Egyptian Tourism Minister Leak? Tutankhamun Tomb's Hidden Chamber is 'Full of Treasures'

An article published on the 21st in Spanish newspaper ABC reported that during his recent trip to Spain, Tourism Minister of Egypt Hisham Zaazou appears to let slip that not only has the hidden chamber's existence been conclusively proven — up from 90% certainty in the most recent update by Egyptian Minister of Antiquities Mamdouh Eldamaty — but that the chamber is known to be "full of treasures!"

Here are relevant Google translated excerpts from the A BC article:

Tourism Minister of Egypt, Hisham Zaazou, who was in our country a few weeks ago, confirmed that finally the announcement will be made ​​in April. " It will be a" Big Bang " , the discovery of the XXI century." He said some more facts about the finding. One of the options being shuffled apart from the intact burial chamber was an empty room. It is not empty. "It is full of treasures," the minister said.

"Reeves found a wall behind the tomb of Tutankhamen leading to a room where there are proven metals, stones ... It is full of treasures . Now with special cameras must be observed ... If the treasures appear, it will open. We are working on it and in April we will announce news and the world. "

Issues of translation aside, there are either some apparent contradictions or additional testing has been done that hasn't been publicized yet:

"there are proven metals"
"If the treasures appear, it will open"

To me it sounds as though the presence of metallic objects could have been ascertained with a metal detector and they're preparing to drill a hole and insert a camera. He statements seem to indicate complete confidence but as some have noted, the incident is an unusual departure from protocol as any statements of the sort would be expected to come from the Minister of Antiquities.

Could it be that Zaazou is simply counting his tourism chickens before they've hatched in an effort to boost tourism and hoping for the best?

There's a bit more information in April Holloway's article at Ancient Origins.

originally posted by: theantediluvian


To me it sounds as though the presence of metallic objects could have been ascertained with a metal detector and they're preparing to drill a hole and insert a camera. He statements seem to indicate complete confidence but as some have noted, the incident is an unusual departure from protocol as any statements of the sort would be expected to come from the Minister of Antiquities.

That was definitely the impression I received too, they know there are objects in the room but have yet to drill through to snake a camera in to verify everything. Hopefully the wait for answers will end soon and we can all see what's hiding away. Perhaps it's where Al Capone hid his elusive treasures from Geraldo?

a reply to: theantediluvian

I bet all with a love of Egyptian history will be waiting with baited breath. I don't think you can blame them for keeping quiet because with the past unrest in Egypt were the whereabouts of any treasures known they could well have been blasted out and sold on so the world would never have got to see them. I look forward to April, it if happens.

originally posted by: theantediluvian

Could it be that Zaazou is simply counting his tourism chickens before they've hatched in an effort to boost tourism and hoping for the best?

Maybe there is no hidden chamber!
This has been in the news for awhile, long enough for them to dig a chamber and fill it up with fake Tutankhamen treasures. That would be a tourist goldmine....a US Tour would be a cash cow too!

a reply to: Shiloh7


I suggest that these revelations coming from an Egyptian tourism official be taken with a grain of salt. I don't think I need to clarify that POV.

That said, I would love nothing better to see the enigmas of early Egypt solved or pushed further toward some concrete understanding.

For all we know it could of been the builders being killed to keep the location secret but if it is and their toolkits are there it might settle a few questions on how they did stuff.

"Treasure"

In this context doesn't necessarily mean "Gold and Jewels" although the chances are high for such items, Treasure in historical unique items of the period are just as valuable to many of us as well.


I'll assume it's both. Another possibility is that it may not be Tuts treasure, there is speculation that the tomb was originally created for his mother and then was used to entomb Tut when he died at an early age instead. So, it could be filled with Treasure for her?

In any-case I can't wait to see what they find.

Who knows, Maybe they'll find a Z-PM

originally posted by: Aliensun
a reply to: Shiloh7


I suggest that these revelations coming from an Egyptian tourism official be taken with a grain of salt. I don't think I need to clarify that POV.

That said, I would love nothing better to see the enigmas of early Egypt solved or pushed further toward some concrete understanding.

It is beyond unlikely that there is anything to be found in a New Kingdom tomb that will solve any enigmas concerning early Egypt.

Harte

I've always felt there is more to be discovered with the great pyramids. .
Let's hope this will be something with the wow factor.
I'll be anticipating the announcement with some reserved excitement.
Thanks for posting op..

a reply to: Misterlondon

Tuts tomb is in the Valley of the Kings, not in a pyramid.

I get what you're saying though.

a reply to: SLAYER69

This is very astute.

If the room isn't empty, its full of treasure. Be it gold ornaments, papyrus/scrolls, or simply pottery shards.

originally posted by: Maxatoria
For all we know it could of been the builders being killed to keep the location secret but if it is and their toolkits are there it might settle a few questions on how they did stuff.

The tomb is actually something cut into the limestone cliff itself (I've seen the entrance but it was closed.) The location was hardly secret - it's in the Valley of the Kings and everyone in the workers' village knew where it was. If they'd killed the workmen, there would have been a revolt at Dier El Medina and everyone would have looted the other tombs (there are at least 70 of them in that valley, all created by the workmen at Dier El Medina) and run away.

I'm dubious.

There hasn't been a whisper of this on any of the archaeological boards before this sudden announcement. However, Egyptian tourism is down at least 80% from its peak years and the people are hurting. The tourism minister is desperate to get more visitors, and I think this is his interpretation (mostly wistful thinking) before their announcement.

They can't fake putting antiquities in there -- every Egyptologist on the planet would spot a fake and yell about it if they tried (oh boy, would they yell.)

It will be interesting to see how big the space is and what's in it. If they're smart, they'll open it before making a huge announcement and not try to open it live.

a reply to: theantediluvian

How awesome would it be if they just simply cut out a viewing window in the wall, made it impenetrable, and left the room as it is found so that tourists could see it that way, instead of doing what they would normally do with it (remove it all, catalogue it, clean it up, and put it in a museum on display or in a storage room).

It would just be awesome to be able to experience a find like that the way it is seen when it is first opened up to modern eyes. I would find that to be much more stimulating and educational than wandering through a museum to see the artifacts.

a reply to: SlapMonkey

to experience a find like that the way it is seen when it is first opened up to modern eyes.

Seriously, what planet have you been living on...still would be a nice dream

most likely to nefertiti's tomb, if anything.

Because the Minister for Tourism would never say anything that wasn't true....

a reply to: Marduk

Oh come on... just because tourism in Egypt has dropped drastically since the Arab spring, that doesn't mean they would try to build a little buzz to capture peoples imaginations and get some dollars flowing back in!

originally posted by: peter vlar
a reply to: Marduk

Oh come on... just because tourism in Egypt has dropped drastically since the Arab spring, that doesn't mean they would try to build a little buzz to capture peoples imaginations and get some dollars flowing back in!

No that's right, and its quite rightly the Minister of Antiquities job to announce new discoveries, oh wait, no, this wasn't him


Meanwhile in other news, the Minister for farming has just announced the building of a new airport.

originally posted by: Marduk
Because the Minister for Tourism would never say anything that wasn't true....

Yeah!
Egypt ain't India.

Harte