KV46 was discovered on 5 February 1905 in excavations undertaken by James Quibell, on behalf of Theodore Davis. The only markings on the walls are black dots 40 centimetres (16 in) apart on the smoother walls which may be mason's marks. The walls of the tomb are not decorated and were not smoothed, possibly due to the poor quality of the limestone. KV46 consists of a fifteen-step staircase leading to a descending corridor, a further set of short stairs, a second corridor with stairs and niches, and a rectangular burial chamber, the western third of which is 1 metre (3.3 ft) deeper than the rest of the floor. Prior to the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, this was considered to be one of the greatest discoveries in Egyptology. Additionally, the riffled but undamaged mummies of Yuya and Thuya were found within their disturbed coffin sets. The tomb was robbed in antiquity but preserved a great deal of its original contents including chests, beds, chairs, a chariot, and numerous storage jars. Quibell, excavating under the sponsorship of American millionaire Theodore M.

Their tomb was discovered in February 1905 by the Egyptologist James E. They were the parents of Queen Tiye, the chief wife of Pharaoh Amenhotep III. The tomb of Yuya and Thuya, also known by its tomb number KV46, is the burial place of the ancient Egyptian noble Yuya and his wife Thuya, in the Valley of the Kings.