Khentkaus III

[2][6] The tomb of Khentkaus III – marked as AC 30[4] – was excavated in Abusir, where there are several pyramids dedicated to pharaohs of the Fifth Dynasty, including Neferefre.

[6] The tomb was found near Neferefre's funerary complex by a Czech archaeological team led by Miroslav Bárta of Charles University in Prague, with Egyptian collaboration.

[10] The superstructure's outer faces were built from yellow and grey limestone which had been locally quarried, and joined using a mud and lime mortar.

Its inner core structure was of mediocre quality, predominantly consisted of limestone debris, mudbrick and significant quantities of pottery.

[12] The vertical shaft, for entering the substructure, was found behind the northern false door inside the chapel.

Inside, a small bḏ3-mould, parts of a calf, shards of pottery, charcoal, wooden fragments, and rope segments were discovered.

A sloping ramp fashioned from limestone fragments led into the burial chamber, and had been evidently used to transport the mummy into the tomb.

The chamber also originally contained a sarcophagus built of white limestone in its western area, but it too has been destroyed.

Remains of the burial discovered include 23 travertine model vessels, 2 white limestone lids presumably belonging to canopic jars, 4 copper models of tools, animal bones, fragments of wooden items, bandages and cloth from the embalming process.

Two types of pottery were discovered inside the tomb: the first was used in the core masonry of the structure to reduce construction time and expense, the second came from the practices of the mortuary cult.