Valley of Kings Tomb KV8 Open

The tomb of Ramses II's thirteenth son, King Merenptah, is now open to visitors in the Valley of Kings. The tomb is one of the longest and biggest in the valley and has been closed for restoration for a number of years.

Most interesting is the restoration of one of the broken sarcophagus boxes, which is now the largest in the valley. The well-preserved mummy of the king was found in 1898 in the tomb of Amenhotep II.

Photo: Hajor, Dec 2002

Return of Old Kingdom Blocks

Two sandstone blocks have been returned to Egypt and are currently under restoration at the National Museum. The two blocks are said to be off old kingdom monuments.

The smaller block has a representation of the lioness Goddess Sekhmet, while the other larger block is part of a title for the king of Upper and Lower Egypt. The block had a New Zealand photographer who passed away last year.

Tomb of Princess Shert Nebty

Archaeologists working at Abu Sir have discovered the tomb of a 5th dynasty princess named Shert Nebty. The 4500-year-old tomb discovered by the Czek Institute of Egyptology, headed by Dr. Miroslav Barta, has several statues in its courtyard.

The archaeologists also found four huge limestone sarcophagi and many statues of officials.