Who was King Tut?

1. TUTANKHAMUN OR TUTANKHATEN
2. EGYPTIAN PHARAOH ( KING)
3. ASCENDED THE THRONE AT THE
AGE OF 9, DIED IN LATE TEENS
4. LIFE AND DEATH SHROUDED IN
MYSTERY
5. THE GOLDEN DYNASTY ENDED
WITH HIS DEMISE
Who discovered his mummy?

1. British archaeologist – Howard Carter in 1922

2. Biggest discovery, caused sensation, richest royal collection
3. Took months to catalogue the funerary treasures
4. Discovered 3 nested coffins
5. Everyday things – board games, razor, cases of food and wine, etc
( RESURRECTION)
6. Glittering goods, precious collars, aprons, sandal, gold sheaths
covering fingers and toes, rings, amulets – ICONIC INNER COFFIN
AND MASK
7. First Coffin – shroud adorned with willow and olive leaves, celery…
evidence of burial in March/April
Carter’s Investigation resented?

1. Ritual resins during mummification hardened.

2. Tut’s mummy cemented to the coffin – couldn’t be
removed.
3. Tried melting the resins under hot sun – didn’t work.
4. Removed mummy’s head, severed nearly all major joints –
lifted mummy to remove gold to save it from the thieves.
5. Assembled back on sand layer to hide damage to mummy
6. Earlier archaeology focussed on treasure, now on life and
death, also using advanced technology
Mummy subjected to repeated
scrutiny…

1. 1968 – X Ray conducted, anatomy professor discovered breast bone

and front ribs missing
2. 2005 – Taken out for Computed Tomography ( CT Scan )
3. Which hurdle did they run into, why and how was it solved?
3. What were the findings of the CT Scan… ?
4. How has nature shown her displeasure…?
 Know more about…
1. The Curse of the Pharaoh ( two instances in the story )
2. Amenhotep III
3. Amenhotep IV aka Akhenaten ( Wacky ruler, what had he done ? )
4.Zahi Hawass ( Sec Gen of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities… why was
he so worried? )
5. Ray Johnson ( Director of University of Chicago’s research Centre in Luxor…
what has he said?)
 Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues By A.R.Williams

Saga - a long, involved story, account, or series of incidents.

The title of the story, ‘Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues’ is aptly justified. The chapter is
the text of a documentary made by National Geographic channel on Tutankhaten, the last and
most important Pharaoh. This story reveals many details of his life and about his mummy
that has survived for approximately 3300 years. So the half part of the title, “Discovering Tut
: …” is quite appropriate. The other half part of the title, “ : … the Saga Continues” is
justified in the fact that the research about many mysterious aspects of Tut’s life is still going
on. The researchers and archaeologists are still studying many unknown details about his life.
For example, they are trying to know the cause of his early death and the circumstances that
led to his sudden death.
Contd.
For years, it was speculated that King Tut’s death at age 19 came courtesy of a blow to the head,
inflicted, perhaps, by a murderous rival. More recently, however, experts have determined that the
damage to his mummy’s skull occurred after death, either during the embalming process or at the
hands of Carter’s crew. So how did the boy king die? In 2005, a study revealed that he broke his leg
and developed an infection in the wound shortly before death. According to one theory, the pharaoh
sustained the injury by falling from his chariot during a hunt. Meanwhile, DNA testing in 2010
suggested that Tutankhamen had malaria, which might have exacerbated a leg infection or caused him
to fall in the first place. Alternate theories about King Tut’s demise still abound.

The story started in 1341 BCE, with the birth of Tutankhamun and still continues…

It’s a lingering medical mystery. Nothing can be said for sure about the cause of his death.
 Themes
1. The lesson provides a comprehensive awareness of ancient Egyptian culture. The ancient Egyptians
believed that there was life after death ( resurrection). That is why the Pharaohs were buried with the
tremendous amount of wealth including things of daily use so that they could use them in their journey
beyond. It was also believed that gold would guarantee their resurrection.

2. The story helps you understand the revolution in the field of archaeology which is due to the modern
equipment and sophisticated methods being used to give accurate results. The story helps you to
understand the collaborative efforts of all the team members involved in this project.

3. The main focus is laid on the process of forensic reconstruction of the remains to find the cause of
death and the age when the king died. The modern method of CT Scan is used and King Tut’s body was
the first to be put under scan. The scanner picked up images of the King’s body and the anatomy was
conducted much to the relief of the team members.