King Tut's Tomb REIGN of the BOY KING Though He Is Considered the Most Well- Known Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, Tutankhamen Was Only a Minor Figure in Egyptian History
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Curious Dragonfly Monthly Science Newsletter King Tut's Tomb REIGN OF THE BOY KING Though he is considered the most well- known pharaoh of ancient Egypt, Tutankhamen was only a minor figure in Egyptian history. His reign did not last long - only 8 or 9 years - and he did not accomplish much. Yet it is the discovery of his nearly-intact tomb in 1922 that catapulted King Tut to fame. At the time of Tutankhamen's birth, circa 1341 B.C.E., ancient Egypt was going through a massive political upheaval. Tut's father, Akhenaten (also known as Amenhotep IV) may have forbidden the practice of 'polytheism,' or the worship of many gods. Instead, he pushed for the worship of a singular god, the sun disk Aten. It is claimed this attempt to convert society to 'monotheism' threw Egyptian culture into chaos. The capital was moved from Thebes to Armana, and Amenhotep IV's regime became corrupt. After 17 years as ruler, Amenhotep IV was most likely forced to abdicate his throne, which was then passed to his 9-year old son, Tutankhamen. This was some time around 1332 B.C.E. What do you imagine a society ruled by a 9-year old would be like? The same year he took power, King Tut also wed his half-sister, Ankh- esenamum. Because of his young age, Tutankhamen was most likely advised during the early years of his reign by a man named Ay, who acted in a role known as a Vizier, or by his mother, Queen Nefertiti. A small portion of the collection from Tut's tomb. The doors of King Tut's tomb. DEATH OF A KING Tutankhamen was tall, but physically frail. A crippling bone disease caused, most likely, by his inbred lineage - his mother and father were discovered to be brother and sister - left him with a clubbed left foot. Because of this, he is often depicted in a seated position, even when participating in athletic events like archery. In c.1323 B.C.E., King Tutan- khamen died. He was 19 years ABOVE: A facial reconstruction of Tut. LEFT: A full-body reconstruction. old. King Tutankhamen was buried in a tomb in an area of Egypt known as the Valley of the Kings. His body was preserved in the standard practice of mummification. Many believed Tut was buried in a smaller tomb, most likely built for a figure of less nobility, because of his early demise. King Tut's tomb was sealed 70 days after his death, and no mention was made of him after this. By all accounts, King Tut was forgotten... ...until 1922, that is. AN AMAZING DISCOVERY! When British archeologist Howard Carter first arrived in Egypt in 1891, many of the Egyptian tombs had already been discovered. But there was little knowledge about King Tutankhamen, and his place of burial was still unknown. Carter and his team began an intensive search for the tomb following World War I. It was a set of stone steps, hidden in the debris from King Ramses VI's tomb in the Valley of the Kings and found by Carter, that led to the discovery of King Tut's tomb, the most intact pharaoh's burial chamber in history. British archeologist Howard Carter. On November 26, 1922, Carter and fellow archeologist George Herbert, the Earl of Carnarvon, entered the interior of the tomb. What they found was astounding. The tomb was mostly intact, both in contents and in structure. There were signs of looting, but the items taken (perishable oils and perfumes) indicated that the thefts were soon after King Tut's burial. Murals were painted on the walls that told the story of Tutankhamen's death and journey to the afterlife. Precious jewelry and golden statues filled the space, alongside toys from King Tut's childhood. How must it have felt to enter King Tut's tomb for the first time? The most prized item found in the tomb was a stone sarcophagus inside which was a series of three coffins nested within one another. Inside the final coffin, made of solid gold, was the mummy of King Tut. It took Carter's team nearly two decades to catalog the thousands of priceless items found in the four-room tomb. Howard Carter upon discovering Tut's tomb. THE 'CURSE' OF TUTANKHAMEN! Six weeks after the opening of Tut's tomb, the Earl of Carnavon fell victim to blood poisoing caused by a mosquito bite. His death began what would soon be known as 'The Curse of the Pharaoh,' or 'King Tut's Curse.' Many claims were made over the years, stating those associated with opening the tomb died under mysterious circum- stances. The legend continued to grow, fueled on by the creator of Sherlock Holmes