1923 Photos Document The Opening Of King Tut's Tomb

The press conference announcing the discovery of King Tut’s final resting place unfolds just outside the tomb’s entrance. Distinguished guests include the sultana of Egypt and the queen of Belgium.

A young local delivers water by donkey to the tomb's labourers and armed guard. Then as now, the sturdy beasts served as essential transport in the Egyptian countryside.

Crowding along the retaining wall above King Tut's tomb, spectators lean in to hear the press conference and get a glimpse of the assembled dignitaries.

As the curious crowd looks on, a crew of labourers carefully removes parts of one of the six chariots buried with Tut.

Bending to the task, workmen haul away wooden boxes, painted white, that encased joints of mummified meat. Tut’s grave goods also included wine, bread, fruits, and vegetables for his eternal sustenance.

National Geographic correspondent Maynard Owen Williams emerges from Tut’s tomb on the morning after its official opening. He and other members of the American and British press had been offered a view of the burial chamber and its still sealed sarcophagus.

Visiting the Valley of the Kings can be hot business, even in February. This camel delivered a load of ice to cool the drinks of the distinguished guests attending the formal opening of the tomb.

With the greatest care, the fragile side of a ritual couch is positioned for transport. This part of the cedar-wood frame takes the shape of the cow-headed goddess Hathor, with a gilded lunar disk nestled between her horns.

British archaeologist Howard Carter, in the bow tie at left, supervises the removal of two gilded chariot wheels from the tomb. A. C. Mace, in the hat at right, joined the project from the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.