http://www.news.com.au/technology/science/archaeology/egypt-in-denial-as-reports-leak-out-that-radar-survey-found-no-secret-tutankhamun-tomb-chambers/news-story/3c37577839acc008b1e0fc0b2845ff87
Egypt in denial as reports leak out that radar survey found no secret Tutankhamun tomb chambers
Egyptian pharaoh Tutankhamun's famous tomb is the centre of a growing international controversy. Are there hidden chambers behind its painted walls, or not? Source: AFP
EGYPT has a problem. Leaked reports reveal there are no hidden chambers inside Pharaoh Tutankhamun's Valley of the Kings tomb. So how does one break the news to an excited world?
Recent radar scans of the 3300-year-old tomb of the boy king, conducted to verify a similar scan late last year, have reportedly yielded disappointing results.
The first radar survey was spurred by claims by archeologist Nicholas Reeves that he had found depressions in high resolution photos of the tomb that indicated the presence of hidden doorways. He linked these patches in the plaster to his personal theory that Tutankhamun's tomb had been 'repurposed' from housing the remains of his heretic stepmother, Queen Nefertiti.
Shapes in the clouds ... An interpretation of Hirokatsu Watanabe's radar scans which purport to reveal the presence of treasure-filled hidden chambers is displayed at an Egyptian press conference.Source:AFP
WONDERFUL THINGS
This scan, conducted by high-profile archaeological radar technician Hirokatsu Watanabe, reported the discovery of wonderful things. Among the researcher's claims was "90 per cent certainty" of the detection of hollow spaces along with metallic and organic objects.
The world erupted in excitement.
But soon questions were being raised about what this radar scan — pictured as a blurry mass of blue lines, with a few red dots — actually showed. Watanabe has refused to release his raw data for verification.
EXPLORE MORE: Is a heretic queen hidden inside Tutankhamun's tomb?
So a second radar scan was conducted in April to refine the discovery.