himself, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. Doyle claimed Carnavon's death had been caused by 'elementals' guarding Tut's tomb. The golden coffin of King Tut. Would you have believed in King Tut's Curse? WHY A CURSE? If there was no such thing as a 'curse,' then where did the legend begin? Most believe it came straight from Howard Carter himself! The discovery of Tut's tomb was a monumental one, covered by press from around the world. In order to keep the press from over- stepping their bounds, Carter put out a story that claimed a 'curse' Tut's tomb, just after would befall anyone who Carter's discovery of it. disturbed the 'boy-king.' Carter was not the only archeologist to spin a tale of cursed remains. Most tombs of royalty were said to have the same curse, a way to discourage the common practice of graverobbing and looting. No evil effects were ever noted. Howard Carter lived to the age of 64, when he died of cancer. Another member of Carter's team, Sgt. Richard Adamson, who studied Tut's bones closely, lived 60 years after the discovery, until 1982. MODERN SCIENCE ANSWERS QUESTIONS ABOUT TUT'S DEATH In 2005, a team of archeologists and technicians removed King Tut's mummy from its sarcophagus. A trailer containing a CT (Computed Tomography) scanner was stationed at the entrance of the tomb, and Tut's remains were carefully moved. The CT machine then scanned the remains from head to toe, creating over 17,000 digital x-ray images. A team of specialists Tut's mummy receives a final physical exam before entering the CT scanner. then studied the images. So what did they find? One of the first (and most popular) theories about King Tut's death was that he had been murdered, a victim of a blow to the head, most likely from a rival. Early x-rays, taken years before, showed skull fragments, hence the theory of blunt force trauma. However, upon studying the new CT scans, archeologists and doctors determined there was no blunt trauma, and that the fragments were most likely caused either in the embalming process, or by a member of Howard Carter's team. What other ways are CT scans used in the field of medicine? The images revealed that King Tut developed an infection he received after breaking his leg. There are many theories on how he broke his leg. Some believe it was during a chariot race. However, in 2010, further studies found Tut suffered from malaria, and that the disease may have exacerbated his leg infection. Another wilder theory posits that Tut died after being lethally Tut's head CT showed no bitten by an angry sign of skull fracture or damage. hippopotamus! A FRESH SEARCH OF TUT'S TOMB The claim first arrived in a July 2015 academic paper by British archeologist Nicholas Reeves, and it stunned the world of archeology: perhaps King Tutankhamen was not alone in his burial tomb. Reeves, a scholar at the University of Arizona's School of Anthropology and Senior Egyptologist with the University's Egyptian Expedition, studied ultra-high resolution images of Tut's tomb and claimed to have discovered the outlines of two doors that had since been covered in plaster. Reeves asserted that, due to the small size of Tut's tomb in relation to other nobles, that he was not, in fact, the tomb's original occupant. The tomb was built for Tut's mother, Queen Nefertiti, a well-known figure in ancient Egypt, whose body has never been discovered. In November 2015, researchers used infrared thermography to conduct a scan of King Tut's burial chamber. Temperature changes confirmed the presence of hollow space behind the walls. As of this newsletter, new scans with more advanced equipment have taken place, but the results have not been released. If Nefertiti's The iconic bust of Nefertiti. burial chamber lies behind those walls, it will be the most significant find in ancient Egyptian history since Howard Carter discovered King Tutankhamen nearly a century ago. Published by the Connexxus Travel Office The question of whether University of California, Officeor ofnot Nefertiti's body the President will be found in one of Portal: http://ucal.us/connexxusthe new chambers Email: [email protected] remains to be seen. We'll check back with this story as more details are revealed! KING TUTANKHAMEN IN POPULAR CULTURE Since the discovery of his mummified skeleton in 1922, King Tut has been an intriguing and popular figure from ancient Egyptian culture. No longer a minor footnote, the boy king influenced women's clothing, jewelry, and inspired what would be known as 'Tutmania.' Though the craze subsided over the years, excitement over Tut reignited when an exhibit of items collected from his tomb toured the United States from 1977 to 1979.