Niches in Egyptian Old kingdom rock-cut tombs of Giza as the dating feature

Purpose. Within this article we provide a comprehensive study of niches in rock-cut tombs and shafts in order to elaborate criteria for their classification, dating and typology. Results. The niches found in many cult chapels of Ancient Egyptian rock-cut tombs in Giza Necropolis, and also in the upper parts of burial shafts of the second half of Third millennium B.C. in Giza and Saqqara had different functions. Similar niches were found in the majority of rock-cut tombs on the site of the Russian Archaeological Mission (Institute of Oriental Studies of the Russian Academy of Sciences) on the Eastern Plateau of Giza: in total, in 35 rock-cut tombs 21 niches were discovered from which 10 are defined as unfinished niches. It is not always possible to define precisely their function and the time of creation because in most cases the niches discovered did not have any material remains. They could be used as a serdab (a place for a statue), an offering niche or a burial niche, but many of them were robbed or were reused later, which complicates the process of identifying their initial appointment and the time of creation. Various researchers paid more attention to the niches located only in the burial shafts, but not in cult chapels. We meet some descriptions of niches located in a cult chapel only when their content didn’t cause any questions, for example, in case of finding statues or burials in them. Unfinished niches were found together with complete niches. Having analyzed half-finished niches, we can conclude that they were prepared for future burials. In this article we don’t consider niches in the lower part of burial shafts and in the burial chamber because of their absence at the site of the Russian Archaeological Mission at Giza, which doesn’t allow studying them comprehensively. Neither did we consider niches in cult chapels built as «false doors» or niches with rock-cut statues as their purpose is obvious. At the moment the most developed method for dating Ancient Egyptian rock-cut tombs is by epigraphic and iconographic material. However, many rock-cut tombs have no traces of inscriptions and reliefs. In this case, several groups of artifacts, such as ceramic material, are used for tomb dating. Most tombs, however, including rock-cut tombs, were robbed during the ancient times. Thus, in many cases only architecture allows us to date the tombs. Therefore, such element as a niche, along with other architectural elements of rock-cut tombs (e.g., the shape of the entrance, «false doors» or burial shafts), can serve as the only element for dating anonymous rock-cut tombs, and also the tombs whose dating by inscriptions is complicated. Tendencies of locating niches and placing different objects into them during the Old Kingdom are described in the present article based on the analysis of the data obtained by the Russian Archaeological Mission at Giza. We classified niches according to a number of signs revealed and their importance. We also provided various arguments for dating and the reasons for creating certain architectural elements in Ancient Egyptian rock-cut tombs. Conclusion. By the end of the Old Kingdom we observe a large-scale growth in number of modest burials, shafts with two of several burial chambers, burials in niches in rock-cut chapels together with the practice of planning future burials.