The unused tomb KV61 in the Valley of the Kings

Harold Jones discovered Tomb KV61 in the Valley of the Kings in January 1910 while excavating on behalf of Theodore M. Davis. The tomb consists of an irregularly-cut room at the bottom of a shaft. It was apparently unused and undecorated, leaving its intended owner unknown.

Upon discovery, Jones found the shaft fill appeared undisturbed and the doorway securely sealed. Removing the blocking revealed a chamber half-filled with water-sodden debris. The excavation yielded no evidence of an owner, not even a potsherd. Jones' foreman Ahmed suggested the tomb was not robbed but cleared in antiquity, although Jones doubted that the tomb was used or even finished. Nicholas Reeves concurs with Jones, finding it likely that the tomb was never used, as a dismantled burial would be unlikely to have been cleared so thoroughly or have a carefully closed entrance.

The tomb was re-cleared by the University of Basel Kings' Valley Project during their 2017-2018 season to remove modern rubbish. The unfinished nature of the tomb was confirmed, as the ceiling was noted to be low and in bad condition. Because the entrance is well below modern ground level, an iron cover was placed on short modern walls to protect the open tomb from future flood events. Clearance in the area uncovered several ostraca and the remains of Nineteenth Dynasty workers huts.

Sources: Wikipedia, OpenStreetMap, Wikidata, Wikimedia Commons