Tombs in Thebes, Valley of the Kings
There are hundreds of tombs in Thebes (modern Luxor), only a few of which are open to tourists and even fewer which are visited by many of them. Most people are familiar with the Valley of the Kings, and hundreds flock to see the Tomb of Tutankhamen, never realizing that dozens of more exciting, more vivid tombs exist in the valley.
Most tours offer visits to one or two of the kings’ tombs and the Tomb of Tutankhamen. I can’t quite understand why, since the tomb of Tut is perhaps the least interesting of the tombs in the valley. We remember it well because it is the only unmolested tomb found in our century — the thousands of funerary pieces and statues, the massive sarcophagi and the spectacular golden lid of Tutankhamen’s coffin have awed visitors to the Egyptian Museum in Cairo for nearly a century. But his tomb alone is small and poorly decorated.
But, if you have the time, there is so much more to see. There are 62 tombs in the Valley of the Kings alone, and hundreds of others in the Valley of the Nobles nearby. Queen and princes are buried in the Valley of the Queens, and the common workers tombs in the Valley of the Workers are well worth a visit. Most tombs are not open to the public, but those that are provide a chronological survey of art and writing from the New Kingdom pharaohs and their royal courts.
The Valley of the Kings is well documented, and has been the location for archeological excavations since antiquity. A comprehensive survey of the area, and detailed information about the tombs that have been found, can be seen at the ambitious Theban Mapping Project. The site is fabulous!
Note that the first fifteen tombs listed below have been open since antiquity, or at least since before the advent of modern archaeological techniques.
The tombs in the Valley of the Kings are noted as follows. Click on the pharaoh’s name for a brief history of that pharaoh, including names, dates, and that sort of information. Click on the tomb number to see a description of the tomb and, where available, photos.:
| # | Pharaoh | Notes | Dynasty |
|---|---|---|---|
| KV 1 | Ramesses VII | 20th | |
| KV 2 | Ramesses IV | papyrus plan exists | 20th |
| KV 3 | son of Ramesses III | 20th | |
| KV 4 | Ramesses XI | 20th | |
| KV 5 | sons of Ramesses II | 19th | |
| KV 6 | Ramesses IX | 20th | |
| KV 7 | Ramesses II | 19th | |
| KV 8 | Merenptah | 19th | |
| KV 9 | Ramesses V and VI | Greek tomb of “Memnon” | 20th |
| KV 10 | Amenmesse | 19th | |
| KV 11 | Ramesses III | begun by Sethnakht | 20th |
| KV12 | anonymous | crosses Ramesses VI tomb | |
| KV 13 | Chancellor Bay | 19th | |
| KV 14 | Tawosret | and Seti II, usurped by Sethnakht | 19th |
| KV 15 | Seti II | 19th | |
| KV 16 | Ramesses I | excavated 1817 | 19th |
| KV 17 | Seti I | excavated 1817 | 19th |
| KV 18 | Ramesses X | 20th | |
| KV 19 | Ramesses VIII | excavated 1817 | 20th |
| KV 20 | Thutmose I, Hatshepsut | first tomb in the valley, excavated 1799 | 18th |
| KV21 | queens (2) | excavated 1817 | 18th |
| WV 22 | Amenhotep III | Western Valley, excavated 1799 | 18th |
| WV 23 | Ay | Western Valley, originally for Tutankhamun | 18th |
| WV 24 | anonymous | Western Valley | |
| WV 25 | possibly Akhenaton | Western Valley, excavated in 1817 | 18th |
| KV 26 | unknown | excavated 1898 | |
| KV 27 | family tomb | excavated 1898 | 18th |
| KV 28 | excavated 1898 | ||
| KV 29 | excavated 1899 | ||
| KC 30 | family tomb | excavated 1817 | 18th |
| KV 31 | excavated 1817 | ||
| KV 32 | excavated 1898 | ||
| KV 33 | excavated 1898 | ||
| KV 34 | Thutmose III | excavated 1898 | 18th |
| KV 35 | Amenhotep I | excavated 1898 | 18th |
| KV 36 | Mahirpra | excavated 1899 | |
| KV 37 | anonymous | excavated 1899 | |
| KV 38 | Thutmose I | relocatedThutmose III from KV 20, excavated 1899 | 18th |
| KV 39 | Amenhotep I (possible) | excavated 1899 | 18th |
| KV 40 | anonymous | excavated 1899 | |
| KV 41 | anonymous | excavated 1899 | |
| KV 42 | Hatshepsut-Merytre (wife of Thutmose II | excavated 1900 | 18th |
| KV 43 | Thutmose IV | excavated 1903 | 18th |
| KV 44 | 18th dynasty | contains Tentkaru of XXII Dynasty, excavated 1901 | |
| KV 45 | Userhet | excavated 1902 | 18th |
| KV 46 | Yuya and Thuya | parents of Queen Tiye, excavated 1905 | |
| KV 47 | Siptah | excavated 1905 | 19th |
| KV 48 | Vizier Amenemopet | excavated 1906 | 18th |
| KV 49 | excavated 1906 | 18th | |
| KV 50 | animal burials (52_) | excavated 1906 | |
| KV 53 | excavated 1905/6 | ||
| KV 54 | Tutankhamun cache | excavated 1907 | 18th |
| KV 55 | Amarna cache | possibly Akhenaton or Tiye, excavated 1907 | 18th |
| KV 56 | Jewelry cache | “Gold Tomb” from Seti II and Tawosret, excavated 1908 | |
| KV 57 | Horemheb | excavated 1908 | 18th |
| KV 58 | excavated 1908 | ||
| KV 59 | “tomb commencement” pit | ||
| KV 60 | Sitre-in and Hatshepsut | excavated 1903 | 18th |
| KV 61 | excavated 1910 | ||
| KV 62 | Tutankhamun | originally Ay, excavated 1922 | 18th |