On November 4, the world marks 104 years since the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb — often called the most famous archaeological find of the 20th century — and this year's anniversary feels extra special, because it is the first full year in which the boy king's treasures are displayed together in a new museum beside the Giza pyramids.
According to anniversary coverage, it all began with something tiny: a single stone step in the Valley of the Kings, on the west bank of Luxor in Egypt. On the morning of November 4, 1922, workers clearing the remains of ancient workmen's huts near the tomb of Ramesses VI uncovered a step cut into the rock. Howard Carter covered the entrance again and telegraphed his patron, Lord Carnarvon, about a "magnificent discovery." Once Carnarvon arrived, the pair opened the sealed doorway and peered in by candlelight on November 26.
The tomb, designated KV62, was found nearly intact with more than 5,000 objects, giving one of the clearest pictures ever of a royal Egyptian burial. Today the complete 5,398-piece collection is shown in one place for the first time at the Grand Egyptian Museum near Giza.
The famous "pharaoh's curse" has no evidence behind it, anniversary coverage notes: although Carnarvon died in Cairo of blood poisoning a few months after the discovery and newspapers turned the curse into a global headline, only 8 of 58 people involved died within the next dozen years, and there is no evidence for theories about poisons or radiation in the tomb.
To mark the anniversary, the immersive Tutankhamun exhibition in Yokohama's Minato Mirai district is holding an excavation anniversary week from November 4 to 8, with special guides, excavation experiences and workshops, according to event listings.
What happens next: anniversary events run through the week, while the Grand Egyptian Museum's complete Tutankhamun display continues to draw visitors to Giza.