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Deir El Medina is commonly known as the workers village. It lay under sand for almost two thousand years until it was rediscovered around 1815. The workers from this village cut, carved and painted the tombs of the pharaohs in the Valley of the Kings and those of their wives and children in the Valley of the Queens.
Your ticket, which you must purchase from the main ticket office, includes access to the workers village, the ptolemaic temple at the far end of the village as well as the Theban tombs of Sennedjem - TT. 1 and Inherkhau - TT. 359.
A separate ticket must be bought if you would also like to visit the worker's tomb of Pashedu - TT. 3 |
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Here we look down from the Theban hills at the southernmost end of the ancient workers village of Deir El Medina.
On the very left of this picture you can see a modern structure that allows tourists to wait out of the direct sun to visit the Theban tombs of Sennedjem TT. 1 and Inherkhau TT. 359. These small tombs have entrances that are only a few steps from each other. |
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In this view look across the remains of these ancient homes and up to where the paths cross. X doesn't quite mark the spot but if you follow the right path, take the first left and then stop at the first dark area you reach the entrance to the only other tomb that is open to the public in Deir El Medina, that of Pashedu TT. 3.
Please note that the entrance to Pashedu's tomb requires a separate entrance ticket which you can purchase at the same time as the one to Deir El Medina itself. |
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The workers worked an eight day week and then had two days off during which some would work making tombs for those in high positions within the village such as Sennedjem.
Each home in Deir El Medina contained several rooms and had stairs up to the flat roof as can be seen in the middle of this picture. A cellar is also part of the homes here and these can still be seen as you walk around the village. |
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At the north end of Deir El Medina is this small ptolemaic temple that is surrounded by a mud brick wall. This temple was dedicated to the gods Hathor and Ma'at.
There were several small New Kingdom temples at this end of the village, the remains of some can still be seen. This temple to Hathor was built over an older temple.
The courtyard contains several little chapels that were made by the occupants of Deir El Medina. |
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Inside the courtyard at ground level you can clearly see one of the small chapels on the left of the main temple.
Many visitors to Deir El Medina do not make it to this temple and even as we view it here it doesn't look like the most exciting temple in the world but inside it is quite impressive and really is worth a visit. |
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Here you see the inside the temple and if we didn't already know this was a ptolemaic temple it is immediately obvious from the fussy top of the column on the right of this picture.
The head on the column on the left is that of Hathor and she is shown in the form of a cow on the wall behind. |
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This colourful wall is on the northern side of the three chapels that are within the temple. The doorway on the left of this picture leads to the right hand chapel.
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This picture is taken in the right chapel which is dedicated to Amen-Ra-Osiris and has large, colourful bas reliefs to not only Anubis and Nephthys that are shown here but also Hathor, Isis, Horus, Mut and Amun amongst others.
Each of the chapels is different and all are worth seeing. |
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| CLICK HERE to see a panoramic view of the workers village of Deir el Medina. |
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