Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1903-04-16
ROYAL TOMB AT THEBES
FIND BURIAL
PLACE OF THoTHMEs ~.
Excavations Made Under Direction Of
an Acknowledgements Granite
Sarcophagus.
From the London Times

riom tue LONDON Times.
The great event of the Egyptian season
from an archaeological point OF view has
| been the discovery Of the tomb of one OF
the Pharaohs of the eighteenth dynasty,
Thothmes ". For the last two years Mr..
Theodore M. Davies, an American gentle
man. who is well known in Egypt. has been
excavating steadily and systematically in
the Valley of the Tombs of the Kings at
Thebes. clearing the rubbish away inch by
inch and SO laying bare the bed rock He
has been rewarded this spring by the dis
covery of a previously unknown royal tomb.
The mummy of Thothmes " is in the
Cairo Museum. having been found in the
tomb of Amen-hotep II. to which it had
been conveyed by the Egyptian priests for
the purpose of concealment, probably In
the age of the twenty-first dynasty, but
the sepulcher of the Pharaoh had never
been discovered, though it was pretty GER
tain that it was hidden somewhere under
the debris in the Valley of the Tombs OF
the Kings.
The Discovery.
The actual discovery was made by Mr..
Howard Carter. the inspector of the monu-
ments of Upper Egypt, who has been con-
Quoting the excavations for Mr.. Davies. and
it is to his care and practiced skill that
We owe not only the preservation of all the
objects found in the tomb, but also a scien-
tifc record of the conditions under which
they were discovered. The tomb ITSELF like
the other royal tombs in the same valley.
consists of a gallery cut into the heart of
the mountain. After sloping downward
for a considerable distance, 1t is interrupt
ed by deep square WELL on one of the
walls Of which is band of paintings. On
the further side of the well the passage
turns back upon itself, and finally opens
into large chamber, at the extreme end
Of which Is magnificent sarcophagus of
granite covered with texts from the Book
of the Dead. On either side are smaller
chambers, the floor of one of which was
covered with mummiffed loins of beef legs
Of mutton and trussed ducks and geese, Of
fer1ngs made to the dead king between 1900
and 1900 years ago. Clay seals with the
name Of the kind had been attached to the
doors of the chambers and it is interest
ing to observe that the Egyptians Of the
eighteenth dynasty had already to some
extent anticipated the invention of print
ing. the raised portions of the seals having
been smeared with blue ink before being
impressed upon the clay.
Plundered by Robbers.
The walls of a chamber which served as
vestibule to that in which the sarcopha-
gus was laid are adorned with few paint
ings, and on one of them is a hieratic IN
scription, dated In the eighth year of Hor-
em-heb. and stating that the tomb had
been plundered by robbers. but restored
as far as possible by that Pharaoh 1t
was doubtless at that time that the lew
elry and other precious objects buried with
the king were stolen.
More than enough was left. however. to
satisfy the archaeologist of today The
floor was literally covered with vases.
dishes, boomerangs, symbols of life ami
other objects Of blue fatence. Unfortu-
nately, nearly all of them have been wan
tonly broken; in some cases the damage
must have been done by the original desc
orators of the tomb, as the breakage has
been repaired in the time of Hor-em-h heb
1ntermixed with the faience were frag-
ments of exquistely shaped cups and vases
Of rich blue or variegated glass. There ara
also fragments of an opaque white glass
as well as what would have been pro-
nounced to be the bottoms of modern beer
bottles had they been met with on the
surface OF the ground. Equally interesting
Is a piece of textile fabric into which
hieroglyphic characters Of different colore
have been woven with such wonderful skill
as to present the appearance of painting on
linen.
Pharaoh's Chariot.
The great and unique find, however. has
been that Of the, actual chariot which was
made for the Pharaoh, and in which he
rode at Thebes. The body of it alone Is
preserved. but in perfect condition. The
wooden frame was first covered with papief
mache made from papyrus. and this again
with stucco, which has been carved, both
inside and out, into scenes from the battles
fought by the Pharaoh in Syria. The art
is of very high order. every detail being
exquisitely finished and the faces Of the
Syrians being clearly portraits taken from
captiyes at Thebes. The chariot is. In fact.
one OF the finest specimens Of art that have
come down to US from antiquity. and that
1t should have been made for the grand
father of '.the hereto king" whose foreign
has thrown such light
the history of the ancient east. lends to 1t
additional interest. Along with the chariot
was found the leather gauntlet with which
the king protected his hand and wrist when
using the bow or reins.
Enraged Reader-'I have come in to
h0rsewhip the editor.
Of9ca RoY-"YOu'u have tn VaM ~