Sabi pipo find Egypt pharaoh King Thutmose II tomb

Egyptologists don discover di first tomb of a pharaoh since dem uncover Tutankhamun own over a century ago.

King Thutmose II tomb na di last undiscovered royal tomb of di 18th Egyptian dynasty.

A British-Egyptian team locate am for di Western Valleys of di Theban Necropolis near di city of Luxor. Researchers bin tink say di burial chambers of di 18th dynasty pharaohs bin dey more dan 2km away, closer to di Valley of di Kings.

Di crew find am for area wey dey associated with di resting places of royal women, but wen dem enta inside di burial chamber, dem say e dey decorated - with di sign of pharaoh.

"Part of di ceiling bin still dey intact: a blue-painted ceiling with yellow stars on am. And blue-painted ceilings with yellow stars, na for kings' tombs dem dey find am," na so di field director of di mission Dr Piers Litherland tok.

E tell BBC Newshour programme say im bin feel overwhelmed in di moment.

"Di emotion of getting into dis tins na just one of extraordinary confusion becos wen you come across something wey you no expect to find, e dey emotional really," e tok.

"And wen I come out, my wife bin dey wait outside and di only thing I fit do na to burst into tears."

Dr Litherland say di discovery don solve di mystery of wia di tombs of early 18th dynasty kings dey located.

Researchers find Thutmose II mummified remains two centuries ago but di original burial site bin never dey located.

Thutmose II na ancestor of Tutankhamun, wey im reign dey believed to dey from about 1493 to 1479 BC. British archaeologists find Tutankhamun tomb for 1922.

Thutmose II dey best known for being di husband of Queen Hatshepsut, regarded as one of Egypt greatest pharaohs and one of di few female pharaohs wey rule in her own right.

Dr Litherland say di "large staircase and a very large descending corridor" of di tomb suggest grandeur.

"E take us a very long time to get through all dat," e tok, noting say e bin dey blocked by flood, dirty and di ceilings bin don collapse.

"Na only after we crawl through 10m (32ft) passageway wey get small 40cm gap at di top na im we get into di burial chamber."

Na dia dem discover di blue ceiling and decorations of scenes from di Amduat, religious text wey dey reserved for kings. Dat na anoda key sign say dem don find a king tomb, Dr Litherland tok.

Dem set to work clearing di dirty dem - expecting say dem go find di crushed remains of a burial underneath.

But "di tomb turn out to dey completely empty", Dr Litherland tok. "Not becos e dey robbed but becos dem deliberately empty am."

Dem come work out say di tomb bin don dey flooded bifor - "dem bin build am underneath waterfall" - just a few years after di king burial and move di contents to anoda location in ancient times.

Na through going through tonnes of limestone for di chamber na im dem find parts of alabaster jars, wey dem write di names of Thutmose II and Hatshepsut.

Dis pieces of alabaster "bin probably dey broken wen dem bin dey move di tomb," Dr Litherland tok.

"And thank goodness say dem actually break one or two things becos dat na how we find out who get di tomb."

Di artefacts na di first objects wey dem find wey dey associated with Thutmose II burial.

Dr Litherland say im team get a rough idea of wia di second tomb dey, and e fit still dey intactwith treasures.

Di discovery of di pharaoh tomb cap off more dan 12 years of work by di joint team from Dr Litherland New Kingdom Research Foundation and Egypt Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

Di team bin don previously excavate 54 tombs for di western part of di Theban mountain in Luxor, and bin also establish di identities of more dan 30 royal wives and court women.

"Dis na di first royal tomb to dey discovered since di ground-breaking find of King Tutankhamun burial chamber for 1922," na so Egypt minister of tourism and antiquities Sherif Fathy tok.

"Dis na extraordinary moment for Egyptology and di broader understanding of our shared human story."