Tutankhamun, the 11th pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Ancient Egypt, was unremarkable, but is famous due to the discovery of his complete tomb by the British archaeologist Howard Carter in 1922.
It was irregular to discover a tomb and treasures in full without any damage and stories of mystery surrounding the circumstances of Tutankhamun death at a very early age, this is abnormal, especially with the presence of traces of a broken thigh bone and skull. Though he appears to have been a minor king and made only modest contributions to the Egyptian empire, he lives large in modern archaeology.
Very little is known about his life because he was the son of Akhenaton, a pharaoh who was declared a heretic by introducing a new monotheistic religion, the worship of Aten, banned other gods and shut down temples, and records mentioning the sun god.
Tutankhamun was born around 1343 B.C. in the Egyptian city of Akhetaten, now known as Amarna. His mother is believed to be one of Akhenaton’s minor wives, most likely Kiya. He became pharaoh at age 9 or 10, in 1333 B.C. In the third year of his reign, the king and his court were moved from Amarna to Memphis. Shortly thereafter, the name of the young king, originally Tutankhaten, was changed to Tutankhamun, meaning ”the living image of god Amun” in recognition of the ascendancy of Amun. Around the age of 12, scholars believe, Tutankhamun married his half-sister, Ankhesenamun, Akhenaten’s third daughter by his wife Nefertiti. The couple had no surviving children, although mummified fetuses of two stillborn children were found in Tutankhamun’s tomb.
The discovery of Tutankhamun's mummy revealed that he was about 17 when he died.
The great discovery
Late in the autumn of the year 1922 the whole world was happily astonished by a great discovery in Egypt. At the foot of a hill near the town of Luxor, about 720 kilometers south of Cairo, a tomb belonging to a young pharaoh, or king of the Ancient Egyptians, had been discovered. Inside the tomb were treasures of immense value which had been lying deep under the ground for more than three thousand years.
01-Location of the valley of Kings in the Theban Hills, West of the Nile
Lord Carnarvon had come to Egypt in 1903. He at once developed an interest in archaeology, looking for the remains of the Ancient Egyptians. However, as he was not an expert himself, he teamed up with Howard Carter in 1907. Carter was an-unusual man. He had extraordinary energy and determination and the rind of a detective. His knowledge of Egyptian archaeology was immense. The two men shared a love for adventure and both were passionate treasure hunters.
02-The most magical in the Valley of the Kings 63 tombs found.
Carter and Carnarvon began to excavate in the Valley of the Kings (see photo 01 & 02), where the Ancient Egyptians had buried their pharaohs from 1550 B.C. onwards. The tombs of some thirty-three pharaohs had already been discovered, but many of them had been ransacked by thieves and emptied of its contents even during ancient times.
After a good progress in the work on 26 November, the day Carter considered the happiest of his life. ‘It was the day of days’ writes Carter. As watched passage debris that encumbered the lower part of the doorway was removed, until at last we had the whole door before us.
Along one wall, of the entrance stood three large couches, shaped like magical animals. One is made up of two cows and another of hippopotami. The third has golden-headed lions with their mouths wide open, showing their pink tongues and white teeth. There were also several stools and chairs in the entrance. These are not animal-shaped, but they have animal’s legs and feet with claws, and one even has a tail!
One of the most beautiful objects found in the room is a magnificent golden throne (see photo 03). The front legs are crowned with lion’s heads, while the arms are adorned with winged cobras. On the backrest the king is portrayed sitting on his throne while the queen stands before him applying ointment to his shoulder from a jar. From the top of the picture the sun floods the scene with its rays.
03- Magnificent golden throne where shown in its back Tutankhamun and his wife
There were many other objects in the antechamber that could have decorated the rooms of a palace. There were chests or caskets, carved and painted, in wood, ivory, gold and alabaster (a kind of Egyptian stone); vases shaped like flowers; and a cup shaped like the lotus, the favorite flower of the Egyptians.
The objects in the room tell us about a great deal about life during the reign of Tutankhamun, because many of them are decorated with pictures. For instance, a small golden shrine, made to hold a gilded figure of a god, is covered with pictures of the young king and queen in their ordinary life. On a wooden chest there are pictures of Tutankhamun hunting and in battle. A picture on a golden buckle shows him riding home from war in his chariot (see photo 04). In a corner of the antechamber there was a pile of chariots in pieces, as they had to be taken apart to fit into the passage of the tomb.
