Tomb of Ay (West Valley of the Kings)
The tomb of Tutankhamun's successor in the remote West Valley — with a rare hunting scene in the marshes.
A king of the Amarna aftermath
Ay was a senior courtier under Akhenaten and Tutankhamun who became king after Tutankhamun's early death in the fourteenth century BC, reigning for only a few years. His tomb (WV23) lies in the West Valley of the Kings, a remote western branch of the royal necropolis, also known as the Valley of the Monkeys after the baboons painted in this tomb. The tomb may originally have been begun for Tutankhamun himself before being adapted for Ay.
Decoration
The burial chamber is decorated with paintings closely related in style to those of Tutankhamun's tomb, painted by artists of the same generation. Its most famous scene shows the king hunting birds and fishing in the marshes — an image common in private tombs but almost unique in a royal tomb — together with scenes from the Book of the Dead and a row of twelve baboons representing the hours of the night. Ay's name and images were later deliberately damaged, probably under Horemheb, who sought to erase the memory of the Amarna period. The red granite sarcophagus, broken in antiquity, has been restored and returned to the burial chamber.
Visiting
The West Valley lies about two kilometres beyond the main Valley of the Kings along a separate track and receives few visitors; the tomb is visited on its own ticket. The silence and wild landscape of the valley are part of the experience.
Exhibo editorial
Getting there is half the reward: a long, empty track into a desert valley of cliffs and rubble, with not a coach in sight. Then a guardian unlocks a door in the rock, and inside, the painting looks like a page from Tutankhamun's tomb — the same artists, the same colours — except that here the king is out hunting birds in a papyrus thicket, an image of everyday pleasure almost never seen in a pharaoh's tomb.
It is one of the most atmospheric visits on the west bank, and one of the loneliest. Go with a driver who knows the track, bring water, and let the silence of the valley settle on you.
How to find it
From the road to the Valley of the Kings, a separate track branches west into the West Valley shortly before the main valley's visitor centre; follow it about 2 km to the tomb, where a guardian checks tickets. A car or taxi is needed; confirm opening at the main ticket office first.
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