Evening star., 1923-02-19
Cdr1,aruon Writes of Wonders
He Sa,U IN Tomb of Pharaoh
Gorgeous Ostrich Feather Fan, in Per.
feet Condition, 81 Centuries Old,
r. Among Objects Found.
BY THE EARL OF cARNARvoN.

DY THE EARL OF CARNARvoN.
rs london Times-New York Times Copy
right. By arrangement with the Earl o.
Carnarvou.)
By Cable to The Star.
LUXOR, Egypt. February 19.-I find
1t most difficult to write about or de.
scribe what I saw and felt when ! en-,
tered the inner chamber Of the tomb oi
Tutankhamen. for Of a surety I never
dreamed should gaze upon the amaz.
Ing sight which met my gaze.
In the course Of the morning Mr.. Car
ter had cased with .planking tho two
bituminized statues OF the king on eac
side OF the sealed door. so that no hurt
could come to them, and had also bull,
sort Of wooden stage to enable him tc
attack the sealed door at tho top.
Prof. Breasted had also spent several
hours copying the seals on the door be-
fore they were finally broken away, and
rom their grouping he has, / under
stand, been able 10 deduce some inter
esttng facts.
Twenty in Party.
When we assembled there were about
tWenty people. What with the heat OF
the day outside and the electric lamps
and the crowding together OF so many
N such n confined space, the air was
insufferably hot. Interest in the pro-
ceedings, however, far outweighed any
such trif1ing matter.
The work was begun by Mr.. Carriers
chipping away the cement at the top OF
the sealed door. But he had not pro-
ceeded far when it was discovered that
there was what proved to be a broad
Intel at the top Of a built-up wall.
The cement was exceedingly hard, and
a Of omit fy,rr unit ~
chisel to detach it from the stones form
ing the backing Of the wall. And the
greatest care had TO be exercised. be-
cause we were anxious to preserve all
sible.
Gains First Glimpse.
After little while a small aperture
was made, through which II was pos
slble to peep, and IL became evident
that there was no empty chamber or
passage confronting us, but that we
we're looking at some large built-up
structure. With the aid of an electric
torch we managed to make out that
~ was the top of what appeared to
oc large canopy, carved and gilded.
The work proceeded slowly, for the
cement still was very hard and the
greatest care was necessary, till sud-
denly an interruption occurred, for on
one OF the inner stones there lay the
remains of a necklace Of beads of
faience and gold with two ornamental
clasps.
There it evidently had been dropped,
presumably 5000 years ago, by some
one who either did not notice it or
did not take the trouble to pick 1t up
because he already was loaded with
plunder.
Guessed 1t Was Canopy.
Much more of the construction of
the interior object was now visible
6JG fan hot G
some kind Of a catafalQue or canopy
was confirmed. 1t was now seen to
De an enormous structure of wood
most elaborately carved and gilded
and inlaid with blue faience. Alto
gether 1t forms one Of the most mag
nificent and remarkable objects ever
discovered.
Now also we could see that the
walls of the interior of this chamber
were painted, but in the short time at
our disposal it was impossible to ex-
anime 1T closely. The painting, how
ever, did not seem to me to be very
fine, and 1t appeared also to have suf-
fered from damp and to be disfigured
from the outside it was easy to dis
tinguish among the decorations the
cartouche of Tutankhamen.
This canopy was so close to the
opening and left so little space that
precautions had to be taken before 1t
was possible to think OF getting in. At
last by means Of a mattress placed
against the canopy it became possi-
Bile to risk an entry.
Carter First to Enter.
Mr.. Carter went in first and after a
short while announced to US, waiting
outside, that there was no doubt it
was the tomb of the king.
With the greatest care followed in
and whatever emotion and excitement
I may have felt when L entered the
n x,I,1 49,
when l realized that was going into
what undoubtedly was the practically
untouched tomb Of an Egyptian king.
Moving carefully round to the right
We found on the east side Of the
shrine or canopy two large doors:
They were closed by means Of bolt
and hung OH heavy bronze hinges.
With ominous creakinSs we man
aged to open door. only to find our
selves confronted with a second can
tween two structures were some Of
the most marvellous alaba ster orna-
nnents 1t is possible to imagine. One
beautiful little painted pot with lid
tongue l could scarcely take my eyes
sH.
Could Not See All In Detail.
It was impossible to open the door
sufficiently to be able to see in detail
all that lay between the two walls,
the outer and the inner wall, but It
was possible to see that the whole in
tArior of the outer wall was carved
and gildcd.
The second shrine was similar and
had double DOORS exactly opposite
those we had. opened. but.,a q very i'm
portant point was that the inner doors
were sealed with small seals and
string, and the whole sealing arrange
ment was perfectly intact. 1t was,
therefore, almost certain that the
body of the king was lying some
where in this second shrine or in one
even farther in untouched. Do.
AS far as l know, this has never
happened before. We have only found
royal personages either hidden away
or very much plundered. In the case
of the tomb of Ramses ". If / recol-
lect the papyrus rightly, five of these
shrines or canopies figured as sur
rounding the kings sarcophagus.
There Is room for as many as that in
this tomb, but it is imprudeht to
venture any prophecy on the subject.
Wonderful Objects Seen.
The space is SO constructed between
the walls of the chamber and those OF
the outer shrine that 1t is impossible
where the entrance doors are situated,
but with the help of lamp I could
discern black paddles or oars for the
deceased kings use after death, laid
Egyptian King Pre
BeIgiu1, Queer, II