The director had to be notified, but there was a problem: Reisner was not in Egypt at the time, but in Boston, where he was professor of Egyptology at Harvard University. His colleagues started digging without him. They found an irregular and narrow passage 25 meters long and covered with rubble. This was a strong indication that they had discovered a tomb. But since the tombs at Giza have been ransacked many times over the millennia, you are unlikely to find an intact burial vault.
Read also: Very rare lion mummies discovered in Egypt
While Reisner was attending his lecture on Saturday, March 7, for the following Monday, his team finally discovered the entire trail thousands of miles away. They were amazed at what they found. TRD Greenlees described this moment in his journal:
At 3:30 pm the rock on the south side could be seen falling at an angle, and immediately afterwards the top of the room door became visible.
A block of limestone was dismantled and removed to see what was inside. A large area extending slightly to the east and west can be seen from the door. In the foreground, something resembling a sarcophagus can be seen, on which there are several bars or rods with a gilded top. Much gilding appears on other things on Earth. There is no doubt that the burial vault is intact.
For those excavating, this was their moment of victory, but Reisner sent a telegram from Boston later that week ordering a halt to work in Egypt. The tomb was closed again.
Read also: The Mummy Trade: From Scene to Science
