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It was the first, and to this day the only, royal tomb in the history of Egyptology to be
found practically untouched, even though in ancient times it had been the object of no
less than two attempts at robbery.
The emptying of Tutankhamun's tomb lasted several years and made possible the
recovery of about 3500 articles, confirming the tomb as the most exceptional
archeological discovery ever made in Egypt.
One of the two calcite lamps found in Tutankhamun's burial chamber.
The cup takes the form of an open lotus flower and is flanked on both sides by rich,
openwork decoration in which the god Heh is depicted kneeling on a number of
papyrus plants with his arms raised.
The gilded wood Canopic Shrine contained the Canopic Chest pictured above.
The outer canopy of this shrine consists of four corner posts supporting a cavetto
cornice surmounted by a continuous frieze of uraei inlaid with colored glass and
faience.
Between the posts, on each of the four sides, stands an elegant guardian goddess of
gilded wood - Isis, Nephthys, Neith and Selkis, each identified by the hieroglyph upon
her head.
In 2008, a team began DNA research on Tutankhamun and the mummified remains
of other members of his family.
The results from the DNA samples finally put to rest questions about Tutankhamun's
lineage, proving that his father was Akhenaten, but that his mother was not one of
Akhenaten's known wives. His mother was one of his father's five sisters, although it is
not known which one.
The team was able to establish with a probability of better than 99.99 percent
that Amenhotep III was the father of the individual in KV55, who was in turn the
father of Tutankhamun.
The young king's mother was found through the DNA testing of a mummy
designated as 'The Younger Lady' (KV35YL), which was found lying beside Queen
Tiye in the alcove of KV35. Her DNA proved that, like his father, she was a child of
Amenhotep III and Tiye; thus, Tutankhamun's parents were brother and sister.[.
Queen Tiye held much political influence at court and acted as an adviser to her son
after the death of her husband. Some geneticists dispute these findings, however, and
"complain that the team used inappropriate analysis techniques.
Discovery of the mummy
Under the commission of George Herbert, 5th Earl of
Carnarvon, who is commonly called just Lord Carnarvon,
Howard Carter and his team set out to Egypt in 1922 to
discover the tomb of Tutankhamun, and because of other
recent discoveries during that time in a particular area of the
Valley of the Kings, Carter believed he had a good idea of
where he would find it. Theodore M. Davis, a contemporary
archeologist of Carter, discovered pottery with Tutankhamun's
name a short distance from where Carter would on November
4, 1922 discover KV62.
His weird skull shape is just within range of normal and was probably genetic—his
father, Akhenaten, had a similarly shaped head. Tut’s body also had a broken leg,
indicating he may have died from falling off a horse or chariot.
Conclusion
Much of what is known about Tutankhamun, better known today as King Tut, derives from
the discovery of his tomb in 1922. British archaeologist Howard Carter had begun
excavating in Egypt in 1891, and after World War I he began an intensive search for
Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.
On November 26, 1922, Carter and fellow archaeologist George Herbert, the Earl of
Carnarvon, entered the interior chambers of the tomb. To their amazement, they found
much of its contents and structure miraculously intact. Inside one of the chambers,
murals were painted on the walls that told the story of Tutankhamun's funeral and his
journey to the afterworld. Also in the room were various artifacts for his journey—oils,
perfumes, toys from his childhood, precious jewelry, and statues of gold and ebony.
The most fascinating item found was the stone sarcophagus containing three coffins, one
inside the other, with a final coffin made of gold. When the lid of the third coffin was
raised, King Tut's royal mummy was revealed, preserved for more than 3,000 years. As
archaeologists examined the mummy, they found other artifacts, including bracelets, rings
and collars. Over the next 17 years, Carter and his associates carefully excavated the four-
room tomb, uncovering an incredible collection of thousands of priceless objects
he royal bloodline that Tutankhamun's family shared ended with the death of the young
pharaoh, and with that came a question of the legitimacy of the following rulers.
Conclusion
His tomb was the only one discovered that was not very disturbed by grave robbers, which allowed
Carter to uncover many artifacts and the untouched mummy.
It gave amazing insight into the royal burials, mummification, and tombs of the New Kingdom's 18th
Dynasty. Since its discovery and widespread popularity, it has led to DNA testing done on it and other
mummies from the time period that now give a proven family tree for many of the royalty during the
18th Dynasty.
Since his death was unexpected and either poorly recorded or simply the records were lost over the
years, with the discovery of his mummy and advances in modern technology, there is now strong and
supported evidence as to Tutankhamun's death, and with that one of Egypt's most popular mysteries
appears to have been solved.
As of October 2010, the mummy of Tutankhamun is located in his original resting spot in KV62 in the
Valley of the Kings.
Sources : www.google.com
www.wikipedia.com