Egyptologists, in a remarkable breakthrough, have unearthed the long-lost tomb of Pharaoh Thutmose II, the first discovery of a royal burial since the famed uncovering of Tutankhamun’s tomb over a century ago.
The significant find was made in the Western Valleys of the Theban Necropolis, near Luxor, by a British-Egyptian archaeological team.
For years, scholars believed that the burial sites of 18th dynasty pharaohs were located over two kilometers away, near the Valley of the Kings.
However, this discovery challenges previous assumptions, as the tomb was found in an area traditionally associated with royal women.
Upon entering the burial chamber, the team encountered unmistakable signs that it belonged to a pharaoh.
The field director of the excavation, Dr. Piers Litherland, described the moment they identified key royal symbols.
“Part of the ceiling was still intact: a blue-painted ceiling with yellow stars on it. And blue-painted ceilings with yellow stars are only found in kings’ tombs,” he explained.
Recounting his emotions, Dr. Litherland told the BBC’s Newshour programme that the moment was overwhelming.
“The emotion of getting into these things is just one of extraordinary bewilderment because when you come across something you’re not expecting to find, it’s emotionally extremely turbulent really,” he said. “And when I came out, my wife was waiting outside and the only thing I could do was burst into tears.”
This discovery resolves a long-standing mystery about the burial sites of early 18th dynasty rulers. Although the mummified remains of Thutmose II were found nearly two centuries ago, his original tomb had remained elusive.
Thutmose II, who ruled around 1493 to 1479 BC, was an ancestor of Tutankhamun and the husband of Queen Hatshepsut, one of Egypt’s most renowned female pharaohs.
The tomb itself, with its grand staircase and a vast descending corridor, reflected the stature of the king.
Dr. Litherland described the challenges of accessing the burial chamber. “It took us a very long time to get through all that,” he said, explaining that the passage was blocked by flood debris and the ceilings had collapsed. The team had to crawl through a narrow 40cm gap in a 10-meter passageway before reaching the burial chamber.
Inside, they discovered not only the distinctive blue ceiling but also decorations from the Amduat, a sacred text reserved for kings.
However, despite the grandeur of the tomb’s design, it was entirely empty. “Not because it was robbed but because it had been deliberately emptied,” Dr. Litherland revealed.
The team later determined that the tomb had suffered severe flooding, as it had been constructed beneath a waterfall.
Only a few years after the burial, the water damage likely led to the removal of its contents to another location in ancient times.
While sifting through the limestone debris in the chamber, the team uncovered fragments of alabaster jars inscribed with the names of Thutmose II and Hatshepsut.
These broken artifacts provided the crucial evidence needed to confirm the tomb’s owner. “And thank goodness they actually did break one or two things because that’s how we found out whose tomb it was,” Dr. Litherland remarked.
These objects are the first ever found linked to Thutmose II’s burial. The team now has an idea of where the second tomb, potentially still intact with its treasures might be located.
The discovery is the result of over 12 years of research by the New Kingdom Research Foundation and Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
The team has previously identified more than 30 royal wives and court women while excavating 54 tombs in the western Theban mountain.
Egypt’s minister of tourism and antiquities, Sherif Fathy, hailed the discovery as historic.
“This is the first royal tomb to be discovered since the ground-breaking find of King Tutankhamun’s burial chamber in 1922,” he stated. “It is an extraordinary moment for Egyptology and the broader understanding of our shared human story.”
