{"id":357867,"date":"2026-09-27T00:08:12","date_gmt":"2026-09-27T00:08:12","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/357867\/"},"modified":"2026-09-27T00:08:12","modified_gmt":"2026-09-27T00:08:12","slug":"new-clues-from-pharaohs-tomb-revive-queens-lost-remains-theory","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/357867\/","title":{"rendered":"New clues from Pharaoh\u2019s tomb revive queen\u2019s lost remains theory"},"content":{"rendered":"

A new geophysical survey of the tomb of one of ancient Egypt\u2019s most prominent pharaohs, Tutankhamun, points to the possible existence of hidden corridors and chambers behind the burial chamber, reviving a long-standing theory that part of Queen Nefertiti\u2019s lost tomb may be concealed within the same complex in Luxor.<\/p>\n

The study, led by former Egyptian antiquities minister Mamdouh Eldamaty, focuses on anomalies detected behind the walls of Tutankhamun\u2019s burial chamber, as highlighted <\/a>in an article by the Arab News outlet.<\/p>\n

The data suggest the presence of hidden passageways and possibly sealed chambers adjacent to the known rooms, extending 25 to 30 metres north of KV62, the official designation of Tutankhamun\u2019s tomb in the Valley of the Kings, where he was originally laid to rest following his unexpected death at the young age of 18 or 19.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The research team has applied to Egypt\u2019s Supreme Council of Antiquities for permission to drill an 8-centimetre hole through the limestone hill above the tomb, allowing miniature cameras to examine what may lie inside.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere is genuine hope that beyond the walls of KV62 is a \u2018hidden royal monument capable of illuminating one of the most obscure and controversial chapters of ancient Egyptian history\u2019,\u201d Eldamaty said in the team\u2019s conclusions, published in the Occasional Papers of the Amarna Royal Tombs Project.<\/p>\n

The researchers said the findings from an unprecedented range of scientific techniques, including radar, thermal imaging and measurements of deeply buried archaeological structures, \u201cprovide additional scientific support for the view that the structure of KV62 predates the interment of Tutankhamun and is likely to be more extensive than traditionally understood\u201d.<\/p>\n

Queen Nefertiti lived more than 3,000 years ago and was the wife of Akhenaten. She is also thought by many scholars to have been Tutankhamun\u2019s mother.<\/p>\n

Decades-old debate<\/p>\n

The findings have generated a mixed reaction, partly because they reopen a debate that began in 2015, when British Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves, a co-author of the latest study, proposed that secret chambers and corridors behind Tutankhamun\u2019s burial chamber could contain the long-lost tomb of Nefertiti, the wife of Pharaoh Akhenaten.<\/p>\n

Reeves first suggested in 2015 that Nefertiti could be buried in a hidden chamber within Tutankhamun\u2019s tomb, which was discovered by British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922. He has spent the past decade seeking evidence to support the theory, including through several radar studies.<\/p>\n

Reeves has pointed to the unusually small size of Tutankhamun\u2019s tomb. KV62 contains four chambers, only one of which is decorated, a layout he argues does not fit a typical 18th Dynasty royal burial site.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

The traditional explanation is that the tomb was originally a private burial site that was hastily adapted for Tutankhamun after his unexpected death at the age of 19, when his intended tomb had not yet been completed.<\/p>\n

Reeves instead argues that the original tomb was built for a queen and that only its outermost sections were adapted for Tutankhamun. Under his theory, the chamber was not originally intended for the young pharaoh but formed part of a larger royal tomb, with a decorated wall concealing passages leading to additional rooms.<\/p>\n

Based on the layout and decoration, Reeves has argued that the occupant of those rooms would have been a woman of pharaonic status who preceded Tutankhamun \u2014 namely Nefertiti.<\/p>\n

Nefertiti, the wife of the so-called \u201cheretic\u201d pharaoh Akhenaten, is one of ancient Egypt\u2019s most famous figures. She is known for her iconic bust and her central role in a radical religious revolution that briefly moved Egypt\u2019s capital to Amarna.<\/p>\n

The bust of Nefertiti, discovered in 1912 during excavations at a sculptor\u2019s workshop, is held at the Neues Museum in Berlin and has become the subject of a campaign calling for its return to Egypt.<\/p>\n

Despite her prominence, Nefertiti\u2019s final resting place has never been found. Her tomb remains one of Egyptology\u2019s most sought-after discoveries and could provide valuable evidence about the end of the 18th Dynasty and Egypt\u2019s return to traditional rule.<\/p>\n

By Nazrin Sadigova<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"A new geophysical survey of the tomb of one of ancient Egypt\u2019s most prominent pharaohs, Tutankhamun, points to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":357868,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[37],"tags":[12197,12203,12202,12198,12201,2482,12200,9,24,12199,12196,63,122,124,123],"class_list":["post-357867","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-queens","tag-analysis-of-azerbaijan","tag-azerbaijan","tag-baku","tag-important-news-of-azerbaijan","tag-international-experts","tag-interviews","tag-interviews-with-azerbaijani-analysts","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-news-from-baku","tag-news-of-azerbaijan","tag-nyc","tag-queens","tag-queens-headlines","tag-queens-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357867","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=357867"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/357867\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/357868"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=357867"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=357867"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=357867"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}