Mastaba of Ti

It is a tomb belonging to one of the employees of the 5th Dynasty, and it dates back to the twenty-fourth century BC, the cemetery is located in the northern part of the Saqqara region, where it is located approximately 500 meters from the northwest of the pyramid of Djoser, learn more information about the cemetery below .The history of the establishment of the mastaba of Al-Wazir T, one of the most important nobles of the Fifth Dynasty in Saqqara, Giza, ancient Egypt, the secrets that were discovered in the tomb of the mummy and the funerary chamber, and more of the culture of the Pharaonic civilization.It is located in the eastern direction of the tomb of the bull Apis, where the mastaba was built for the burial of Minister Ti, one of the ministers of the Fifth Dynasty in the Pharaonic era. Inside it, you will find halls and a private chapel for offering offerings to the goddess, as well as a funeral chamber containing the mummy of Minister Ti at the bottom of the temple.

The last quoted king's name, on the walls of the tomb, is that of Niuserre. But graffiti can also be found of workers giving the name of Neferirkare-Kakai. Ty is also mentioned in Abusir, in the solar temple in connection with the pyramid Sahure. Ty lived, therefore, under several kings. His tomb, which began under Neferirkare-Kakai, was probably finished under Niuserre. This confirms the study of Nadine Cherpion, which positively confirms that the decor dates from the reign of this last king. Thus, the mastaba of Ty dates to the middle of the 5th Dynasty and the middle of the Old Kingdom.

During this time, just like other tombs, people would enter through a portico on the northern side. Inside, there is a large courtyard with twelve square pillars and a burial shaft in the center. This burial shaft is where Ti's empty sarcophagus was discovered. Unfortunately, not much remains of the courtyard's decoration today. However, there is an opening into the first statue chamber in the northeast corner. The courtyard still has reliefs depicting Ti in agricultural scenes and scenes of daily life. In the southwest corner of the courtyard, there is a false door stela belonging to Ti's son, Demedji. A small, adorned hallway guides to two chambers and a fake door belonging to Ti's wife, Neferhetpes, who served as a Priestess of Neith and Hathor, can be observed on the right side of the passage. Continuing down the right side, there is a lengthy, slender chamber adorned with vibrant reliefs depicting the process of food preparation, such as cooking and brewing, as well as pottery production. Additionally, there are scribes depicted recording these activities.

The larger chamber at the end of the corridor is an offering hall. It has a roof supported by two square pillars and features beautiful reliefs of the tomb. Musicians and dancers are depicted above the door, while the left-hand wall shows the tomb owner observing agricultural activities and scenes of boat-building. On the southern wall, there are three restored openings that allow a view of the serdab statue. The serdab now contains a replica of the original life-sized statue from the Cairo Museum. Through these openings, Ti would have connected with the world of the living and witnessed his ritual offerings. The wall between the spy-holes shows scenes of Ti inspecting viticulture and bird-catching. Additionally, there are interesting reliefs depicting various industries such as carpentry, sculpture, and metal-working.

 At the western wall, there are two fake doors. One of them has a table for offerings made of alabaster in front of it. On the northern end of the wall, there is a stela of Ti with a double jamb. This jamb shows four standing figures of the deceased. The offering hall's northern wall is mainly adorned with a stunning relief. It depicts Ti standing on a papyrus boat, overseeing a hunt for hippopotamuses. Behind the boat, there is an upright papyrus in a swamp filled with various fish, hippos, and a crocodile. Ti is shown with a dwarf and a pet, and there are scenes depicting activities like gathering papyrus and fishing in the marshland.