King Tut Revealed - Tomb Robbers

Submitted by Prad on Fri, 11/27/2009 - 11:23

Description

Dr Zahi Hawass talks about the tomb robbers and how the Tomb of King Tutankhamun was saved from being raided after it was sealed by the Valley of the Kings police. Work on creating the Tomb of Ramesses VI, which is adjacent to KV62, led to part of King Tut's tomb caving in and sealing the entrance. It makes KV62 the only tomb in the Valley of the Kings to be discovered fully intact.

You can read more about this video in this blogpost, as well as being able to watch the previous videos in this series:

Related Heritage ExpertsZahi Hawass, Sandro Vannini

CreditsDr Zahi Hawass, Sandro Vannini, Nico Piazza, Sharif Shoaier

Transcription

When the [KV62] tomb was found, it was found completely by accident, as [Carter] was looking around in the Valley of the Kings. And why this tomb was saved? Because in the time of the pharaohs the tomb was entered three times. And after that the police of the cemetery sealed the tomb. But it can be raided again. But we were so lucky that the tomb of Ramesses VI, which is next door to this tomb, when they were cutting that tomb, the stone fell down and covered the entrance of the tomb of Tutankhamun. We have to thank the workmen, who were working on the cutting of the tomb of Ramesses VI; because of them the tomb was saved.

King Tut ruled for ten years and look what we found inside this tomb of treasures. Can you imagine if the tomb of Ramesses II, who ruled for more than 66 years, would be discovered intact, what will happen?

You know, in the Valley of the Kings there are 63 tombs now. Only the tomb of King Tut was found intact and the tomb of Yuya and Thuya was found semi-intact. The mayor of the East Bank found evidence that the mayor of the West Bank was robbing the tombs and stealing from the tombs. He wrote the report and they investigated the case and found, they wrote: “Everything is fine.”

But the vizier of the East Bank could not give up. And he went to the King until he got an honest committee, and they wrote an account of every tomb. They opened every tomb and they said: “These things are missing, this gold is not there, this chair isn't there.” It was the first account to the tomb robbery. And that is the papiri that is called 'Tomb robbery', which can show what happened to the tomb. At the end of New Kingdom people used to go inside the tomb robbing it, hiding and drumming and go to the Valley, lighting and searching... It was amazing.

In the Valley of the Kings there are tombs that we have not found. The tomb of Nefertiti is not found yet, the tomb of Amenhotep I is not found yet. All these are treasures. Maybe, we will repeat the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun.