Get to Know Secrets of Forgotten Kings' Valleys

Most people only know the Valley of the Kings, where King Tutankhamun's tomb is located and it is the only royal cemetery that has been fully uncovered in the valley.

Prominent Egyptologist and Archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass said that all the royal tombs, numbering about 24, have been completely looted and cemeteries' thieves talked about these thefts.

There is another valley called the western valley which contains only five tombs, including two tombs for King Amenhotep III, the father of King Akhenaten and King Ay, who assumed the throne after the death of King Tutankhamen, especially as this golden pharaoh left no heir to the throne, according to the prominent Egyptologist.

Hawass said that we know quite a little about the period between King Tutankhamen's death and king Ay’s assumption of the throne, adding that Queen Nefertiti was the co-regent of king Akhenaten and changed her name.

After the death of Akhenaten, she assumed the reign of Egypt under the name of “Smenkhkare”. On the walls of tombs and temples built during Akhenaten’s reign, Nefertiti is depicted in positions of power and authority, driving a chariot and smiting an enemy.

Concerning the other forgotten valleys, Hawass believes that they contain various tombs, especially as the 18th dynasty queens' tombs have not been discovered so far, so he thinks that one of these valleys was dedicated to the queens’ burial.

The archaeologist noted that the first forgotten valley is located directly behind the eastern valley, adding that excavation works started there last month.

The second one is Khuouy (Dolman) valley; an archaeological mission has begun working there a month ago. At the beginning of the excavations, about 13 hieroglyphic and hieratic graffiti were discovered, including one bearing the name of King Ahmose, the first king of the 18th family, who expelled the Hyksos from Egypt and built his pyramid in El Araba El Madfuna, South of Sohag.

Is there any hope of uncovering a royal tomb in these forgotten valleys? This is what we will discover in the coming days...

Contributed by Nada Mustafa