New archaeological research was carried out between 2009 and 2011 by the Ministry of State for Antiquities (MSA) at central Dra’ Abu el-Naga. Joining the MSA excavation team in the field in 2009, the author has been studying the findings from this area since then. The excavation site is situated ca. 700 km south of Cairo, opposite the modern city of Luxor in Upper Egypt on the western side of the Nile. Dra\' Abu el-Naga is the modern name of the northern area of the extended necropolis. Central Dra’ Abu el-Naga lies to the north of the causeway of queen Hatshepsut and just south of the German and Spanish concessions, overlooking the valley where a temple of Amenhotep I was once erected. The tombs are situated just below the hilltop of the middle range of the Dra’ Abu el-Naga hills Review And to reach fulfill this main objective, it was proposed in 2013 to follow these research objectives: Consequently one main objective was the recording of architecture of the new discovered tombs and the reconstruction of the original context of the objects, which formed part of their burial equipment. The overlying aim of the research is: Preparing plans of all the new tombs, and also sections and 3D views of two of the tombs as they are very complicated. To place the new tombs in their archaeological context. 2D drawings can be tricky for some people to read, but 3D model views are a universal language that anyone can understand. By using SketchUp Pro to get owners, researchers heads in the same direction.

This thesis studies Han Dynasty stone carved tombs in Central and Eastern China. These multi-chambered tombs were constructed from carved stone slabs, and were very popular among the Han people. However, such horizontal stone structures were entirely new, and were a result of outside stimuli rather than an independent development within China. The stone carved tombs were a result of imitating royal rock-cut tombs, while the rock-cut tombs were stimulated by foreign examples. Moreover, many details of stone carved tombs also had Western features. These exotic elements were incorporated to satisfy specific requirements of the Han people, and reflected the desire to assimilate exotica within Chinese traditions. Some details within stone carved tombs showed high level of stone working technologies with Western influences. But in general the level of stone construction of the Han period was relatively low. The methods of construction showed how unfamiliar the Western system was to the Han artisans. Han Dynasty stone carved tombs were hybrids of different techniques, including timber, brick and stone works. From these variations, Han people could choose certain types of tombs to satisfy their specific ritual and economic needs. Not only structures, but also pictorial decorations of stone carved tombs were innovations. The range of image motifs is quite limited. Similar motifs can be found in almost every tomb. Such similarities were partly due to the artisans, who worked in workshops and used repertoires for the carving of images. But these also suggest that the tombs were decorated for certain purposes with a given functional template. Together with different patterns of burial objects and their settings, such images formed a way through which the Han people gave meaning to the afterworld. After their heyday, stone carved tombs ceased being constructed in the Central Plains as the Han Empire collapsed. However, they set a model for later tombs. The idea of building horizontal stone chamber tombs spread to Han borderlands, and gradually went further east to the Korean Peninsula. The legacy and spread of the Chinese masonry tradition was closely related to the political circumstances of late Han and post-Han period. The spread of stone chamber tombs in Northeast Asia is presented as a part of a long history of interactions between different parts of Eurasia.

Les cavités artificielles funéraires sont à la fin de la Préhistoire en Méditerranée occidentale un type d’architecture privilégié. La compréhension de la chaîne opératoire de construction des hypogées est essentielle afin de déterminer quelles techniques et stratégies entrent en jeu dans la mise en place de ces architectures souterraines. C’est dans le cadre de cette thèse qu’une méthode a été développée sur le sujet. Celle-ci se présente en trois axes : l’étude technologique du macro-outillage de creusement, l’analyse à l’aide de la photogrammétrie des traces présentes sur les parois des hypogées et l’expérimentation permettant de confirmer ou d’infirmer les hypothèses émises. Ces trois axes ont été développés dans des contextes différents, en France dans les Bouches-du-Rhône avec l’ensemble monumental de Fontvieille et en Sardaigne avec notamment la nécropole à domus de janas de S’Elighe Entosu. Ces deux contextes offrent la possibilité d’étudier des hypogées possédant des caractéristiques différentes. La comparaison entre les divers contextes sélectionnés en Méditerranée occidentale permet d’entrevoir les différences et similitudes présentes dans les chaînes opératoires de creusement et les choix effectués par les différents groupes humains. Au-delà de la connaissance des techniques employées pour le creusement de ces architectures, cette étude permet également de s’interroger sur le rôle de celles-ci au sein de la communauté par l’investissement que leur mise en place engendre. / At the end of Prehistory in the Western Mediterranean, the rock-cut tombs are a privileged type of architecture. The understanding of the hypogea’s digging process is essential In order to determine which techniques and strategies come into play in the establishment of these structures. In the context of a PhD research work, a method has been developed on the subject. It is presented in three lines of reflection: the technological study of digging macro-tools, the analysis of the traces which are present on the walls of hypogea using photogrammetry, and an experimentation to confirm or refute the assumptions made during the first two axes of the study. These three axes were developed in different contexts, the monumental context of Fontvieille, located in the geographical area of the Bouches-du-Rhône administrative department in France and the necropolis of S'Elighe Entosu in Sardinia, Italy. These two fieldworks allows us to study the different characteristics of the hypogea. The comparison between the various contexts selected in the western Mediterranean allows us to glimpse the differences and similarities present in the digging process chains and the choices made by the different human groups. Beyond the knowledge of the techniques used for the digging of these architectures, this study also makes it possible to question the role of these in the community by the investment that their establishment generates.

New archaeological research was carried out between 2009 and 2011 by the Ministry of State for Antiquities (MSA) at central Dra’ Abu el-Naga. Joining the MSA excavation team in the field in 2009, the author has been studying the findings from this area since then. The excavation site is situated ca. 700 km south of Cairo, opposite the modern city of Luxor in Upper Egypt on the western side of the Nile. Dra\'' Abu el-Naga is the modern name of the northern area of the extended necropolis. Central Dra’ Abu el-Naga lies to the north of the causeway of queen Hatshepsut and just south of the German and Spanish concessions, overlooking the valley where a temple of Amenhotep I was once erected. The tombs are situated just below the hilltop of the middle range of the Dra’ Abu el-Naga hills Review And to reach fulfill this main objective, it was proposed in 2013 to follow these research objectives: Consequently one main objective was the recording of architecture of the new discovered tombs and the reconstruction of the original context of the objects, which formed part of their burial equipment. The overlying aim of the research is: Preparing plans of all the new tombs, and also sections and 3D views of two of the tombs as they are very complicated. To place the new tombs in their archaeological context. 2D drawings can be tricky for some people to read, but 3D model views are a universal language that anyone can understand. By using SketchUp Pro to get owners, researchers heads in the same direction.