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Undisturbed for millenia, nearly forgotten by history, it was only chance that brought
Tutankhamun - commonly known as King Tut - to modern fame. In 1922, archaeologist Howard
Carter uncovered Tutankhamun's tomb. It was the best preserved pharaoh's tomb ever to
be discovered, basically untouched by the tomb robbers who emptied most others of their
treasures. The artifacts inside gave a never-before-seen look into the life and death of an Egyptian
Pharaoh, and sparked new curiousity about King Tut, a ruler lost to time.
He was born as Tutankhaten more than three thousand years ago, about 1341 BC, the son
of the pharaoh Akhenaten. Akhenaten was a controversial pharaoh - he made many changes
to the religion of ancient Egypt, including switching from worshiping many gods to worshiping
only Aten, the sun, and moving the capital city from Thebes to a new city, Amarna, which
he built.
Akhenaten died when Tut was very young, and Tut became the pharaoh at the age of nine.
With the help of powerful advisers, young Tut reversed all of his father's changes and
even changed his name to Tutankhamun to show that he was ending the time when Aten was
worshiped as the one god.
King Tut was not very healthy, and may have had to walk with a cane. This was probably
partially because his parents were brother and sister, something that was common for
royal marriages in ancient Egypt. When he became pharaoh, Tut married his half-sister,
Ankhesenamun. Together, they had two daughters, but both of them died before they could even
be born.
The pharaoh Tutankhamun died when he was only about 19 years old. The exact cause of his
death is a mystery, but archaeologists believe that he may have died from an injury or an
infection. However he died, it was unexpected for a pharaoh to die so young, and his tomb
was probably not complete. This would have forced Tut to be buried in a tomb intended
for someone else.
Tutankhamun was mummified and buried in a sarcophagus holding three nested coffins,
each smaller than the next. Inside the last coffin was a beautiful golden mask inlaid
with glass and gemstones, as well as many other detailed and valuable artifacts decorating
his mummy. His sarcophagus was surrounded by four elaborate shrines, and his tomb was
filled from top to bottom with thousands and thousands of items and artifacts that the
Egyptians believed King Tut would need for his journey to the afterlife.
After the tomb was sealed, it was robbed at least twice, but only a little was taken,
and then it appears to have been forgotten. Rubble and stone debris from building other
tombs higher on the hill buried the entrance, protecting it from thieves, and it lay untouched
for over three thousand years.
In the late 1800s and early 1900s, archaeologists began to excavate and explore the tombs and
ruins of ancient Egypt. Howard Carter, an English archaeologist, was among the people
digging there. He discovered the tombs of several pharaohs in the Valley of the Kings,
but all had been robbed of their contents many years before. In November of 1922, Carter
and his team discovered the entrance to Tutankhamun's tomb. They made a small opening, and Carter
was able to look inside. The people who were with him asked if he could see anything inside,
and Carter answered, "Yes, wonderful things."
When the tomb was opened completely, they could see many artifacts and items inside.
More than 5,000 items were found in Tut's tomb, and each needed to be removed, cataloged,
described, photographed, and shipped to the Cairo museum, a process that took ten years.
The discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun made news headlines worldwide, and the artifacts
that were inside it have traveled to museums around the globe to be seen by millions of
people. Tutankhamun, a pharaoh who ruled for only ten years three thousand years ago, has
become one of the most famous pharaohs in history because of the amazing treasures he
had buried with him, treasures that were, incredibly, intact when they were discovered
in 1922.
I hope you enjoyed learning about the pharaoh Tutankhamun today, and seeing some of his
fabulous treasure. Good-bye.