On Location - Valley of the Queens, Luxor, Egypt

The Valley of the Queens, is home to the tombs of the royal women of the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. The wives of Pharaohs, princesses and even a handful of princes were buried here from the 18th through to the 20th dynasties. Known as "Ta-Set-Neferu" - "the place of beauty" - in ancient times, of the more than 75 tombs that we know of, only four are currently open to the public. Visitors can enter the burial places of Queen Titi, the Ramesside princes Khaemwaset and Amunherkhepshef, and the tomb considered to be the finest in Egypt: that of Nefertari.

From a photography perspective, trying to capture the magnificence of the tombs is somewhat challenging due to the lighting conditions and the use of perspex sheeting to protect the fragile decorative tomb walls. In light of these conditions I gave more attention to the detail in scenes which in themselves are quite breath-taking given they were created 3,000+ years ago!

While Nefertari's tomb is considered to be the most beautiful in the valley, the entrance fee was too pricey for me. I was more than happy with the three other tombs open at the time and would encourage you to visit whether Nefertari’s tomb is on your list or not.