Though the royal burial customs and beliefs have received the lionAEs share of attention, less has been written about their officials. Professor Kanawati uses his long experience of excavating in Egypt to paint a picture of their beliefs and customs in laymanAEs terms. Their richly decorated tombs from all periods including family relationship, agriculture, industries, food etc. This book examines the Egyptian outlook on death and the development of his resting place, both from an architectural and artistic point of view. It is amply illustrated in both photographs and line drawings. INTRODUCTION I THE HOUSE OF DEATH IS FOR LIFE Vulnerability and Strength One Person, Multiple Entities Mummification From Life to Eternity In the Realm of the Dead Sustenance and Remembrance Forever Sadness and Scepticism II TOMB ARCHITECTURE The Earliest Graves The Old Kingdom Mastabas The Old Kingdom Rock-cut Tombs From the First to the Second Intermediate Period Tombs of the New Kingdom and the Ramesside Period Tombs of Deir El-Medina New Kingdom Tombs outside Thebes Later Dynasties III TOMB SCENES AND INSCRIPTIONS Artists and Craftsmen Decoration Techniques Themes Represented Regular Themes The Tomb Owner and his Family Rural Life Fishing, Fowling and Desert Hunting Professions and Industries Sport and Recreation Funerary Rites In the Hereafter Incidental Themes Significance of Tomb Decoration Deities Mentioned and their Attributes List and Sources of Figures and Plates Bibliography Index"