British-Egyptian archaeologists reveal pharaoh's tomb after nearly a century in 'significant find'
More than a century after the world was captivated by Howard Carter's discovery of King Tutankhamun's tomb, archaeologists have uncovered another remarkable find - the final resting place of King Thutmose II, one of ancient Egypt's elusive 18th Dynasty rulers.
Discovered by a joint British-Egyptian team led by Dr Piers Litherland, the tomb was hidden away in the Western Valleys of the Theban Necropolis, near Luxor.
Until now, the whereabouts of Thutmose II's original burial site had remained a mystery. While his mummified remains were uncovered two hundred years ago in the Deir el-Bahri Cache above the Mortuary Temple of Hatshepsut, the location of his tomb had been lost to history.
Mohamed Ismail Khaled, the secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Court of Antiquities, said in a statement that the discovery was 'one of the most significant archeological breakthroughs in recent years.'
First discovered in 2022, the tomb was originally thought to belong to one of the royal wives of the so-called Thutmosid kings, a succession of pharaohs named Thutmose who once ruled Ancient Egypt.
However, archaeological evidence eventually proved that the tomb was the resting place for Thutmose II, who died around 1479 B.C. after a relatively short reign, explained Khaled.
Studies suggest that Thutmose II died around the age of 30, after which his wife (and half-sister) Hatshepsut assumed the throne, where she ruled for about 21 years, from around 1479 B.C. to 1458 B.C.
What was discovered inside the tomb?
Inside, the archaeological team were met with the unmistakable signs of a royal tomb: inscriptions from the "Amduat", an ancient funerary text reserved for pharaohs, fragments of alabaster jars bearing the names of Thutmose II and Hatshepsut, and a blue-painted ceiling complete with yellow stars.
However, the tomb itself was completely empty and in very poor condition. Unlike many ancient tombs that were plundered by grave robbers, this one had been deliberately cleared. Researchers believe this was done after the tomb was hit by severe flooding, as it had been built beneath a waterfall.
'Preliminary studies suggest that the tomb's original contents were relocated to another site during ancient times after the flooding,' Mohamed Abdel-Badii, the head of the Egyptian Antiquities Sector at the Supreme Council of Antiquities, said in a statement.
Dr Piers Litherland said the team will 'continue its work to uncover more secrets of the area and locate the final resting place of the tomb's original contents.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
LeMonde
7 hours ago
- LeMonde
US immigration authorities detain the family of the man charged in the Colorado attack
The wife and five children of the man accused of throwing Molotov cocktails at demonstrators in Boulder calling for the release of Israeli hostages in Gaza, injuring 12 of them, were being taken into custody by federal immigration authorities on Tuesday, June 3, officials said. Mohamed Sabry Soliman, who was disguised as a gardener, had 18 Molotov cocktails and had planned to kill all the demonstrators, but apparently had second thoughts, throwing just two during Sunday's attack in which he yelled "Free Palestine," police said. Soliman, 45, didn't carry out his full plan "because he got scared and had never hurt anyone before," police wrote in an affidavit. The two incendiary devices he did throw at the group of about 20 people staging their weekly demonstration were enough to injure more than half of them, and authorities said he expressed no regrets about the attack. Federal officials are investigating whether Soliman's family knew about his plan, US Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in a post on X. An Egyptian national who is in the US illegally, according to federal officials, Soliman told authorities that no one, including his family, knew about his plans, according to court documents. A desire to kill 'all Zionist people' He planned the attack for more than a year and specifically targeted what he described as a "Zionist group," authorities said in court papers charging him with a federal hate crime. His name is first spelled Mohammed in some court documents. "When he was interviewed about the attack, he said he wanted them all to die, he had no regrets, and he would go back and do it again," Colorado's acting US attorney, J. Bishop Grewell, said during a news conference Monday. Federal and state prosecutors filed separate criminal cases against Soliman, charging him with a hate crime and attempted murder, respectively. He faces additional state charges related to the incendiary devices, and more charges are possible in federal court, where the Justice Department will seek a grand jury indictment. Soliman is being held on a $10 million bond. His attorney, Kathryn Herold, declined to comment Monday after a hearing where he appeared before a state judge. His next hearing is Thursday. According to an FBI affidavit, Soliman left an iPhone hidden in a desk drawer at his Colorado Springs home that contained messages to his family. After his arrest, his wife brought the phone to the local police department, saying it was his but was also used by other members of the family. According to the affidavit, Soliman also told the police he was driven by a desire "to kill all Zionist people" – a reference to the movement to establish and protect a Jewish state in Israel. Six victims hospitalized The attack at the popular Pearl Street pedestrian mall in downtown Boulder unfolded against the backdrop of the Israel-Hamas war, which continues to inflame global tensions and has contributed to a spike in antisemitic violence in the United States. The attack happened at the beginning of the Jewish holiday of Shavuot and barely a week after a man who also yelled "Free Palestine" was charged with fatally shooting two Israeli Embassy staffers outside a Jewish museum in Washington. The victims ranged in age from 52 to 88, and their injuries spanned from serious to minor, officials said. Six victims were initially taken to a hospital, and three remained hospitalized Tuesday at the UCHealth University of Colorado Hospital on the CU Anschutz Medical Campus, hospital spokesperson Kelli Christensen said. The Molotov cocktails were made up of glass wine carafe bottles or jars with clear liquid and red rags hanging out of the them, the FBI said. "He stated that he had been planning the attack for a year and was waiting until after his daughter graduated to conduct the attack," the affidavit says. He had gas in a backpack sprayer but told investigators he didn't spray it on anyone but himself "because he had planned on dying." Soliman also told investigators that he took a concealed-carry class and tried to buy a gun but was denied because he isn't a US citizen. Authorities said they believe Soliman acted alone. He was also injured and taken to a hospital. Authorities did not elaborate on the nature of his injuries, but a booking photo showed him with a large bandage over one ear. Soliman, who was born in Egypt, moved three years ago to Colorado Springs, where he lived with his wife and five children, according to court documents. He previously spent 17 years living in Kuwait.