04- Openwork gold buckle showing Tutankhamun in a chariot drawn by two horses
Before attempting to enter the burial chamber, it was necessary for Carter and his men to clear the antechamber of all its contents. But first everything was photographed to show exactly how it was when it was discovered. Clearing the antechamber was not easy, as many objects were badly decayed. Some had to be treated on the spot; otherwise they would have crumbled to dust. For instance, there were some sandals made of beads where the thread had rotted away completely.
Tutankhamun’s burial chamber
Carter found the signs of another sealed entrance in the north wall of the antechamber which would lead to the burial chamber and the tomb itself. This entrance was guarded by two life-size black and gilded statues, facing each other (see photo 05). But there were signs that thieves had broken through the entrance. The tombs of all the other pharaohs had been robbed long before.
Carter made a small hole in the wall. At first he thought he could see a wall of gold inside, but then he realized that it was the side of an enormous shrine. When the last stone of the separating wall had been removed, he stepped in. The room was almost entirely filled with the shrine, which Carter expected would contain other shrines and Tutankhamun's mummy.
05- The burial chamber as discovered and two statues guarding were there at the entrance.
No people in the world have given more importance to their tombs, or paid more wealth and effort in making them, than the Ancient Egyptians. They did this because they believed that the dead man would rise and enjoy life in another world. They thought the dead would need their bodies again to re-survive, so it was vital to preserve the body and to protect the mummy. This is why tombs were built with such care. Pyramids, with their secret passages and hidden entrances, were originally used to bury the pharaohs, but thieves broke into all of them to steal the treasures inside. Later, kings were buried in tombs cut into the rock, like Tutankhamun's. But, although these tombs were carefully hidden, thieves found their way to all of them - except one.
In Tutankhamun's burial chamber the mummy was protected by four shrines, as well as a great stone sarcophagus (see photo 06) and three coffins. Great care was needed as the wood underneath the gold decoration had shrunk slightly. However, no damage was done. When at last the fourth shrine had been removed, the magnificent stone sarcophagus was revealed. It was decorated with carving and hieroglyphics - the picture signs the Egyptians used for writing.
06- The stone of sarcophagus where 3 coffins and 4 shrines and the mummy of Tutankhamun were inside
The granite lid of the sarcophagus weighed over a ton, and when the men succeeded in raising it, they saw a wonderful scene. Inside was laid a gilded coffin in the shape of the king. His hands are folded on his breast (see photo 07). They hold the royal symbols of the crook and the flail, while a cobra and vulture are shown on the headdress.
07- This photo shows two coffins, which were in the stone of sarcophagus
08- The magnificent mask of Tutankhamun
9- The vulture collar, the symbol of the protection of the goddess Nekhbet
Finally the linen shroud was taken away. The mummy had been carefully wrapped and one hundred and forty jewels were found among the bandages. As the Egyptians believed that the dead had to travel through the underworld which was full of dangers. They wanted the gods and goddesses to protect the dead person. They put many pictures or symbols of the gods in the tomb as they thought this would make sure that the king had all the help he needed. So all three coffins and the mask were made to look like Osiris, the god of rebirth, who the Egyptians believed had succeeded in coming back to life after being murdered.
The special symbols of Osiris were the false beard, and the crook Horus, son of Osiris and Isis, is shown as a falcon. He is also represented by the eye which was thought to cure the sick and bring the dead back to life. The scarab beetle was equally popular as an amulet, or sacred charm, and both are found in many forms on the jewels of Tutankhamun.
The scarab was a symbol of the sun god because the way that it rolls a ball of dung reminded the Egyptians of the way that the sun rolled across the sky and was reborn once again at sunrise every day. There are also symbols of the sun and moon, of eternity and of the sacred flowers of Egypt, the lotus and the papyrus. Many of the necklaces, bracelets and rings found in the tomb bear these symbols.
In the burial chamber and between the shrines was a selection of the most exquisite objects in the tomb. Obviously the best were chosen to lie near the body of the pharaoh. There was a magical lamp made of alabaster: this would look plain until it was lit, and then a picture of the king and queen would appear, painted between the two layers of alabaster. The ointment jar with a lion sitting on the top is another marvelous work of art.
