Shunet El Zebib Abydos | History, Facts, and conservation
Where is Shunet El Zebib?
Shunet El Zebib is located in Abydos to the West of the Kom El Sultan archeological area in Abydos. Also, to the northwest of Ramesses II temple and Menmaatre Seti I temple in Abydos.
Who built Shunet El Zebib?
The ancient Egyptian pharaoh Khasekhemwy from the Second Dynasty built Shunet El Zebib around 2700 BC. Khasekhemwy was the last king buried at Umm el-Qa’ab at Abydos and later on, king Sneferu from the 3rd Dynasty will move the burial place to Saqqara.
How to reach the Shuneh from Abydos?
Once you are visiting the Abydos temple for king Seti I and his son Ramesses II, you need to purchase a ticket that allows you to visit the temple and Ramses II temple to the north of it.
To reach Shunet El Zebib, you need to purchase a different ticket from the same place but you will be joined by a policeman and an inspector to the area.
The Shuneh is about 2 KM to the northwest of the Ramses II temple and 500m to the west of Kom El Sultan area where they found the only statue for Cheops, the builder of the Great Pyramid. Although, you can reach the area by walking or by car as it takes 20 minutes to walk.
Who discovered Umm el-Qa’ab?
Umm El Qa’ab is the burial place for all the kings of the 1st Dynasty and the last 2 kings of the 2nd Dynasty. Emile Amelino was the first one who discovered the royal tombs in Umm El Qa’ab between 1885 to 1899.
Flinder Petrie completed the excavation in the area between 1899-1901 and he was lucky to discover many tombs. Later on, archaeologists Edward Navi and Eric Pitt conducted excavations in Umm El Qaab between 1912 and 1919.
Since 1977 the German Institute of Archeology in Cairo is responsible for the excavations in Umm al-Qaab. in addition, the Egyptian archaeologists who keep working till now with an American expedition.
Between 1986 and 1988, it was a sacred animal necropolis after the end of the New Kingdom as Abydos was known as home to many of ancient Egypt’s largest animal cemeteries.
What kind of animal cemeteries were found in Abydos?
Archeologists found a large number of cemeteries for dogs, hawks, ibises, cats, mongoose, and even shrews. British archaeologist and naturalist W.L.S. Loat discovered in 1913 the first sacred ibis cemetery at Abydos. More than a hundred jars in the Middle Cemetery with almost 94 animal mummies.
Why Shunet El Zebib was built?
Shunet El Zebib is the only one from about 11 royal enclosure walls found till now in Abydos. The purpose of the building of Shunet El Zebib is not confirmed 100% by historians. In fact, some believe it was the Valley temple of Khasekhemwy from the Second Dynasty.
How Shunet El Zebib looks like?
Shunet El Zebib or simply the Shuneh is a double enclosure wall built of mudbricks. Unfortunately, the outer wall is no more in good condition and mostly collapsed while the inner one is intact.
The inner wall measures 123*56 m, 8 m high, and 3 m thick while the outer wall is 137*77 m with 12 m high, and 5 m thick. The façade of the outer walls imitates the royal palace façade called serekh with niches.
The enclosure walls of Shunet El Zebib have originally two entrances one at the eastern corner, and one at the northern corner. While now the enclosure has 4 doors and all are opened. These walls tell us a lot about Egyptian society, religion, economy, and culture during that time.
Restoration work of Shunet El Zebib
The enclosure walls of Khasekhemwy were always visible not unlike the two temples of Ramses II and Seti I were covered with sand with time. David O’Connor discovered Shunet El Zebib in 1886 and Penn-Yale Expedition in the next two years discovered the sacred animal necropolis.
The restoration project started with remolding 150,000 mudbricks using the same basic materials, same sizes, and similar composition. These newly fabricated blocks were used to replace the missing ones of the original building to add stability to West Gate, the east inner wall, and the west perimeter.
Monuments near Shunet El Zebib
- David O’Connor found large pottery vessels containing Ibis burials
- in the early 20th Century, Loat’s excavations excavated Ibis Eggs
- During 1988, they discovered Ibis burials inside the Shunet el-Zebib
- Seal impressions from the reign of King Khasekhemwy
- 13 pits for boats dating back to the Thinite period (The Early Dynastic Period)
- The tombs of the kings of the first Dynasty such as Aha, Djet, Qa-aa, and Semerkhet. Queen Merytneit’s tomb was found also
- Two tombs from the second Dynasty for Peribsen and Khasekhemwy
- Kom El Sultan
- Cheops statue at the Egyptian Museum
- Shrines from the Middle Kingdom
- The temple of Osiris
- Sneb-Kay king’s tomb from the Abydos dynasty during the Second Intermediate Period (1650 BC)
- the University of Pennsylvania Museum discovered the temple of Thutmose III
- Josef Wegner discovered the mayor’s house at Abydos in 1999
- In 2013, Josef Wegner found the tomb of the forgotten pharaoh, Woseribre Senebkay.
- outside the east corner gateway of the Shunet el-Zebib was found the fine coffin of the Third Intermediate Period (c. 1075-715 BCE)
- The 8 predynastic brewery sites at north Abydos measure approximately 35m
- Um Sety tomb
- The Osireion
Shunet El Zebib ticket price
You can purchase an Entrance ticket for Shunet El Zebib by the entrance of the Abydos temple or from the visitor center
Adult: EGP 40 (1.5 $)
Students with valid cards: EGP 20 (0.5 $)
Children aged 6-12 years: EGP 40 (0.5 $)
Children under 6 years: FREE
Shunet El Zebib visiting hours
Shunet El Zebib is open daily from 09.00 am to 17.00 pm.
Tips for first time visitors
The first piece of advice we can tell, visit Abydos temple and Shunet El Zebib with an archaeologist guide.
Read before you go and make up your mind if you are an individual visitor which parts of Abydos you like to visit. Make up your mind if you like to add Kom El Sultan and Um Sety tomb to your itinerary.
Take water and some snakes, especially in the summer
Small change for the WC
Take your hat, sunglasses, and suncream with you
Cotton dress during summer
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