Queen Nefertiti: Has the tomb of Tutankhamun's mother been found hiding in plain sight?

"This is potentially the biggest archaeological discovery ever made”

The sarcophagus of King Tutankhamun, known as the 'Child Pharaoh' remains empty in its burial chamber after the mummy was placed in a glass urn designed to protect the remains of the ancient king from humidity and other contamination brought by a constant

Queen Nefertiti has fascinated and perplexed ancient Egyptian scholars in equal measure.

The legendary beauty ruled alongside Pharaoh Akhenaten in 14BC. During her reign she accrued status as an icon of power and elegance.

Despite her prominence in ancient Egyptian history, her resting place has remained a mystery - but now a new theory by a leading historian claims to have finally found the Queen's burial place.

A diagram of Nefertiti's possible resting place. Two secret doorways may exist coming from the walls of the main chamber.

Nicholas Reeves, an archaeologist at the University of Arizona, has made bold new claims that he believes she has been laid to rest in Tutankhamun’s burial chamber. The pharaoh's tomb was found fully intact and untouched by explorer Howard Carter in 1922.

It remains the only ever pharaoh's tomb to be found intact and has proved a treasure trove for historians and archaeologists.

The bust of Egyptian beauty Queen Nefertiti is on display at Neues Museum in Berlin, Germany.

Over 5,000 artefacts were found in the tomb including chariots, musical instruments and clothes.

Now Mr Reeves believes that the tomb may have one more secret to yield and has claimed that Nefertiti's resting site may also lie within its walls.

The body known as "younger lady" is suspected to be Nefertiti, if proven it could also place her as the mother to Tutankhamun as the mummy is the biological mother of the boy king. This is a possibility as the Queen was the cousin of Tut's father

After examining high resolution images from inside the tomb, Mr Reeves believes that two secret passage ways exist which have been covered up but can be faintly seen through cracks and fissures.

In a recently published paper, called The Burial of Nefertiti?, he sets out his belief that one passage could contain a mundane store room, but another could lead to Nefertiti’s tomb.

Speaking to The Economist about his new theory, he said: “If I’m wrong, I’m wrong; but if I’m right this is potentially the biggest archaeological discovery ever made.”