Sennedjem – Tomb Worker from Deir el-Medina
The sun has not yet risen, but I am already awake, lying on my mat in my small workers’ hut in the Valley of the Kings. At the moment, the air is still cool, but I know before long it will be burning hot against my skin. At the height of the sun, I will be deep under the sands in the passage we are carving for the tomb of our mighty pharaoh, Seti I.
I take pride in my work – carving the eternal resting place of a king is an honour, and I hope that my four sons will follow me into this trade. My copper chisel is getting worn from years of faithful use, and my hands are callused, but there is no place I would rather be. When the foreman calls, we file into the tomb entrance to chip, scrape and smooth the walls, filling our wicker baskets with chippings. Our apprentices then carry out and empty these baskets. I remember being an apprentice to my father many festivals ago. The sound of the hammer against the chisel is mesmerising and has become the music of my life.
We live in huts by the tomb for 10 days at a time – that is our working week, and there is little time between shifts for anything but sleep. Some of the young men play senet games and sing songs to Hathor, but I brush the dust off my tunic and look forward to resting. That reminds me, I must write to my brother in Thebes to send me a new tunic.
Our one day off is spent back in our village, Deir el-Medina, which is kept in isolation from the rest of Egypt. We have to keep the location of the tombs a secret to avoid tomb robbing, so the kings can enjoy a peaceful and eternal afterlife. I am looking forward to seeing my family – my wife, Iyneferti, and my ten children, I hope that she has managed to conclude the contract for the purchase of Bennakhtef’s donkey. I know she was planning on buying a new wig too – perhaps it has already arrived. I look forward to climbing to the roof of my modest two-roomed house, and to sleeping beneath the stars in the cool air, whilst hearing the children play in the room below.
The work is hard, and the days are long, but I think it is a good life – I can provide a level of comfort for my family. I know that when my own time comes to travel to the underworld, I will enter it through the tomb that I have carved for myself. I am fortunate enough to have artisan friends who have decorated it with splendid scenes and built beautiful funeral goods, all fit for a king! I hope that the gods will see my devotion and allow me to spend eternity in the Fields of Iaru.