Exploration of the Valley of the Kings Period tombs in the main valley. Various expeditions have continued to explore the valley, adding greatly to the knowledge of the area. In 2001 the Theban Mapping Project designed new signs for the tombs, providing information and plans of the open tombs. On February 8, 2006, the Supreme Council of Antiquities announced that an American team led by the University of Memphis had uncovered a pharaonic-era tomb (KV63), the first uncovered there since King Tutankhamun's in 1922. The 18th Dynasty tomb included five intact sarcophagi with coloured funerary masks along with 28 large storage jars, sealed with pharaonic seals. It
Minor tombs in the Valley of the Kings consists of a single chamber accessed by a shaft. It was discovered and excavated by Carter in 1902, it was recently cleared by Ryan. Like KV44 it had been used for (two) secondary burials during the Twenty-second dynasty. Fragments of the original burial, including canopic jars (but no human remains) indicate the original owner was Userhet, overseer of the fields of Amun during the Eighteenth dynasty. KV48 is located in the wadi leading to KV35 (tomb of Amenhotep II). It was discovered and excavated by Ayrton in 1906. It is formed by a single chamber accessed by a shaft. When