Table showing some Tutankhamun treasuries photos 10 - 19
The walls of Egyptian burial chambers were always painted. These pictures have provided a great deal of information concerning Ancient Egyptian beliefs about life after death, for they were painted to show what people expected would happen to them after they died. The paintings in Tutankhamun's tomb are not among the best - probably he died unexpectedly so the tomb had to be decorated in a hurry. (see photo 20)
20- The tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings well painted inside
This is what the tomb paintings show would happen.
The dead person had to face a frightening judgment. He had to stand before a court whose chief judge was Osiris. Each of the forty-two judges would ask a question. Have you stolen anything in your life? Have you told lies? Have you murdered anyone? After this came the most important part of the judgment. The heart of the dead person was weighed against a feather, which represented the truth. If the heart did not weigh the same amount as the feather, the dead man's body was either thrown to a monster or into a dark pit. Those who passed this test had to make the perilous journey through the underworld, but if they overcame all dangers, they would be taken to the Fields of Reeds. This was the Ancient Egyptians' idea of rebirth into a second life. They believed that this heaven was similar to Egypt but without death, disease or evil. The carvings on Tutankhamun's shrine describe ~his journey.
Tutankhamun treasures in the treasury room
A low opening in the north-east corner of the burial chamber leads to a small room which Carter called the treasury. The room held objects that the Ancient Egyptians thought were vital for the survival of the king in his next life. Almost blocking the doorway was a black statue of a jackal, wrapped in a linen cloth, with only his head showing, ears alert and a watchful look on his face. This was Anubis, the god of embalming - the method used to preserve the body. He was also in charge of the weighing of the heart.
21- Anubis - black statue of a jackal
Behind Anubis was the most important thing in the treasury. This was another shrine covered in gold, though much smaller than the one in the burial chamber. It was guarded by four beautiful goddesses who stood on each side, with their arms stretched out as though to shield it.
Inside the shrine there was a chest, made out of a single piece of alabaster. When the lid was taken off, Carter was greeted by an astonishing sight. Raised above the level of the top of the chest were four heads of Tutankhamun, carved out of alabaster, close together and staring at each other. These heads were in fact the stoppers of four alabaster compartments, each of which contained a miniature coffin 22.5 centimeters long, decorated to look exactly like the second coffin of Tutankhamun (see photo 22). These coffins contained the liver, lungs, stomach and intestines of the dead pharaoh.
The Mummification processes: When a person died, the first job was to remove these internal organs and treat them separately so that they did not decompose; they were then usually stored in jars, called canopic jars. The body was first treated with a natural combination of salts called natron that removed the liquid so that it would keep better. Then various oils, gums and ointments were soaked into the body, which was sometimes stuffed with material to keep its shape. Finally linen bandages were wrapped around the body. We know that the whole process took seventy days, or ten weeks, because Ancient Egyptian texts specify this period. The organs in the canopic chest were considered as important as the mummy itself, for the whole body would be needed by the pharaoh in the next world.
Osiris, the god of rebirth, is represented in the treasury in a strange way. A long wooden box was found that had a frame inside shaped like Osiris. The frame was filled with earth, with seeds of corn planted in it. After the tomb had been sealed, the corn would have sprouted and grown in the darkness. This was a symbol of the rebirth that the Egyptians believed in so strongly.
There were also twenty-two boxes containing larger statues. Some of the statues were of gods and goddesses and others were of Tutankhamun. Like the Anubis statue, they were wrapped mysteriously in linen with only their faces showing. They are beautifully made and some are unforgettable - such as the gold figure of Tutankhamun on the back of a black leopard. This was probably made to represent the pharaoh (who was thought to be a source of light), travelling through the darkness and danger of the underworld.
On the boxes containing figures, there were models of all kinds of boats normally used for travelling, fishing and hunting in Egypt. There were also models of the funeral boats in which the body of the pharaoh was taken across the Nile to its final resting place on the west bank (see photo 23).
23- Tutankhamun’s mummy have been transported across the Nile in a ceremonial boat to the valley of Kings
Another kind of boat was connected with the passage through the underworld. The Egyptians believed the sun god passed through the darkness of the underworld once each night, while there was darkness on the earth, and returned to travel across the sky each day. A dead pharaoh needed a boat so that he could go with the sun god. Also the burials were made on the west bank; for it was there that the sun was seen to set each evening. The pharaoh would thus be ready to descend into the underworld with the great sun god.
