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  • Al-Hakim be Aamr Ellah Mosque

    Mosque of al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah

    Al-Hakim Amr Allah Mosque, located on Al-Moez Street in Old Cairo, is a prominent Fatimid landmark and the fourth oldest surviving mosque in Egypt. Built in 380 AH during Al-Aziz Billah's reign, it was completed by his son in 403 AH (1012-1013 AD), making it the second largest mosque in Cairo after Ahmed Ibn Tulun Mosque. The mosque's name was attributed to him. The mosque, measuring 12005 meters in length and 113 meters in width, has two minarets at its sea front, surrounded by pyramid-shaped bases. The upper cubes are slightly backwards, and an octagonal minaret protrudes from each of the upper cubes.

  • Visit Queen Nefertari’s Tomb

    Tomb of Queen Nefertari

    There were also the great queens of the New Kingdom (1550-1090 BC) Nefertiti, the wife of Akhenaten (1371-1355 BC), and Nefertari, one of the celebrated eight wives of Ramses II (c. 1279-c. 1213 BC). While Nefertiti is more popular for the exquisite portrait bust of her that is located in Berlin, Nefertari is famous mostly for her large burial site situated in the Valley of the Queens.

  • tomb of Tutankhamun | Tutankhamun tomb discovery | king tut tomb pictures

    Tomb of Tutankhamun

    The Valley of the Kings, located on the Nile River's west bank near Thebes, served as a cemetery for pharaohs during the New Kingdom of Ancient Egyptians from 1539 to 1075 BC. The 20,000 square meter rocky valley houses 27 royal tombs from the 18th, 19th, and 20th Egyptian dynasties, which have been discovered to this day. Pharaoh Tutankhamun, also known as King Tut, was the last Eighteenth Dynasty Pharaoh from 1334 to 1325 B.C. He is famous for his intact tomb and treasures, unmarked grave, and premature death due to broken bones. His minister married his widow after his death.

  • the Virgin Mary’s tree.

    The Tree of Virgin Mary in Matareya

    The Coptic Orthodox Church commemorates the Feast of the Entry of the Holy Family into Egypt, a minor liturgical feast. It commemorates St. Joseph the Carpenter's obedience to an angel's command to take the child and his mother to Egypt, marking the entry of the Holy Family into the land of Egypt. The prayers begin on the eve of the liturgical day. The Maryam Tree Mazar, a significant tourist attraction in Egypt, is home to the Holy Family and has undergone significant development and renovations to maintain its historical significance.

  • Biography of Ahmad ibn Tulun

    Biography of Ahmad ibn Tulun

    Ahmad ibn Tulun's Turkish roots trace back to his father, who was a slave of Noah ibn Asad, the governor of Bukhara. Asad freed him, and Caliph Al-Ma'mun admired him. He was enrolled in the caliphate court and eventually became the head of the caliph's guard. Ahmad bin Tulun, born on September 20, 835 AD, in Baghdad, the capital of the caliphate, was well-cared for by his father, who taught him military arts, jurisprudence, hadith, and hadith, and encouraged him to learn from scholars and read the Qur'an.

  • Al Qusayr, Egypt | Al Quseir history

    Historical Background | Quseir Town

    The city of Al-Qusair is located on the western shore of the Red Sea in Egypt, 140 km south of Hurghada, and one of the most important villages of the city is Hamrawin village, with an area of 7,636 km², while its population is 50,023 people. Al-Qusayr, named after a fort that protected the nation during ancient Pharaonic, Roman, and other empires, was a hub for gold procurement by Pharaohs. Built by Sultan Selim I during the Ottoman period, the fortress remains intact.

Valley of the Queens

Facts about Valley of the Queens

  • 05 16, 2023

The Queen's valley

The Valley of the Queens, located in Pharaonic Egypt on the West Bank in the city of Luxor, “ancient Thebes,” still holds secrets that have yet to be revealed, such as the tomb of Queen Est Nefert, the second wife of Ramses II, which is lost under the sand.

Buried in the Valley of the Queens, the wives of the pharaohs in ancient times, and was known as “Ta-Set-Neferu”, meaning “the place of beauty”, and consists of the main valley, which includes about 91 tombs, in addition to sub-valleys that include 19 other tombs, such as: Prince Ahmose Valley, Hubbell Valley, and Dolmen Valley. The Valley of the Queens was a burial place for pharaoh’s   queens and princesses in 1070 to 1550 BC during the 18th, 19th and 20th dynasties of Egypt. Priests took care of their graves through holding daily funerals and praying for them.

This place is situated close to the famous. Valley of the Kings, which is found on the western side of the Nile River in Luxor Governorate. Consequently, this is why they chose it as the final resting place not only because it is closely linked to the valley of kings but also because there’s a certain sacred cave at the entrance where Hathor was worshipped by ancient Egyptians as giving rebirth to dead souls.The third reason is its sandiness.

The Valley of the Queens includes one of the most important tombs, the tomb of Princess Ahmose, daughter of Sakhnen-Ra and Queen Setjahuti, dating back to the reign of Thutmose I. Several members of the nobility were buried in this tomb. The Dolmen Valley contains an ancient trail that was used by laborers traveling from Deir el-Medina to the Valley of the Queens.

Along this road is a small rock temple dedicated to the god Ptah. The tombs in this valley are simple in shape, all consisting of a chamber and a shaft for burying mummies, and some tombs have been extended in size to accommodate the burial of more than one person, and include the bodies of royal princes and princesses, as well as some nobles.

There is also a princess tomb dating back to the time of Amenhotep III. The graves include parts of the burial equipment of several members of the royal family. Canopic vessels were discovered next to one of the princesses, who is believed to have lived in the middle of the Eighteenth Dynasty.

During the Nineteenth Dynasty, the tombs of the Valley of the Queens were used exclusively for royal women, as several high-ranking wives were buried, such as: Ramses I, Ramses II, and one of the most famous queens in the valley, Queen Nefertari (1224-1290), whose tomb has multicolored carved inscriptions that are still intact, and most of Ramses II's sons were buried either in princely tombs in the Valley of the Kings or in princess tombs in the Valley of the Queens.

Nefertari was one of the five wives of King Ramses II. Nefertari was his favorite, and her tomb is considered one of the most beautiful tombs in Egypt, and the mummy was placed in the company of the gods, and a golden crown with two feathers was placed on her head.

During the beginning of the Twentieth Dynasty, the Valley of the Queens was still widely used only for the wives of kings and princes, but at its end there was economic turmoil, and records show that workers went on strike during the reign of Ramses III, and some of them dug up the tombs and stole their contents of gold and antiquities, and with popular anger the burial site no longer belonged only to the royal family after the end of the Twentieth Dynasty, as many tombs were modified to accommodate more dead.

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Egypt Tours FAQ

Read top Egypt tours FAQs

The tombs in the Valley of the Queens were constructed to house the remains of the New Kingdom's queens, princesses, and princes.
 

The Valley of the Queens is an ancient burial site located near Luxor, Egypt. It served as the final resting place for the wives and children of pharaohs during the New Kingdom period.

The Valley of the Queens is a ravine located in Upper Egypt's highlands along the Nile River's western bank. The queens and some royal offspring of the 19th and 20th dynasties were buried there; it was a part of ancient Thebes (1292–1075 bc). 

 

Thutmose I (1540-1501 BC), the third pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, wanted to choose his tomb in a secluded valley behind the rocks of Thebes to preserve his body and protect it from the hands of thieves, so he entrusted the engineer Anini to choose this place for him

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