Chapter 8

Bert brought up the projection of an aged document with dates and handwritten entries. The paper was a4 sized and neatly annotated in a curly script. The edges were hole-punched, with little reinforced rings of paper around the holes as if the papers had been carefully stored in an old fashioned ring folder. The title page said “Notes, Diary, and articles pertaining to;The Thebean royal acropolis and the tomb of Tutenkhamen.” The writing was clear but unfamiliar so it took some squinting and head scratching to read it. The entries were neatly dated on the left hand side. There were pages and pages of writing. 

Cai seemed to be the best at reading the handwritten notes so he started to give a summary to the others gathered around him. 

“This section of the diary seems to start in October 1922. He’s writing about returning from Luxor on a small sail boat, and starting work in the valley of the kings. He’s written that they were continuing previous excavations that had been started near the North East corner of the entrance to the tomb of Ramses VI”

”That’s the right place on the map isn’t it?” Said Tom, bringing up the map and checking again where the “X” was marked. 

“Yes I think so” said Cai. “It’s written here that they cleared away some old huts that were thought to be housing for the workmen who created the Tomb. The entry on the 4th November says that they found the first part of the entrance to the tomb, finding the beginnings of a sunken staircase!”

”So, if it was buried under the huts, there’s no way that anyone else could have got into the tomb and hidden anything before then, is there?” Said Tom .

”No, I agree”, said Bert. 

“Great”, exclaimed Mali. “Keep going Cai!”. Everyone was leaning forward, fascinated by the discovery unfolding within the pages of the diary, and imagining that they were there themselves. 

Cai read on. 

“Ok. So, by the 5th of November he’s written that they have uncovered a large portion of a sealed doorway at the bottom of the stairs. The door had seals on it which were complete, and so Carter was sure that this was a sign that the tomb was undisturbed.”

“What does he mean by the seals were intact?” Tom asked. 

Delyth spoke up. “I think the tombs were traditionally closed with special ropes tied to the handles, and a circle of clay which would be inscribed. If the doors were ever opened, the clay would break, and so you would know if anyone had been inside. A bit like those old fashioned scrolls where they would put a lump of melted wax to seal it shut, and then press a stamp into it to show who the sender was”. 

Tom nodded with understanding, and Cai continued. 

 “Carter then sends a message to Lord Carnarvon saying “At last we have made a wonderful discovery in the valley a magnificent tomb with seal intact. Recovered same for your arrival. Congratulations”. 

“Why is he saying congratulations to this Lord Carnarvon? Carter’s the one leading the dig isn’t he” said Mali. 

“I think” said Delyth, “that Lord Carnarvon was providing all the money for the dig. Carter had been looking for undiscovered tombs for years before he finally found King Tutenkhamen’s tomb. I suppose the congratulations is a way to say that all that money hadn’t been wasted.”

”Ok, so they have found the sealed doorway. What next” asked Tom with some impatience. 

Cai continued to read on. “It looks like over the next few weeks they are clearing those steps and waiting for people to arrive. Sounds like the place was being well guarded. There’s another person called Calender arriving, and someone called Engelbach who is the Chief inspector of the Antiquities department who comes to witness the intact seals”. 

“Maybe they needed someone official to see what was happening so that they didn’t just plant a pile of old pots and then claim they had found a sealed tomb?” suggested Mali. 

“That makes sense” agreed Tom. 

Cai continued. “Carter then writes about about making copies of the seal, before opening the doorway.”

”And then they’re in the tomb?” asked Mali learning forward in anticipation. 

“No, no where near!” replied Cai. “It says there was a 9 metre long hallway, sloping downwards that was full of rubble that needed to be cleared.”

”Ok, so still no one else getting in there at this point then?” said Bert.

”Not even a Cat” said Mo. 

“Not Cats” said Sal with a straight face but giving the side eye to Mo who had a little smirk on his face, clearly enjoying pushing Sal’s buttons.

“So we’re up to the 26th of November now” said Cai, reading on. “They’ve cleared the passageway and they’ve discovered another sealed doorway. On the seal is the symbol for King Tutenkhamun. There was a tiny crack at the top of the door which Carter carefully widened, just enough to be able to look through. They used a candle and a torch and…”

Everyone was entranced. 

“And what?” said Tom. 

“It says with the light was revealed a marvellous collection of treasures”.

”Treasure!!” gasped collected voices, almost forgetting the reason for reading the diaries. 

“Yes!” said Cai. “It lists all the things they could see in the light. Statues with with gold ornaments, inlaid caskets, a golden throne, overturned parts of a gold chariot…”

”A Gold chariot!” Exclaimed Mali, eyes glinting with interest. 

“King Tutenkhamen’s tomb is famous for the riches that it contained” said Delyth. “The ancient Egyptians believed that they needed to be buried with everything that they would need for their life in the afterworld. They also believed that they needed items like amulets and scarabs to protect them on their journey through to their next life. For royals like King Tut they would be buried with only the best. They even include miniature models of people called Shabtis that would become servants for them in the afterlife.”

“Creepy!” Said Mo.

“So, do they go through the door into the treasure room” asked Tom. 

“No, it seems like they wait for the next day. It says they cover up the hole with a wooden shutter. They set up more electrical lighting, and send a message for the Chief Inspector of antiquities to return. The next day they go through the door into the treasure chamber. This bit is weird though…”

”What’s weird?” Asked Tom.

”Well, if you were the chief inspector of antiquities in Egypt, and you knew that a discovery of an undisturbed Egyptian tomb was about to be made, you wouldn’t miss that for the world, would you?” asked Cai.

”Absolutely not” agreed Delyth 

“Well” continued Cai “this guy did. Miss it, I mean. It says here that when they went into the treasure room for the first time, they were accompanied by a replacement for the chief inspector, a man called Effendi. There’s a photo of the group here”. 

Cai “grabbed” the projected photo. In the grainy black and white photo was a group of men and women in old fashioned desert clothing and wide brimmed hats. There was a tall man in the background wearing a slightly lumpy head covering and smiling with perhaps too many teeth. And at his feet was an unusually large, black cat.