France 24
12 hours ago
- France 24
New police search begins in hunt for missing Madeleine McCann
Madeleine was just three years old when she vanished from an apartment on the Algarve coast where she was on holiday with her family, sparking a global campaign to find her and unprecedented media coverage. A previous search of a lake near the Ocean Club resort in Praia da Luz in 2023 yielded no results but on Tuesday investigators were back in a part of nearby Lagos to hunt for clues. Several police vehicles with Portuguese and German number plates as well as fire trucks were seen down a cordoned-off dirt road towards the search site, AFP journalists at the scene saw. Portuguese police said about 25 German investigators were present, with the investigation looking at an abandoned building in an overgrown wooded area. The new searches -- carried out at the request of German authorities investigating Christian Brueckner, a convicted rapist who is suspected of having killed Madeleine -- are expected to last until Friday. According to the British tabloid The Sun, investigators are equipped with ground radar technology that can scan the ground down to 4.5 metres (15 feet) in depth. The area includes a cottage where Brueckner was living and is dotted with wells and ditches, it added. A mobile phone registered in Brueckner's name was traced close to the family's accommodation on the night Madeleine went missing. Determined Brueckner, a 48-year-old German national, is currently serving a seven-year prison sentence in Germany for the rape in 2005 of a 72-year-old American woman in Praia da Luz. He is due to complete his sentence in September. He was acquitted in October 2024 in Germany at trial for two sexual assaults and three rapes committed in Portugal between 2000 and 2017. German authorities in 2020 said they were convinced Brueckner was involved in Madeleine's disappearance, which gained worldwide publicity and has seen several false leads. He has not been charged in connection with the McCann case. Brueckner, who according to German media had a string of previous convictions, including for sexual offences, assault and theft before he was convicted of rape, worked as an odd-job man during his 10 years in the Algarve. He also burgled hotel rooms and holiday apartments. At the time of Madeleine's disappearance he was living in a camper van. On Tuesday, a journalist from Germany's RTL television recounted his correspondence with Brueckner, and how he had met him in prison. Brueckner, the journalist said, complained that "half the world" considered him to be a "cruel rapist". He said he wanted to eat steak and drink beer when he is released from prison. A former neighbour in Portugal had told Sky News television in 2020 that Brueckner was "always a bit angry, driving fast up and down the lane, and then one day, around 2006, he just disappeared without a word". He returned to Germany in 2007 -- the year Madeleine disappeared -- settling in Hanover, but still spent time in Portugal. On the 18th anniversary of their daughter's disappearance on May 3 this year, Madeleine's parents Kate and Gerry McCann said they were still determined to find out what happened. "We will do our utmost to achieve this."
France 24
15 hours ago
- France 24
Schwarzenegger surprises Vienna metro users with climate message
The Austrian Hollywood star is in town for an annual conference he organises on climate change. "Thank you for your commitment to a healthy planet," he says in German in the announcement, broadcast every 30 minutes over the intercom system of all public transport, according to network operator Wiener Linien. He continues in English that "you're all real climate action heroes, helping to unite in action and terminate pollution". Schwarzenegger, 77, launched the summit in his native Austria eight years ago to highlight the challenges of climate change. In his opening speech on Tuesday, Schwarzenegger, who has been an outspoken critic of US President Donald Trump, held back criticism, while calling for "action that makes their (people's) lives better". "I know that the people are sick and tired of the whining and the complaining and the doom and gloom. They want heroes... We have to win the people over," he said. This year, former British prime minister Tony Blair is attending, as well as Austrian Prime Minister Christian Stocker and Austrian President Alexander Van der Bellen.
