The Chapel of Queen Mersyankh III (photo)

“A boon which Anubis gives, lord of the divine land, a good burial before the great god, that funerary offerings go forth to her [of] bread, beer, cakes, and cattle on every festival and every day as a royal boon. That there be dedicated to her a choice selection of offerings of birds and cattle, when she has grown gracefully old as one who is noble in the sight of Anubis, foremost of the divine booth.” The offering formula, which magically ensured sufficient offerings for the queen’s afterlife, is written on the upper part of the north wall, above three openings leading into the northern chamber. The main, central entrance may once have had double-leaf wooden doors opening towards the central room, as indicated by traces in the floor and in the sidewalls of the entrance. On either side, to its east and west, are slightly smaller entrances with no traces of doors. Queen Mersyankh is depicted on the columns between the entrances, with her titles carved above. The large hieroglyphs on the lintel above the central entrance mention the main titles of the queen: “king’s daughter of his body, king’s wife Mersyankh” while the smaller signs above the queen’s head read: “king's daughter of his body, the one who sees Horus and Seth, companion of Horus, Mersyankh” and “king’s daughter of his body, great of praise, follower of Horus Mersyankh”. These were the most important titles of the queen, which defined her status as a queen of royal origin. The queenly titles express her close relation to her husband-king who was not only Mersyankh’s spouse but also an earthly manifestation of Horus. Two small figures of naked boys are depicted with the queen and they are described as princes “Deware” and “Niuserreankh”. The latter probably added his name to the queen’s tomb much later, in the late Fifth Dynasty.