A mysterious room would be well hidden in the tomb of Tutankhamun – Le Figaro

COMPUTER GRAPHICS – New analyzes radar came reinforce the thesis of a secret cavity, which could be buried the famous Queen Nefertiti, defended by British archaeologist Nicholas Reeves the

The radar inspections have confirmed his presence. A secret passage leads to a cavity in the burial chamber of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings in Luxor. The discovery was immediately revived speculation on the last home of Nefertiti. No archaeologist has been able to locate the place where the queen of Egypt, who lived in the fourteenth century BCE and is the stepmother of the young pharaoh was buried. But radar measurements conducted in the funeral chamber Tutankhamun have increased the probability that a secret room hidden behind either.

“There is indeed an empty space behind that wall, if one believes that is the radar very precise, this is no doubt, “says the Japanese Hirokatsu Watanabe scientific Photo credits:. KHALED DESOUKI / AFP

“We said there was a 60% chance that there is something behind these walls. After the initial analysis of these scans, we now say that the probability that there is something behind these walls is 90%, “said Saturday the Egyptian Minister of Antiquities, Mamdouh al-Damati. Surveys were sent to Japan. Complete results are expected within a month. “There is indeed an empty space behind that wall, if one believes that the radar is very accurate, there’s no doubt,” says the Japanese scientific Hirokatsu Watanabe, who surveyed the walls of the burial chamber. The data seem to suggest the presence of a false bulkhead. However, nothing gives an idea of ​​the size of the cavity that would be concealed.

Minister already said and already expect the “discovery of the XXI century”, even if he thinks the secret room contains the grave of another wife of Akhenaton, daughter the pharaoh or a member of the royal family. The next step is to agree on the method to use to reach the cavity in question. Possible work, which would thus solve the mystery, could be carried out within three months. The British Egyptologist Nicholas Reeves, who heads the investigations, warns that the operation would be very delicate. “The conclusion is that there is an extension to the tomb of Tutankhamun, beyond the north wall,” says the archaeologist that this is the tomb of Nefertiti is behind the wall.

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The discovery in 1922 of the tomb of Tutankhamun and his great wealth by the expedition led by British archaeologist Howard Carter’s had a phenomenal impact. But many experts have been asking why the tomb of the young pharaoh, who died at the age of 18, was smaller in size than those of other kings of Egypt and built according to a plan more like those reserved for tombs queens. The mystery had its origin in the unexpected death of the boy king, after only nine years of rule, said Nicholas Reeves. Grave misconduct available to accommodate the deceased, priests have decided to reopen the tomb of Nefertiti, ten years after his death, to bury Pharaoh in the tomb which initially was not intended for him.

If hopes for the tomb of Nefertiti, whose beauty was immortalized on a bust now in the Neues Museum in Berlin, are confirmed, it could be the most important discovery of the century in terms of Egyptian antiquities. The bust was found in 1912 at Amarna, some 400 km north of Luxor. But Egyptologists have no proof that she was buried there.