptions are written in black on the right-hand wall of the antechamber. Both relate to an inspection of the tomb by officials in the reign of Horemheb. The first, more extensive inscription is as follows:
Year 8, 3rd month of akhet-season, day 1, under the majesty of the King of Upper and Lower Egypt, Djeserkheperure-setepenre, son of Re Horemheb-merenamun. His majesty life! Prosperity! Health! Commanded that the fan-bearer on the king’s right hand, the king’s scribe, overseer of the treasury, overseer of works in the Place of Eternity [i.e. the royal necropolis] and leader of the festival of Amun in Karnak, Maya, son of the noble Iawy, born of the lady of the house Weret, be charged to renew the burial of King Menkheperure, true of voice, in the aristocratic mansion upon the west of Thebes.
The second inscription, to the right and slightly higher than the large one, is much shorter:
His assistant, the steward of the southern city, Djehutymose, whose mother is Iniuhe of the town (i.e. Thebes).
The more extensive inscription refers to Maya in the second person and incorrectly names his mother as Weret, making it unlikely that he was the author of the inscription. The handwriting of the two graffiti is identical, and it is known that Djehutymose also restored Tutankhamun’s tomb as he left a graffito there. Therefore, Maya likely delegated the task of inspecting and restoring the burial to his subordinate, Djehutymose.
