Egypt reopened the tomb of Pharaoh Amenhotep III in the Valley of the Kings near Luxor after more than 20 years of renovations, officials said.
The burial chamber, more than 3,000 years old, was restored under the direction of Japan. Work included renovating paintings of the pharaoh and his wife on the tomb walls.
According to Japan’s UNESCO mission, these are some of “the most refined murals remaining in tombs of Egypt’s 18th dynasty.”
The tomb had been gradually excavated, looted and severely damaged since its discovery in 1799. According to researchers at Japan’s Waseda University, items from the tomb ended up in the Louvre in Paris, the Metropolitan Museum in New York and Highclere Castle in England. Highclere Castle was used as a filming location for the costume drama Downton Abbey.
Amenhotep III, better known as Amenhotep the Great, is described in the source as one of the most prominent pharaohs of ancient Egypt. The source says he ascended the throne as a teenager and reigned between 1550 and 1292 BC.
In less than a month, the Grand Egyptian Museum near the pyramids of Giza is scheduled to reopen. The museum’s reopening is scheduled for Nov. 1.
