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while travelling, his armed escort is depicted above the estate managers, led by a hry Smsw=f‘commander of the escort’, which person of such rank usually works for the king himself." In addition, the remaining parts of the decoration of the central chapel depict funeral and workshop scenes, which, according to Raven, may also refer to the official duties of Ptahemwia (I) as ‘royal wb3’." This would also support the fact that ‘royal wb3s’ were responsible not only for food production for the royal palace but for other items and deliveries as well.”” As for the functional titles of these individuals, most of them have no other titles that could be linked to the occupations described above, thus — as is the case for some of them — the accompanying inscriptions also confirm that these duties must have been related to their office as ‘royal wb3’. Parennefer is the only one who bore the titles ‘steward’ as well as ‘overseer of the granary’, the latter of which was represented in an accompanying scene, and besides, the title jmj-r3 “h°.w nswt ‘overseer of the royal boats’ of Suemniut implies that the authority of his office primarily covered the royal transportation, and perhaps the cargo vessels.*? The scenes representing the tomb owner carrying out his duty as a ‘royal wb3’ demonstrate that, while the position still maintained the essence of the original function of the profession ‘wb3’, the persons who carried out their activity in this position in the royal household were not functional servants anymore but had been elevated higher in the hierarchy of society as well as the administration responsible for a collective of workers as well as for an economic unit of the royal palace. Being a ‘royal wb3’ was not primarily a functional profession but it developed into an official title, and their holders became important and trusted members of the royal court. This fact is also supported by the ranking titles of these persons.” Three out of the five tomb owners, namely Djehuti (I), Suemniut and Ptahemwia (1) bore three of the five ranking titles jrj-p“ h3tj-" member of the elite, foremost of action’, Atmtj-bjtj ‘royal sealer’ and smr-w“.tj 'sole friend’, while Parennefer held the first two of them. The growing importance of these officials as well as their wide-ranging scope of duties, especially during the Ramesside period, are revealed from the textual material of their monuments which is discussed in detail below. #° Raven, 2017, 588; Raven, 2020, 32-33. 2 Raven, 2017, 589; Raven, 2020, 33. #7 See on. p. 71. "3 For the function of this office, see a discussion on Nebamun on p. 105. 4 For the ranking titles, see Baer, 1974, 2-8; Grajetzki, 2009, 5-6.
