The Tomb of Queen Tanodjmy in the Valley of the Queens

In the Valley of the Queens, the tomb of Queen Tanodjmy - also known as Tanedjemet or Tanodjemy - stands as the only concrete evidence of her life. While her specific biography remains unknown, circumstantial evidence suggests she was almost certainly a wife of Seti I and probably a daughter of Horemheb. She held the titles of King's Daughter, King's Wife, and Mistress of Upper and Lower Egypt, and is depicted in her tomb wearing the vulture cap usually associated with queens of this period.

The identification of her titles and lineage underwent significant refinement over the centuries. Early explorer Carl Richard Lepsius misread her name as Tahemy in 1844 and failed to notice her title of King's Wife. It was not until the 1970s that a joint mission led by Christiane Desroches-Noblecourt corrected these errors, securing her placement in Dynasty 19. These discoveries led researchers like Ian Mladjov to conclude that she was likely buried during the reign of Seti I, providing a marital connection between the royal families of Dynasties 18 and 19.

Tomb QV 33 is located on the south side of the main wadi, situated among a cluster of tombs commissioned by Seti I. While the inscriptions provide her official titles, the tomb is in poor condition and much of the original decoration has been lost. The structure was likely robbed at the end of the 20th Dynasty and reused during the 26th Dynasty, a time when it housed a large amount of glasswork. Later, during the Roman Period, many mummies from the 2nd and 3rd centuries A.D. were interred within the space.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons