The Egyptian authorities announced the discovery of the tomb of Pharaoh Thutmose II. This is the first royal tomb discovered since the discovery of Tutankhamun’s burial in 1922. About this reported Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt.
According to archaeologists, this is the last of the lost tombs of the kings of the Eighteenth Dynasty, which ruled for more than two centuries – from 1550 to 1292 BC. The tomb of Thutmose II was discovered by a joint Egyptian-British archaeological mission near Mount Thebes, west of Luxor and the Valley of the Kings. The team of researchers and the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities of Egypt said that the evidence found confirms the burial belonging to this particular pharaoh. It was previously known as Tomb No. C4.
The entrance to the tomb and its main passage were found as early as 2022, after which large-scale excavations began. When archaeologists discovered the entrance and main corridor nearly three years ago, they assumed it might be the burial of one of the pharaohs’ wives. This version arose due to the proximity to the tomb of the wives of Thutmose III and Queen Hatshepsut.
However, inscriptions on fragments of alabaster vessels found in the ruins contained the name of King Thutmose II with the designation “late king”, as well as the name of his wife Hatshepsut. This made it possible to identify the burial. According to Khaled, the discovery of the tomb is one of the most important archaeological finds in recent years.
The head of the mission and head of Egypt’s antiquities sector, Mohamed Abdel Badi, said the tomb was in poor condition due to flooding that occurred shortly after the king’s death. Water flooded the burial, damaging the interior decoration. Because of this, archaeologists had to make significant efforts to remove fragments of plaster that had fallen off. Preliminary research indicates that the original contents of the tomb were moved in ancient times – probably after the flood.
