The Valley of the Kings, located on the west bank of the Nile, opposite the ancient city of Thebes (now Luxor), is one of the most famous archaeological sites in the world. This sacred place was chosen by the pharaohs of the New Kingdom (about 1550-1070 BC) as a royal necropolis to build their tombs, hidden among the rocks, in order to protect them from looters.
The first tombs in the Valley of the Kings were dug directly into the rocky walls of the mountains, creating hypogeum complexes (underground tombs) that extended deep into the ground. This practice was an evolution compared to the pyramids of the Old Kingdom, which were more visible and therefore more vulnerable to theft.
Among the most famous tombs in the Valley of the Kings are that of Tutankhamun, discovered almost intact by Howard Carter in 1922, and that of Ramses II, one of the most powerful pharaohs of ancient Egypt. The tombs were decorated with intricate murals and hieroglyphics that told the story of the pharaoh's journey to the afterlife, according to Egyptian religious beliefs.
Despite efforts to hide the tombs, many were looted in ancient times. However, the Valley of the Kings remains an extraordinary testament to ancient Egyptian art, religion, and engineering, attracting visitors and scholars from around the world.
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The tomb now known as TT320 (Theban Tomb 320), previously referred to as DB320, is an archaeological site of great importance in the history of Egyptology. Located in the necropolis of Deir el-Bahri, near the Valley of the Kings, this tomb is famous for having been used as a royal hiding place for the mummies of numerous pharaohs and members of the royal family of the New Kingdom, moved here to protect them from looters.
The tomb is accessed through a vertical shaft dug into the rock, which descends for several meters. Once you reach the bottom of the shaft, you enter a corridor that leads to a series of underground rooms. These spaces include chambers and niches where dozens of mummies and funerary objects were placed.
The tomb was discovered in 1871 by a local family of excavators, the Abd el-Rassul brothers, who kept its existence secret for several years, clandestinely selling some of the finds. It was only in 1881 that the Egyptian authorities, led by Gaston Maspero, discovered the cache and began to study it systematically.
In addition to the pharaohs, the tomb also contained mummies of priests, nobles and members of the royal family, as well as a large quantity of funerary objects, including sarcophagi, ushabtis and canopic jars.
TT320 was not built as the original tomb for these pharaohs, but was reused during the Third Intermediate Period (ca. 1070–664 BCE) as a hiding place to protect royal mummies from looters who infested the Valley of the Kings. This reuse demonstrates the importance that the ancient Egyptians placed on preserving the bodies and funerary objects of their rulers.
Today, TT320 is considered one of the most important discoveries in the history of Egyptology, as it has allowed us to directly study the mummies of some of the greatest pharaohs of ancient Egypt and to better understand the funerary practices and political dynamics of the period.