18th Dynasty Tomb in Luxor

This has been in the news for several weeks now and isn’t new by any means, but I thought it would be nice to collect some information and links about the new discovery in Luxor, Egypt just 5 meters from the tomb of Tutankhamen. It’ll probably be years before any scholarly reports will be published on the tomb and anyone with an interest in Archaeology or Egyptology is probably like me, sitting at the edge of their chair with each new morsal of information.

The Egyptian State Information Service is calling the find a "cache of mummies," and is a vertical grave that starts about 3 m below the surface and is about 1.5 m wide and nearly 2 m in length. 20 airtight jars were also found along with the 5 wooden sarcophagi, which comprised the cache of mummies.

Archaeology Magazine’s online news page reported that the mummies "date to the 18th dynasty (1539 to 1292 B.C)"

The cache was discovered by The Institute of Egyptian Art and Archaeology at the University of Mephis , and their site reports that there are 7 sarcophagi and that the tomb is actually 25 m south of Tutankhamen’s. Director of the Institute and a member of the team, Dr. Lorelei Corcoran is quoted on their website as saying, ""We do not know as yet the names, titles or status of the individuals who may have been buried there … and will not know … until we can examine and analyze the material thoroughly. …"

Until then, we all wait with bated breath as the tomb, designated KV 63, is excavated and the artifacts analyzed.

-Carl Feagans

About Carl Feagans 400 Articles
Professional archaeologist that currently works for the United States Forest Service at the Land Between the Lakes Recreation Area in Kentucky and Tennessee. I'm also a 12-year veteran of the U.S. Army and spent another 10 years doing adventure programming with at-risk teens before earning my master's degree at the University of Texas at Arlington.

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