King Tut: The Most Recognized Pharaoh In Egyptian History

King Tutankhamun is one of the most famous pharaohs today. Surprisingly, he did not accomplish much as a king, but is in fact known for his treasures. He might not even have had many more treasures than other pharaohs, but his was the least broken into by thieves. King Tut is also known because he was a very young king. (Than, Great)

There is little known about King Tut’s childhood. He was probably born in 1343 BC in Armana, a city created by his father. His mother was probably Kiya, and his father probably Akhenaten. There is much speculation, but it is recognized that Amenhotep IV changed his name to Akhenaten because he liked the god Aten above Amun, the usual head god of Egypt. (Tutankhamun, KingTutOne, King) For this reason, he named his son Tutankhaton, which means “Living image of the Aten.” (KingTutOne) Akhenaten ruled for 17 years or so, and his successor is unknown. Tut was probably too little for such a position, and so people assume there was someone ruling between them. Some believe Nefertiti, Akhenaten’s wife, ruled for a while, or Tut’s brother. When Tut finally began his reign, he relied very much on his advisors. (King)

Tut’s tomb contained lots of canes, so archaeologists believe he had some sort of walking disorder. DNA research proved that he also might have had malaria and some sort of bone disorder. Since his parents were brother and sister, his weaknesses were most likely a result of inbreeding. (KingTutOne, Than)

King Tut was set on the throne at around eight or nine years old with a lot on his plate. His father had left Egypt in chaos after reforming their religious beliefs. Akhenaten had ordered the worship of only Aten, the sun god. The people hated this, but Tut continued it for a while during his reign before eventually bringing the others back. (KingTutOne)

Tut married his half-sister Ankhensenpaaton and changed both their names to those reflecting Amun: Tutankhamun and Ankhesenamun. So instead of ending in “Aten” as their father chose, they ended in “Amun,” a different god. Amun, or Amen, is said to be the “King of the gods,” the Sun god. Aton, or Aten, is a “sun disk,” and it is understood that Akhenaten worshipped the visible sun only, which he called Aten. (Aldokkan, KingTutOne, Ancient)

During Tutankhamun’s reign, Egypt’s enemies were mainly the Hittites, the Nubians, and the Libyans. It is unsure whether Tut really fought in battles, or if his Commander in Chief did so for him. Some think he was not physically able to do everything, and “he is also shown sitting while engaged in activities such as hunting, where normally he should be standing.“ (King) There are partial portraits from Thebes that show that Tut did lead Egypt in “at least one major confrontation,” since he probably would have looked like a pathetic if he had not. (King)

The King, Queen, and royal court moved the capital back to Thebes, where it had been before Akhenaten’s reign, who had moved it to the city of Amarna. The King and Queen had two daughters who were stillborn; this is known because they were buried with Tut. Also in his tomb were several chariots, more evidence for him participating in battle. (Pharaoh, Tutankhamun)

Tut reigned for only nine or ten years, dying in the year 1324 or 1325 BC at eighteen or nineteen years old. (Than, Tutankhamun) Some guesses of death were “a hunting accident, a blood infection, a blow to the head, and poisoning.” (Than) He had a bashed-in head, so that was the automatic response for archaeologists. They figured someone influential got mutinous because only important people were allowed near the pharaoh. But more recent studies say that he died by broken leg because they found a fatal fracture and he was very fragile with several health conditions. Whatever the cause of his death, Tut apparently died suddenly because he was buried in a tomb not suit for a pharaoh, but more for an official. (Tour, King2, Lovgren)

Now comes the real story. Some still believe in a “Curse of Tutankhamun.” The day his tomb was opened, a canary belonging to the mission’s financer was attacked by a cobra-the supposed protector of the pharaohs. Later, this man, Lord Carnarvon, died of a blood disease after accidentally cutting a mosquito bite on his cheek. When Tut was unwrapped, there was a wound in the same place as his bug bite. Six of twenty-six onlookers at the tomb’s unveiling died within ten years. Two of twenty-two spectators at the sarcophagus opening died within ten years. However, Howard Carter, who discovered his tomb, was never harmed. You can decide for yourself whether there really was a curse. (Life)

Tut’s tomb was tricky. There were several rooms before his actual mummy, and there were secret entrances that had to be found. Where he was buried, there were three other fake sarcophagi, two of which are on display at museums and one made of almost 300 pounds of gold. There were many artifacts in the tomb. There were paintings, jewelry, thrones, weapons, games, a bed, statues of gods, and everything in between. In his tomb were also over 400 shawabtis, gilded doll-type figures that helped with afterlife preparations. (Tour, Great, King3, Farstrider, Treasures)

“…In the time of the pharaohs the tomb was entered three times. And after that the police of the cemetery sealed the tomb.” The tomb of Ramesses VI was being built at this time next to Tut’s. A “stone fell down [from Ramesses’ tomb] and covered the entrance of the tomb of Tutankhamun,” so it really could not be broken into again. (Hawass)

Some people were getting suspicious that certain officials were stealing from the tombs of the Valley of the Kings, where Tut was buried. So they sent some workers in and wrote an inventory of all that was missing. This is still intact today, so we can see exactly what all was in his tomb. The fact that there were more treasures in his tomb than what they have found is amazing. The Egyptians obviously thought very highly of their kings, even if they were young. (Hawass)

The study of King Tutankhamun has been a fascination for many people. His life and death have always been a mystery and archaeologists are captivated by the challenge to learn more. They constantly remember and discover more about the ancient world, which in turn tells us about human history. The more we know about ancient people, their mistakes, and their achievements, the more we can apply it to our daily lives. For example, we can learn from Akhenaten and tests today that inbreeding produces diseases. Also, we must learn from their great building achievements. The Egyptians even knew how to build secret passageways into Tut’s tomb. They discovered the pyramids and how to build with capstones, things that we must remember how to do today.