Posted on 02/10/2006 3:57:33 PM PST by aculeus
Archaeologists have discovered an intact, ancient Egyptian tomb in the Valley of the Kings, the first since King Tutankhamun's was found in 1922.
A University of Memphis-led team found the previously unknown tomb complete with sarcophagi and five mummies.
The archaeologists have not yet been able to identify them.
But Egypt's chief archaeologist Zahi Hawass says they "might be royals or nobles" moved from "original graves to protect them from grave robbers".
"We don't really know what kind of people are inside but I do believe they look royal. Maybe they are kings or queens or nobles," he told Reuters news agency.
Bob Partridge, of the Ancient Egypt Society, said it could possibly be the tomb of Queen Nefertiti, who co-ruled Egypt between 1379 and 1358 BC. Her tomb has never been found.
"Nefertiti was probably buried to the north of Egypt at a place called Akhetaten," he told BBC News24.
"It's believed that the burials there, which included Nefertiti and some of her daughters, were brought back to the Theban area, and the Valley of the Kings would be the obvious place."
The Valley of the Kings, near the city of Luxor in southern Egypt, was used for burials for around 500 years from 1540BC onwards.
Surprise find
The newly-found tomb is thought to date from the 18th Pharaonic Dynasty, the first dynasty of the New Kingdom which ruled between 1539BC and 1292BC and made its capital in Thebes, now Luxor.
It is the 63rd tomb to be discovered since the valley was first mapped in the 18th century, and was unexpectedly found only five metres away from King Tutankhamun's.
The team of archaeologists had not been looking for it.
"The excavation team was focused on the tomb of a 19th Dynasty pharaoh, King Amenmesses," Patricia Podzorski, curator of Egyptian Art at the University of Memphis, told the BBC's World Tonight.
"They were working in front of the tomb looking for foundation deposits possibly related to that tomb, and clearing away some workmen's huts from the 19th Dynasty that were both to the left and right side of the tomb," she explained.
"Underneath these workmen's huts, they found a shaft."
Four metres below the ground was a single chamber containing sarcophagi with coloured funerary masks and more than 20 large storage jars bearing Pharaonic seals.
The sarcophagi were buried rapidly in the small tomb for an unknown reason.
The discovery has come as a surprise to many, Ms Podzorski said.
"People have been saying the valley was done for 100 years," she said.
"They said it before Howard Carter found King Tutankhamun's tomb and they said it after. But, obviously, they are still wrong."
Story from BBC NEWS Published: 2006/02/10 23:26:27 GMT
© BBC MMVI
SG-1 killed her a few years ago. That mummy's an imposter!
Actually, a recent book claims that Nefertiti's mummy was found decades ago, but not identified properly until the author's book came out. (From the photos inside--of the mummy and comparisons with her famous portrait bust, it appears he may be right.)
However, this tomb might house some of the court officials of Tut; or daughters of Akenaten; or ?
I've always wanted to tour Egypt but what with the times being what they are...just say I am no longer considering a trip there, despite my academic interests otherwise.
Enjoyed reading about your experiences, there.
Yeah saw that also. I mean nobody thought to dig a few yards left, right, or up or down???
I've been lucky enough to be able to see a fair chunk of the globe as part of business and military travel.
I was in South Africa and the Middle East in the mid 80s before it tipped upside down and when martial law was still the order of the day in Korea and the Philippines in the early 70s.
Now, I'm pretty much anchored and occasionally cruise to alaska or mexico, and right now, Mexico is off that short list as well.
Never set foot on the European continent, probably never will , Oh well. I would like to have made a trip thru Czechoslovakia to trace some family roots. Got to save something for the next time around. ;-)
Wooden sarcophagi with coloured funerary masks containing mummies are shown by Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities in a tomb four meters beneath the ground level in the Valley of the Kings at Luxor's West Bank. The tomb, uncovered by American archaeologist Otto Schaden, is the first to be discovered in the Valley since Tutankhamun's in 1922.(AFP/Khaled Desouki)
A 3,000-year-old Pharaonic coffin lies among other items in a newly discovered tomb at the valley of the Kings in Luxor, Egypt February 10, 2006. The tomb, discovered this week by a U.S. team from the University of Memphis, contains coffins and mummies and clay containers all yet to be analysed by experts. REUTERS/Aladin Abdel Naby
Excellent photos.
They are from a smaller set than the earlier linked set.
If I dig up a corpse or a tomb I'm thrown in jail. If some a-hole archeologist does it, they're regarded as great scientists. Who the hell wrote the law saying it was ok to dig up or disturb anyone's grave????? By what right do these sanctimonius a-holes conduct this barbaric and totally NON-essential criminal activity. It is morally reprehensible!
Bob Partridge, of the Ancient Egypt Society, said it could possibly be the tomb of Queen Nefertiti, who co-ruled Egypt between 1379 and 1358 BC. Her tomb has never been found. "Nefertiti was probably buried to the north of Egypt at a place called Akhetaten," he told BBC News24. "It's believed that the burials there, which included Nefertiti and some of her daughters, were brought back to the Theban area, and the Valley of the Kings would be the obvious place."CondorFlight, here's a post regarding the supposed Nefertiti in KV 35. :')
Archaeologica · Mirabilis · Texas AM Anthropology News · ArchaeoBlog
Archaeology magazine · Biblical Archaeology Society · Archaeology Odyssey
History Podcasts · Science & Nature Podcasts · Excerpt, or Link only? · post a topic
US dig uncovers King Tut's neighbours
The Age | February 9, 2006 - 2:26AM
Posted on 02/08/2006 10:48:04 AM PST by SunkenCiv
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-chat/1574477/posts
Intact tomb found in Egypt's Valley of the Kings
reuters | February 9, 2006 | staff
Posted on 02/09/2006 7:32:55 AM PST by AdmSmith
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1575119/posts
Tomb Found in Egypt's Valley of Kings
The Houston Chronicle | February 10, 2006 | TANALEE SMITH
Posted on 02/10/2006 7:21:28 AM PST by Founding Father
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1575862/posts
It's only a matter of time before we get the obligatory Helen Thomas photo and some asinine comment about her being Nefertiti's mother-in-law or something...
Sad.
This place used to have some serious conservative debaters...
canopic jars,, cartouches..
Smuckers :)
WOW! Obviously, somebody of some import. Most likely will be a person we know about from the written records. Could fill in many gaps and unanswered questions!
Thanks for that link, great pics. What a great find. No mention of the condition of the mummy's or what the jugs might contain.
They embalmed these royals that they might have everlasting life, yadda.
Maybe they were envisioning just this kind of thing....the art, bodies, and stories upon the walls are to be preserved and recorded in a far-off modern age for *all time*....sort of like a time-capsule on steroids.
Kind of like the theory that, without historical timing, to wit, the Roman Empire, Jesus' legacy and teachings would have been forgotten. But for these burials, who would know of, or ever see, these once-great kings?? Y'know?
Bodies are dug up all the time. Y' gots to have a reasonable reason. And lawful sanction.
Elderberry is my favorite. :') I wound up spending two hours and more at the local museum today, oops, yesterday, experiencing the special exhibition from Egypt's museums. Lots of 18th & 19th Dynasty, along with some Middle Kingdom. I got the audio tour option, so Jeremy Irons narrated my trip. Oddly enough, the Irons soundtrack is available on CD in the gift shop. That's hard to figure.
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