The country's archaeological authorities announce that they have confirmed the discovery of Pharaoh Thutmosis II's grave, near Luxor and the ancient Egyptian central city of Thebe. The excavation was carried out near the Valley of the Kings and the necropolis where many of the pharaohs were laid to rest.
According to the authorities, the find is the first of a pharaoh's grave since the legendary Tutankhamon's grave was discovered in 1922 by British Egyptologist Howard Carter. Pharaoh Thutmosis belonged to the 18th dynasty and ruled around 3,500 years ago. He was the ancestor of Tutankhamon and reigned about 150 years earlier.
The Egyptian grave lacked a sarcophagus or a mummified pharaoh, as the contents of the grave had previously been moved or plundered. Thutmosis' mummy was already found in the 19th century, in a larger hiding place where royal remains had been moved during later times of unrest.
However, the new find is still seen by the Egyptian authorities as "one of the most important archaeological breakthroughs in recent years".
Thutmosis II's half-sister and queen, Pharaoh Hatshepsut, is buried in a known temple on the west bank of the Nile, a few kilometers from the new grave discovery.
The opening was discovered as early as 2022, but archaeologists and researchers then believed that the entrance led to a queen's grave.
The group of archaeologists – a collaboration between British and Egyptian researchers led by Piers Litherland – is now continuing to comb through the grave area in the hope of further finds.
