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Psusennes' mummy was virtually entirely destroyed by the damp
conditions in the delta but his jewellery and other non perishable
grave goods survived in perfect condition.
Notable amongst the items discovered in this tomb was Psusennes'
solid gold mask and mummy board.
His mummy had been placed inside a silver coffin which is unusual
as in ancient Egypt silver was more valuable than gold as it
had to be imported. This coffin was then placed in a black granite
sarcophagus, which was in turn placed in a red granite outer
sarcophagus.
The outer and middle sarcophagus had been 'recycled' from
earlier burials. The black sarcophagus had all trace of it's
original owner erased but fortunately a cartouche was missed
on the red sarcophagus which reveals it was originally made for
Ramesses II's successor, the Pharaoh Merenptah.
During the time of Psusennes, known as the Third Intermediate
Period, the Valley of the kings was officially looted for it's
treasures and many of the funeral goods were reused. This is
also probably when the mummies were removed from their tombs
and stored in at least two caches. Ironically this protected
them from further disturbance and ensured their survival.
The destruction of all the perishable items in the tombs is
illustrated by two piles of Shabti figures
found on the floor at the foot of the sarcophagus. Originally
these were in wooden boxes but over time the boxes had decomposed
leaving the figures neatly stacked. |