Ancient Tomb of Thutmose II Found!

An ancient Egyptian carving shows a pharaoh kneeling, wearing a headdress, and holding two round objects in his hands. A mysterious hand extends an ankh, the symbol of life, toward him. Hieroglyphs and other symbols decorate the background. — Relief of Thutmose II at Karnak

An ancient royal tomb has been discovered in Egypt, the first royal tomb of a PHARAOH found in more than 100 years!

The tomb belongs to King Thutmose II, who REIGNED during the 15th century B.C. He was the husband of Queen Hatshepsut, who was later one of the only female pharaohs. Thutmose II and Hatshepsut ruled during one of Egypt’s most prosperous eras.

“It is one of the most important discoveries in this century because it was one of the tombs that we were not able to locate since the discovery of King Tut,” said Mohamed Ismail, secretary-general of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities. Ismail is referencing King Tutankhamun, whose tomb was discovered in 1922 and was the last tomb belonging to a pharaoh to be unearthed.

The entrance and main corridor of Thutmose II’s tomb were first uncovered in 2022. It took months for the team to clear enough debris to enter the tomb, according to British archaeologist Piers Litherland, the mission’s field director.

The tomb is located near the city of Luxor, near the resting places of royal women. However, the team found the burial chamber was decorated, which indicated it was a pharaoh’s tomb.

“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,” pointed out Litherland.

The tomb was built in a vulnerable area, located under a waterfall. Litherland said the tomb had been deliberately emptied within a few years after Thutmose II was buried, seemingly after being flooded. This meant that archaeologists had to use what was left in the tomb to determine who it belonged to— inscriptions on pieces of alabaster jars.

Litherland said Thutmose II was moved to a second tomb, and that the location of that tomb has been identified as well. However, it is buried under 80 feet of rock and limestone plaster.

While his tomb has only recently been found, Thutmose II’s mummy was found in the 19th century and is in the Egyptian Museum of National Civilization.