Ankhesenamun, the queen of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty, was 13 when she married nine-year-old Tut

SCIENTISTS believe they are closing in on the remains of legendary Egyptian King Tutankhamun’s wife.

The tragic Ankhesenamun, immortalised as the villain in blockbuster film The Mummy, was 13 when she married the nine-year-old pharaoh Tut, her half-brother.

Scientists may be closing in on the remains of Egyptian King Tutankhamun’s wife AnkhesenamunCredit: Getty – Contributor

She went on to marry Tut’s successor, Ay, her maternal grandfather, according to experts at Ancient Origins.

The third of six daughters and the queen of the Egypt’s 18th Dynasty is also thought to be the first wife of her own father, Akhenten.

Archaeologist Zahi Hawᴀss discovered what he claimed was her final resting place in the Valley of the Kings using ground-penetrating radar in July.

The dig to uncover the mythical queen’s remains – a find he dubs the “discovery of the century” – is now finally underway, he announced on his website.

The final remains of Ankhesenamun, immortalised in film The Mummy, are believed to be buried in the Valley Of The Kings A new tomb was discovered in the Valley Of The Kings in July and scientists reckon it contains Tut’s wife

“In January 2018, Zahi Hawᴀss launched his own excavations at the Valley of the Monkeys, a side valley in the area of the Valley Of The Kings,” a spokesman for the research team said.

They added: “The focus of the excavations is in the area in close proximity to the tomb of Ay, Tutankhamun’s successor.

“The radar scans in the area detected the presence of a possible entrance to a tomb at a depth of five metres (16ft).”

Alongside Italian researchers, Hawᴀss had been excavating the area as part of  a fresh investigation into the boy king’s resting place – also in the Valley of The Kings – earlier this year.

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Archaeologist Zahi Hawᴀss discovered what he claimed was her final resting place in the Valley of the Kings (pictured) using ground-penetrating technologyCredit: Getty – Contributor

Tutankhamun is believed to have died before his burial chamber was built and buried in a rushCredit: Getty Images

Speaking when the excavation was first announced, Franco Porcelli, the project’s director, said: “Who knows what we might find as we scan the ground.”

The tomb was first discovered by British archaeologist Howard Carter in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings in November 1922.

Carter’s patron Lord Carnarvon died weeks after the tomb was opened, fuelling supernatural rumours.

Carnarvon, who funded Carter’s expeditions, was believed to be the victim of a curse inscribed on the Pharoah’s tomb which claimed anyone who disturbed it would be “visited by wings of death”.

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Hawᴀss had been excavating the Valley of the Kings area as part of  a fresh investigation into the resting place of TutankhamunCredit: Getty – Contributor

Archaeologist Howard Carter removing oils from the coffin of Tutankhamen in 1922Credit: Getty – Contributor