“Feverishly we cleared away the remaining last scraps of rubbish on the floor of the passage before the doorway, until we had only the clean sealed doorway before us. In which, after making preliminary notes, we made a tiny breach in the top left-hand corner to see what was beyond. Darkness and the iron testing rod told us that there was empty space. Perhaps another descending staircase, in accordance with the ordinary royal Theban tomb plan? Or maybe a chamber? Candles were procured – the all-important tell-tale for foul gases when opening an ancient subterranean excavation – I widened the breach and by means of the candle looked in, while Ld. C., Lady E., and Callender with the Reises waited in anxious expectation. It was some time before I could see, the hot air escaping caused the candle to flicker.

There was naturally a short suspense for those present who could not see. When Lord Carnarvon said to me, ‘Can you see anything?’, I replied to him, ‘Yes, it is wonderful.’ ”

 

Howard Carter, 1922,

taken from his personal diary,

Ashmolean Museum, Oxford