Amanda Morse 2/14/13 Period 6 King Tut Compare and Contrast 1922 was an exceptionally significant year in history.

This was the day that archeologist Howard Carter made the immense discovery of King Tut. He discovered the tomb of the ancient Egyptian pharaoh Tut, in the Valley of Kings. The tomb consisted of many different gold relics, and antiques from Tuts history. The finding of this ancient tomb helped scientists to acquire many facts of Tuts past. They were able to find out that Tut was an extremely young boy king whose reign did not last incredibly long. However, the finding of Tuts tomb also exposed them to some exceptionally brutal parts of Tuts life. King Tut was extraordinarily youthful when he died. He was only 19. Also, Tut had many walking canes included in his tomb, which showed that he was weak. Could that have been an advantage for someone who wanted to purposefully hurt king Tut in order to take the throne? The death of the Egyptian boy king still awaits its final answer. With that information stated, many people still have controversy about the causes of the boy kings death. Some believe that it is natural causes but others disagree. The others think that it is murder. How could this pharaoh have such an excruciating death at such a young age? Over the years, disagreement has struck many about the death of the Egyptian pharaoh, King Tut. One theory is that the boy king could have died from an infection in his leg that led to a terrible disease of Gangrene. The other theory is that his death could have been caused by someone purposefully blowing his skull, because there were some people who would do anything to steal the throne away from Tut. This leading to brain damage. The answer still remains a mystery. What could have cause Tuts remotely excruciating death?

Years ago, Scientists took an x-ray of the young Egyptian Pharaohs Femur. They discovered that he had been living with a badly broken leg; this one of the reasons that King Tut might have died from natural causes. The response to this theory can be explained through the criticalness of the boy kings break. Evidence shows that he had an enormously dire break that could not be treated with the medicine that they acquired. 3000 years ago a break this critical could have been the reason for the Egyptian kings remarkably young death. There are scientists doing extensive research on King Tuts death to see if they can uncover the answer to this mystery. National Geographic states that, The scans did reveal unusual features, including a broken leg, which some experts think may have led to the boy kings death, (2005). In the same way, the severe fracture in King Tuts leg might have been the reason why he faced such a young death. Unfortunately, the evidence of king Tuts fracture could have easily been the cause of his gruesome death.

The moment that the results from the x-ray of king Tuts skull came in, there was a definite theory that this boy king had been murdered. The x-ray showed that he had a dark area near the base of his skull. Could this have been the result of foul play? When scientists took a closer look at the base of Tuts skull, they discovered that it was a blood clot. In ancient times damage like this could only have been done by a purposeful action. Scientists are continuing to do added research to try and uncover the cause of this skull damage. Some Egyptologists and amateur sleuths have long speculated that a stealthy foe murdered Tut by attacking him from behind, (Williams 2005). Furthermore, a thesis for murder could definitely be a reason of King Tuts death. There were many people who were King Tuts enemies. The suspect was probably a person in Tuts inner circle that wanted to take his throne. They thought that by doing an action that back then could not be fixed was they way they could gain his power. Undoubtedly, murder could certainly be the reason of the death of King Tut.

After taking a closer look at the two positions in king Tuts death argument, it is very clear that King Tut died from a terrible infection of gangrene. When scientists took the x-ray of Tuts leg they discovered that his left femur was distinctly broken. In ancient times an infection like this could not be cured because they did not have the proper antibiotics to treat the kings terrible wound. Dr. Zahi Hawass states, By carrying out CT scans of King Tuankhamuns mummy, we were able in 2005 to show that he did not die from a blow to the head, as many people believed, (2005). Furthermore, there is no real factual evidence that King Tut got murdered. Undoubtedly, evidence clearly states that he died from an infection in the femur that could not be treated.

In conclusion, all evidence of King Tutankhamens death clearly states that his loss of life was caused by natural causes. Scientists have had many disagreements about the cause of the boy kings death, but evidence that has come was able to exempt the theory of murder. The fact is, all scientists, archaeologists, and experts on this subject agree that King Tuts reign was cut short by a gruesome turn of events. Since the time that this boy kings tomb was found, we have always been thankful of him and his many accomplishments. This is because he was able to repair the country of Egypt from the damage that his father Akhenaten had created. He turned the Egyptians to polytheists. Also he, took care of all of the governmental destruction caused by his father and turned it all back to how it was before. The entire world thanks what King Tutankhamun did. He completed all of the Egyptians needs, and granted the Egyptians the one thing that they had been wanting forever, ever lasting life and to always be remembered for their accomplishments.

Works Sited

King Tut Not Murdered Violently, CT Scans Show. (n.d.). National Geographic. Retrieved from http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2005/03/0308_050308_kingtutmurder.html

King Tut Revealed - National Geographic Magazine. (n.d.). King Tut Revealed - National Geographic Magazine. Retrieved from http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2005/06/kingtut/williams-text/2

Tut DNA. (n.d.). King Tut's Family Secrets. Retrieved from http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2010/09/tut-dna/hawass-text/1