Located in Middle Egypt, the Tombs of the Nobles at Amarna are the burial places of some of the powerful courtiers and persons of the city of Akhetaten.
The tombs are in two groups, cut into the cliffs and bluffs in the east of the dry bay of Akhetaten. There are 25 major tombs, many of them decorated and with their owners name, some are small and unfinished, others modest and unassuming. Each seems to reflect the personality and patronage of the tomb's original owner.
These tombs are located in two groups in the cliffs overlooking the city of Akhetaten, to the north and east of the city. They are split into two groups by a wadi, and are near one of the Boundary Stelae (Stela V).
| Tomb number | Owner | Title | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahmes[1] | ||||
| Meryra (also called Meryre I)[2] | Incomplete. Had it been completed, it would have been the largest of the noble's tombs. | |||
| First servant of the Aten in the mansion of the Aten in Akhetaten, Chief of physicians, chamberlain | The tomb was cross-shaped, containing a long outer hall, and a long transverse hall, containing the burial shaft and a now destroyed shrine to Penthu. Only the outer hall is decorated. | |||
| This was originally a two-roomed tomb; each of the rooms had four columns. Later reuse as a Coptic church has changed the layout and damaged the original decoration. |
At a short distance to the west and north of the Northern Tombs lie the remains of three large mud-brick solar altars in the form of platforms with ramps. The reason for their location is not clear. Their connection with an ancient road leading to the Northern Tombs would seem to be a sign that they were for the benefit of those buried in them.
The southern tombs are located in a series of low bluffs south and east of the main city. Associated with these tombs a recently discovered workers cemetery has been found.[3]
| Tomb number | Owner | Title | Comments | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Parennefer[4] | Cupbearer of the king's Person | Parennefer had another tomb in Thebes, TT188 | ||
| Unknown | Small unfinished tombs located near Tomb 7. | |||
| Chamberlain of the Lord of the Two Lands, etc. | ||||
| Chief of the Medjay (police) of Akhetaten | ||||
| Unknown | Small unfinished tombs located near Tomb 9. | |||
| King's scribe, the overseer of the large inner palace of the pharaoh | ||||
| Scribe of Recruits, General of the Lord of the Two Lands | ||||
| Hereditary prince, count, sealbearer, overseer of the city and vizier, etc. | ||||
| Mayor of Akhetaten | ||||
| General of the Lord of the Two Lands, etc. | ||||
| Standard-bearer of the company of Neferkheprure-Waenre (Akhenaten) | ||||
| unknown | ||||
| unknown | ||||
| unknown | Only the facade of the tomb was completed | |||
| Treasurer of the Lord of the Two Lands | ||||
| unknown | The lintel shows the royal family adoring the Aten | |||
| unknown | ||||
| unknown | The lintel shows the royal family adoring the Aten | |||
| Scribe of the offering table of the Lord of the Two Lands, Steward of the House of Aakheprure (Amenhotep II), etc. | ||||
| General of the Lord of the Two Lands, Steward of the Lord of the Two Lands | ||||
| Fanbearer on the right of the King, God's Father, The commander of all the horses of his Person | Ay was a future pharaoh of Ancient Egypt | |||
| Ia (?) |
Some of the tombs have obviously been open since antiquity, and have been used variously as burial places in the Ptolemaic times, storehouses, houses and as Coptic churches.