Cemetery south of Horemheb
During the seasons 1999-2000, the only unexcavated area immediately outside the south wall of Horemheb's tomb, extending from its west corner to the west wall of Iniuia's tomb (c. 25 x 12 m) was investigated. Only the most important features will be described here.
On lower levels a number of shafts was discovered. The largest is situated in the far west of the area and was part of a Late Period chapel with only a partly preserved foundation. The shaft is of Old Kingdom date and proved to be 23.3 metres deep. The original tomb chamber at the bottom proved to be practically empty, apart from some stone slabs fallen down the shaft. At a depth of 12 m was a secondary room to the north, filled with scores of broken mummies, and containing a hoard of 246 Ptolemaic coins.
In the east part a cluster of three shafts is situated of which the south-east one was connected to a miniature chapel of which only the limestone foundation slabs remained. This was also the only one that was safe enough to be completely emptied. From the two rooms at a depth of six metres the most interesting object recovered was a cosmetic box in the shape of a grasshopper. A very interesting feature of the shafts is that they were sunk through massive platforms or mounds of rubble held in place by curved retaining walls of 1,5-1,8 m high on the west side. The pottery mixed with the rubble dates them to the later 19th-20th dynasties. After the removal of the mounds, a clay stopper of a wine amphora with the name of Nefertiti was found at desert floor level near one of the shafts.
Finally, one or two layers of Old Kingdom mudbricks appeared to occupy a large part of the site and to continue under the foundation of Horemheb's tomb. They are the only remains of an Old Kingdom mastaba, completely razed to the ground, and explain the scattered fragments of relief dating to the period found in the area.