The Tomb of Chancellor Bay (KV 13)

"Bay, originally royal scribe to Sethos II, rose to become chancellor and the 'power behind the throne' during the short six-year reign of the young king Siptah - whose stepmother Tawosret was regent and then supreme ruler on Siptah's death. Bay's status is reflected in the privilege he was granted of a private tomb in the royal valley."

"Although KV 13, the tomb initiated for the 19th-dynasty éminence grise Bay, has stood open since antiquity, it is only recently (1987 - 94) that a full archaeological clearance has been undertaken by Hartwig Altenmüller for the University of Hamburg [...]."

For enlarging the fotos please click on them!

"[...] the tomb was left unfinished by Bay and reused during the 20th dynasty by two royal princes - Amenherkhepshef and Mentuherkhepshef." These two were supposed to be sons of Ramesses III and IV.
"The decoration [...] consists of scenes of Bay before various deities in the first corridor, scenes and texts from the Book of the Dead in the second and third corridors, and devine scenes in the well room. Although Bay is depicted before the king (Siptah) in the first corridor, it is Bay and not the king who stands before the falcon-headed sun god and other deities, illustrating the adoption of royal prerogatives in the tomb's decoration as well as its design.
In the later use of the tomb for Amenherkhepshef and Mentuherkhepshef the decoration of Bay was usurped, in some cases depictions of the chancellor being replaced by images of a queen who was probably the mother of one or other of the princes."

"Two sarcophagi were found in the tomb: the first was that of Amenherkhepshef - taken over from its intended owner, Tawosret, by altering the vulture wig and adding a side lock to the queen's image on the lid - positioned in the ad hoc burial chamber; and a second, in the corridor before the burial chamber, belonging to Mentuherkhepshef, the lid depicting this prince in the form of a mummy with crossed arms and, again, the side lock of a royal prince. - Funerary material of both individuals was recovered - canopic jar fragments, faience and calcite shabtis, inlays and stone and pottery vessels."

Remarks: This information is taken from: Reeves, Nicholas/Wilkinson, Richard H.: The Complete Valley of the Kings. Tombs and Treasures of Egypt's Greatest Pharaohs. London 1997, p. The foto of the entrance of the tomb is from my private collection.
This tomb is very interesting for "us Medjai" because of the name which fits very good in the right time, i. e. the 19th dynasty to which also Pharaoh Sethos I. belonged. Chancellor Bay was a very famous person in his time, otherwise he wouldn't have buried in the valley of the kings. That was enough reason for me for connecting the genealogy of Ardeth Bay with this famous chancellor for my stories. ;)