Tomb KV40 is located in the Valley of the Kings in Egypt. The original occupant of this tomb is unknown. However, artefacts from the tomb attribute it to 18th Dynasty royal family members. Human remains from the later 22nd Dynasty were also interred. Although Victor Loret excavated the tomb in 1899, no report was published.
Archaeological excavations conducted in 2014 uncovered the remarkable remains of at least 50 individuals belonging to minor royalty, distributed across several subterranean burial chambers. Although the site was heavily looted on multiple occasions—both during antiquity and again toward the end of the nineteenth century—it was not entirely stripped bare. The tomb still preserved a wealth of artifacts and fragments of original funerary equipment. These included pieces of painted wooden coffins, cartonnage mummy masks, and finely woven linen textiles.
Excavations of Tomb KV40
On 28 April 2014, the Egyptian Minister of State for Antiquities announced the discovery of at least 50 mummies in the centre chamber and three side chambers of KV40 by an Egyptian-Suisse archaeological team. Based on inscriptions on storage jars, Egyptologists identified more than thirty people.
Owners
The mummies in KV40 come from both the 18th and 22nd dynasties. The royal titles found on many jars indicated that the buried were members of the Thutmosis IV and Amenhotep III families. They were interred in the Valley of the Kings.
The analysis of the hieratic inscriptions points to hitherto unknown royal princesses, four princes, and several foreign women, primarily adults. Mummified children have also been found. The royal princes and princesses are said to be from the house of the royal children in the inscriptions.
In a lecture at the Museo Egizio (2015), Dr Bickel indicated that twelve royal daughters have been identified so far. Names include the King’s Daughter Neferunebu, the King’s daughter Nefertari, and the King’s Son Meri-taui.
One of the women was identified as the King’s Daughter, Taemwadjes, one of the royal sons, indicating she was the King’s granddaughter. Some women are not royal. Additionally, some women have clear foreign names from the Near East and Nubia.
The finds in the 2014 excavations include a linen sock worn in sandals and fragments of funerary equipment.