Funeral Procession of Ramose

Mural scene from a funeral procession of Ramose, detail of a wall painting from the Tomb Chapel of Ramose (TT55). Ramose was Vizier under both Amenhotep III and Akhenaten.

Ramose (Egyptian: rꜥ-ms(. w)) was an ancient Egyptian name, meaning “Re is born”. Variants of the name include Ramesses (Ramessu) and Paramessu; these various spellings could be used to refer to the same person.

The tomb was never actually finished, perhaps because Ramose died prematurely. Next door is the tomb of Userhet, one of Amenhotep II’s royal scribes, with fine wall paintings depicting daily life.

The funeral procession is painted in two registers, both heading towards the goddess of the West on the right hand side. In the tomb of Ramose, as in that of Nebamun and Ipuky TT181, which also dates from the transition period from Amenhotep III to Amenhotep IV, the funeral procession is depicted for the first time in the ante room of the tomb.

One register shows the funeral procession and the other, the porters of the burial furniture and mourners. The continuation of these scenes is in the sloping passage leading to the large burial chambers below. Funerary scenes are a part of the basic repertoire decorating Theban private tombs.

New Kingdom, 18th Dynasty, ca. 1550-1292 BC. Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, West Thebes.