The Tomb annex
There was another room in the tomb, which became known as the annex. It was connected to the antechamber by a sealed doorway that had been partly opened by the tomb robbers. It was the smallest room in the tomb, but contained an enormous number of things. To add to the confusion, the tomb robbers had left everything in total chaos. No tidying up had been done.
24-Tutankhamun's tomb map
The annex was probably meant to contain just the food and drink that Tutankhamun was thought to need on his long journey in the underworld. Instead it was piled high with furniture, boxes and treasures of all kinds. There were one hundred and sixteen baskets for fruit and other food, made in exactly the same way as they are today.
The baskets contained the remains of dates, melon seeds and raisins. There were thirty-six earthenware jars that had originally held wine; details about where each wine came from and when it had been made were written on the jars. There were also thirty-four alabaster vessels that had held oils and ointments. These vessels show marvelous imagination: there is one carved as a standing lion, and another as an ibex or wild goat.
The furniture in the annex was very similar to that found in the antechamber. There were beds, stools and chairs resting on graceful animal legs. There were cabinets and boxes, one of which has the earliest known example of a device for locking the lid. The boxes contained a whole range of objects, including a collection of weapons like types of bow, as well as arrows, swords, clubs and boomerangs.
Four board games were also found in the annex. The largest consists of a box on a black ebony stand with two different games on it. Ivory pieces belonging to the smaller games were found scattered about the room.
The fact that there were four sets in the tomb would mean that Tutankhamun liked playing board games when he was alive. Also the Ancient Egyptians believed that one of the dangers of the journey through the underworld was a challenge to play a game with a demon. Only if the demon was beaten could the dead man continue on his way to the next life.
Table 2 showing treasures in different rooms including treasury, annex rooms (photos 25 – 32)
25- Alabaster model of headed boat and sarcophagus amidships | 26- Alabaster perfume vases |
27- An alabaster chalice, wishing the king (millions of years) of happily enjoying the cool breeze from the north | 28- Gold, perfume box shaped as two cartouches |
29- New Kingdom boat vessel which was used to transport products to major centres around the Nile in ancient times | 30- Gold Gilded Wooden Chariot |
31- Golden statues of Egyptian gods | 32- The four game boards found in the tomb |
The Sun and Moon necklace found on the mummy with all symbols explained
The Reign of Tutankhamun
The rule of King Tutankhamun was about ten years. During Tutankhamun’s reign began from Tel El-Amarna revolution against the former pharaoh Akhenaten, who moved the capital from Thebes to the new capital furnace sister Menia and tried to unify the multiple gods of ancient Egypt, including the god Amun in the form of one god, Aten on 1331 BC. i.e. in the third year of the rule of Tutankhamun, who was 11 years of age and the impact of the Minister Re Ra Ai i.e. lifting the ban on the worship of multiple gods and returned the capital to Thebes.
There is a belief that the death of Tutankhamun was not for satisfactory reasons, but it may be a result lot of conspiracy theories which suggest the idea that he did not die but was killed in the assassination. Many accusations against Minister Re Aye that he arranged it and there is plenty of evidence supplied by the believers in this theory.
It is important to indicate that the historical evidence indicate the presence of ministers of Tutankhamen Aye, one that was mentioned and the other was named Horemheb. Also there is archaeological evidence confirms that after the death of Tutankhamen, Minister Aye received the reins of power for a short period to be replaced by the Second Minister of Horemheb who destroyed most of the evidence of the reign of Tutankhamun and Aye.
You can watch also the attached clip of Tutankhamun.
You can watch also the attached clip of Tutankhamun.
Glimpse of a glorious past
The splendid temples of the Ancient Egyptians, their magnificent tombs, the fine workmanship and the artistic beauty of the articles found in the tombs are a silent witness to a great civilization that existed on the banks of the Nile thousands of years ago.
Of all the long history of ancient Egypt, however, perhaps the most glorious part was the period that started about two hundred years before the brief reign of Tutankhamun and lasted until about two hundred years after his death.
During that period, Egypt was a great empire, extending from the River Euphrates in Asia in the north, to the fourth cataract on the Nile in the south. Throughout this empire, the various countries were allowed to keep their own kings, but they were expected to obey the orders of the pharaoh of Egypt. They also had to send a certain amount of valuable goods, or tribute, to the Egyptians each year.
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