[MUSIC] By the 19th century, the Valley of the Kings saw a new brand of Europeans, who fancied themselves excavators. After several seasons of work in the New Kingdom Royal Burial site, with little to show for it. Many of these early explorers hastily concluded that all the tombs and treasures had been discovered. Each time that one of them uttered such a remark, a follower would soon prove his predecessor wrong. Some of these men, however, were more serious, more professional, more scientific in their approach, and also more successful. Among the more colorful was Giovanni Battista Belzoni. Not really a trained Egyptologist, he began as a circus strongman, and called himself the Patagonian Samson. After arriving in Egypt in 1815, he reinvented himself as an explorer of Egyptian antiquities. He discovered tombs and temples throughout the land. And fortunately for us in posterity, he dutifully recorded what he saw in well executed drawings. In 1819, after discovering the tombs of such Pharaohs as I, Ramses I, Seti I, in the Valley of the Kings. He declared, it is my firm opinion that in the valley, there are no more tombs than are known now. Not long after he made that pronouncement, he was proven wrong, for others did not give up. Work in the area continued, and toward the end of the 19th century, Victor Loret, a more professional excavator, soon proved him wrong. Perhaps the most successful of the explorers of the time, he discovered 16 tombs and shafts. Including the burial chambers of Thutmosis I, III, and Amenhotep II. He probably would have continued working in the Valley. But strained relations with the higher-ups in the Antiquities Department led to his departure. Perhaps unhappy about this departure, he later said that he felt he had done everything that there was left to do in the Valley of the Kings. In 1899, not too long after Loret's remarks, a young Howard Carter. Then in his early 20s, received the appointment of chief inspector of the antiquities service in upper Egypt. He was a young English artist who had received some archaeological training while working on several archaeological expeditions in Egypt. And it was about this time that he began clearing areas in the Valley of the Kings. At approximately the same time, he made the acquaintance of a wealthy American lawyer from Rhode Island, Theodore Davis. And he would cover the cost of the excavations. Not a trained archaeologist, but an amateur who had a strong interest in ancient Egypt. Davis loved the idea of leading an expedition, and he had incredible luck in his missions. His work there extended over 12 seasons in the Valley of the Kings. And included such finds as the burials of Tuthmosis IV and Queen Hatshepsut, among others. Five years later, however, Carter left and went north to become chief inspector. Lucky Davis, however, continued working with another archeologist under his wing. And in February 1905, they discovered the final resting place of the great grandparents of Tutankhamun, Tuya and Yuya. Miraculously, it still contained a good portion of its original contents. For this burial, Davis modestly claimed that it was the greatest treasure ever found. In 1907, however, his expedition made another discovery. The importance of which eluded him and almost everyone else at the time. Carter heard about it though, and likely did not forget it. True, it was a modest find, it was pit 54 and it was an embalmer's cache. It held pottery vessels, mummy wrappings, mud seals, and packets of embalming salts. Its unrealized importance at the time, however, were the inscriptions recording the name Tutankhamun. Davis, however, was unimpressed with what he thought was a meager assemblage. He made the best out of this situation by claiming that his new finds were all that remained of the tomb of Tutankhamun. He then published his discovery as the tomb of Tutankhamun. Eventually he decided to leave the area, and in 1914, he stated, I fear the Valley of the Kings is now exhausted. In 1907, Howard Carter had begun working with another financial backer, the fifth Earl of Carnarvon. Several years older than Carter, the English lord had developed a great interest in Egypt. And this happened when he visited the country in part for the health benefits it offered his frail constitution. Especially after his auto racing accident. Like Carter, Carnarvon was also fascinated by Egyptian archaeology. And this common interest bonded the two men, and they began excavating in sites such as Thebes, Aswan, and the Delta.