# TT133
TT133 is a small private rock-cut tomb in the [Theban Necropolis](https://www.edgepedia.org/theban-necropolis) at Lower Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, cut and decorated in the Ramesside period (ca. 1290–1070 BCE) for Neferrenpet, a chief of weavers, and his family.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) It belongs to the numbered series of Theban private tombs.[2](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//thebes/tombs/thebantomblist.html)
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Tomb number | TT133 in the Theban private tomb series[2](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//thebes/tombs/thebantomblist.html) |
| Location | Lower Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, immediately adjacent to Theban Tomb 45[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
| Date | Ramesside period, ca. 1290–1070 BCE[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
| Owner | Neferrenpet, chief of weavers[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
| Family depicted | Wife Henura[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
| Plan | Painted small chapel, passage, small inner room with a niche[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
| Notable decoration | Rare scene of a weaving workshop with women stretching warp and working on looms[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) |
## Location and architecture
TT133 lies in the area of Lower Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, immediately adjacent to Theban Tomb 45, a proximity that matters because the two tombs were made for men who held the same office.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) The tomb has a compact plan: a painted small chapel, a passage, and a small inner room with a niche.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
The standard spatial references for mapping the Theban necropolis remain the plans and plates of Porter and Moss (1960) and Friederike Kampp (1996), which are key published maps.[3](https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/DMS/AC046838038045E690AC8269BC84E77E/9781803270364-sample.pdf)
## Owner and dating
**Neferrenpet** held the office of chief of weavers, as did both tomb owners of the adjacent [TT45](https://www.edgepedia.org/tt45).[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
The tomb is dated by its mission to the Ramesside period, ca. 1290–1070 BCE.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133) A published handbook compiles dating, kinship data, and titles for the tomb owners of 54 New Kingdom tombs in the southern area of Dra Abu el-Naga, recording for each owner the chronology, ancestors, siblings, wives, children, relatives, and career titles, with kinship diagrams where possible.[4](https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/Products/9781803270548)
## Inscriptions and decoration
Neferrenpet is depicted together with his wife Henura.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
The scene that gives the tomb its epigraphic value is a rare depiction of a weaving workshop, showing women stretching warp and working on looms.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
## Excavation and documentation history
The Theban tomb paintings have suffered extensive damage since the 1820s, when they first began to be brought to light.[2](https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//thebes/tombs/thebantomblist.html) An early field campaign on the west bank was the Marquis of Northampton's expedition, working with the Egyptologists Percy Newberry and Wilhelm Spiegelberg from 4 November 1898 to 9 February 1899; both diaries are now available as high-resolution digital copies in the Griffith Institute, Oxford.[5](https://www.ta-wer.org/rc_images/the_marquis__excavations__a_tale_of_two_diaries.pdf)
Work on the tomb itself is carried out by the Stichting Ael mission, which started work in Theban Tomb 133 in December 2025.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
## By the numbers
- The Theban Necropolis contains hundreds of elite tombs dating from the end of the Old Kingdom to the Ptolemaic Period, the vast majority from the New Kingdom (c. 1550–1077 BC).[3](https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/DMS/AC046838038045E690AC8269BC84E77E/9781803270364-sample.pdf)
- **152 private tombs** of the New Kingdom (18th–20th Dynasties, 1550–1069 BC) can be identified at Dra Abu el-Naga, the majority Ramesside.[4](https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/Products/9781803270548)
- Approximately **8 decorated private tombs** were created every decade during the Ramesside Period on the Theban west bank.[6](https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy)
- Decoration costs for Ramesside private tombs ranged from **11 to 300 dbn** (deben, the Egyptian copper weight unit), reflecting the socioeconomic status of clients.[6](https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy)
## Recent developments
In December 2025 the Stichting Ael mission began work in TT133 itself, with the aim of a full conservation program of the painted decoration, including a digital reconstruction and the re-insertion of the original fragments into the walls.[1](https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133)
## TT133 in the Ramesside funerary economy
TT133's small size and painted (rather than relief-cut) decoration fit its position in the production system of Ramesside private tombs. Roughly eight decorated private tombs per decade were created on the Theban west bank during the Ramesside Period.[6](https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy) Deir el-Medina craftsmen are thought to have decorated private tombs as well, indicating informal workshops alongside formal state work.[6](https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy) Documented decoration costs for Ramesside private tombs ranged from 11 to 300 dbn.[6](https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy)
Comparanda for the setting of a Ramesside private tomb come from [Heidelberg University](https://www.edgepedia.org/heidelberg-university)'s Ramesside Tomb Project, which studies the forecourts of two contemporary Ramesside tombs: TT157 of the High Priest of Amun Nebwenenef, on Dra Abu el-Naga, and TT183 of Nebsumenu, Chief Steward in the temple of Ramses II, at el-Khokha. At TT157, about 450 decorated limestone relief fragments came to light during the cleaning of the forecourt; the interior was decorated exclusively in raised relief while the courtyard blocks were carved in sunk relief.[7](https://digital-epigraphy.com/readings/C2ACC2ACeva-hofmann-der-vorhof-der-privatgraeber-nur-ein-sakraler-ort-die-anlagen-von-tt-157-des-nebwenenef-und-tt-183-des-nebsumenu)
## References
1. Theban Tomb 133 (Stichting Ael field mission page), https://stichtingael.nl/Theban-Tomb-133
2. Theban Tomb list (UCL Digital Egypt), https://www.ucl.ac.uk/museums-static/digitalegypt//thebes/tombs/thebantomblist.html
3. Tomb Families: Private Tomb Distribution in the New Kingdom Theban Necropolis (sample PDF, Archaeopress), https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/DMS/AC046838038045E690AC8269BC84E77E/9781803270364-sample.pdf
4. A Prosopographic Study of the New Kingdom Tomb Owners of Dra Abu el-Naga (Archaeopress), https://www.archaeopress.com/Archaeopress/Products/9781803270548
5. The Marquis' Excavations: A Tale of Two Diaries (Ta-Wer), https://www.ta-wer.org/rc_images/the_marquis__excavations__a_tale_of_two_diaries.pdf
6. Profit or Exploitation? The Production of Private Ramesside Tombs Within the West Theban Funerary Economy, https://www.academia.edu/110252734/Profit_or_Exploitation_The_Production_of_Private_Ramesside_Tombs_Within_the_West_Theban_Funerary_Economy
7. Eva Hofmann, Der Vorhof der Privatgräber – nur ein sakraler Ort? Die Anlagen von TT 157 des Nebwenenef und TT 183 des Nebsumenu (digital-epigraphy.com), https://digital-epigraphy.com/readings/C2ACC2ACeva-hofmann-der-vorhof-der-privatgraeber-nur-ein-sakraler-ort-die-anlagen-von-tt-157-des-nebwenenef-und-tt-183-des-nebsumenu
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Places and geography › Ancient and historical places › Cities and sites of the ancient Near East, Egypt, and Nubia › Ancient Egypt › New Kingdom: cities, sites, and monuments › New Kingdom: royal and private tombs › Tombs of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna and el-Khokha › Tombs at Sheikh Abd el-Qurna*
*Initially written Sep 19, 2026 · Reviewed: Sep 19, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Sep 19, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license