Climate
The inhospitable climate of the area around the valley – blistering hot days, and freezing cold evenings, made it unsuitable for people to live and thrive. This prevented, in some measure, grave robbery which was common for the time. However, the harsh climate did little to deter the truly daring thieves to rob tombs that were in any way accessible.
On the other hand, the unforgiving temperatures of the Valley of the Kings helped the later practice of mummification in becoming more successful, especially since the practice of embalming became the crux upon which the whole of Ancient Egypt’s spirituality stood.
Geological and Topographical Layout of the Valley of the Kings
The Valley of the Kings is located in an area that consists of mixed-soil conditions. The necropolis is actually in a place called a wadi, which is composed of various concentrations of hard, nearly impregnable limestone and softer layers of marl.
The Valley is known not only for the enduring quality of its limestone, but for its network of natural caves and tunnels, as well as the natural ‘shelves’ which descend below a scree that leads to a bedrock floor.
These networks of natural caves existed prior the development of Egyptian architecture, although the discovery of the shelving came about recently, thanks to the effort of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project, which helped to shed some light on the complexity of the Valley’s natural structures sometime between 1998 and 2002.
