Psousennes Found

From the Nile Delta last week Archeologist Pierre Montet sent word he had found the tomb of King Psousennes I. The discovery caused crows of delight from Egyptologists, because up to last week no royal tomb of the 21st Dynasty had been located.

About ten centuries before Christ, Egypt's Rameses III conquered in sea battle a coalition of Trojans, Achaeans and Philistines. The better to exploit her new-won sea power, Egypt moved her capital from Thebes, 400 miles up river, to Tanis, 60 miles from modern Alexandria, close to the sea but not too close to suffer from pirates. The religious capital remained at Thebes, ruled by Amon's high priests. Smendes, sprig of a rich merchant family, founded the 21st (Tanis) Dynasty. His successor, Psousennes I, reigned 46 years.

Last year at Tanis, Professor Montet discovered a tomb which was first ascribed to Psousennes, but later turned out to be that of Sheshonk I, a 22nd Dynasty king who is set down in the Bible, under the name of Shishak, as the pillager of Solomon's treasures (TIME, April 3; April 24).

In the wall of Sheshonk's tomb was a huge block of pink granite. Professor Montet, who has directed digs at Tanis since 1929 and discovered (at Byblos) the oldest known alphabetical inscription, is no mean archeologist. He suspected that behind that block was a passageway leading to the tomb of Psousennes. He was right.

Psousennes' pink granite funerary chamber is rectangular, 23 by 10 ft. The big granite sarcophagus, carved on the sides in bas-relief, has a cover depicting the king as the god Osiris, supine, with a goddess kneeling behind him and stretching protective arms over his head. The sarcophagus contained a silver mummy case. Before opening this, the professor decided to await the arrival of King Farouk, an enthusiastic amateur.

On the floor of the chamber were four gold vases, with covers in the form of human heads ornamented by blue and gold wigs; a large chalice shaped like a lotus flower, a long-necked bottle, a ewer, a spouted jug, a number of cups--all gold. Near the door was the skeleton of a small animal, apparently a dog.

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