The Face of King Tut Finally Revealed to the Public

Over three thousand years ago, a young pharaoh was buried. 85 years ago his intact, and non vandalized tomb was discovered in the Valley of the Kings, in Luxor. Now for the first time in public, the face of King Tut has been unveiled.

The mummy of the 19 year old pharaoh was placed in a climate-controlled glass box in the tomb, with only the face and feet showing under the linen covering.

King Tutankhamen has captivated ancient Egypt, fans since the tomb was first discovered in 1922. The tomb was of gold and lay hidden in it, were precious stones and a gold treasure.

Nebkheperure Tutankhamen, (or more commonly known as, King Tut) was an Egyptian Pharaoh of the Eighteenth dynasty. He ruled from 1324 BC to 1333 BC, during the period known as the New Kingdom. Tut is believed to have been the 12th ruler of ancient Egypt.

Little is known about the life of King Tut. His tomb revealed that he enjoyed board games, and probably spend his childhood hunting, swimming and studying. It is estimated that he took the throne at the age of nine, with Ay, his vizier and eventual successor, making most of the political decisions.

There is an inscription that calls Tut a king's son, but is unclear as to which king. Many scholars believe that he was probably the son of either Amenhotep III, or Akhenaten, the son of Amenhotep III. Professor James Allen, argues that Tut is probably the son of Smenkhkare, a short lived king.

Currently the theory is, Tut was the son of Akhenten and Queen Kiya. This theory is supported by images on the wall of Akhenaten's tomb of either a princess or more likely a wet nurse holding holding a baby boy.

Tutankhamun was wed to his half sister Ankhesenpaaten, the daughter of Nefertiti and Akhenaten. There are non to have had two daughters, both stillborn whose mummies were also discovered in Tut's tomb.

When Tut's father (Akhenaten) died, Egypt was in turmoil because of his father's religious movement. Akhenaten had changed the religion and the old beliefs, that had been practiced for hundreds of years. Tut was left to rule many angry citizens, because of this change.

After he acquired the throne Tut started to uphold his father's beliefs, the worship of one god. However after a few years, Tut restored all of the original beliefs, and ended the religious chaos.

King Tut died at the age of nineteen. Some believe that he died do to injuries suffered in an accident or at war, while others believe that he was murdered, maybe by his advisor's.

One suspect is Ay, his adviser. After Tut's death, Ay married Ankhesenpatten and look the throne. This could have been a motive for him to kill Tut. It is argued that Ay would not have killed the pharaoh for he assisted him with personal and important rituals.

Another person who may have been responsible for the king's death would be Horemheb, the king's deputy. After Ay died Horemheb became pharaoh and he restored Egypt to it's original times. He returned all of the temples to the priest, and removed any sign of the Amarna Period. However it is believed that Horemheb could not have killed Tut because Tut was restoring Egypt already. Therefore He would not have had a reason to kill him.

Other theories include he may have been poisoned. X-Rays taken in 1968, show damage to the back of the skull, some believe was a severe blow to the head, while others say it happened during mummification.

In 2005, scientists, in efforts to try determine the cause of death, removed Tut from his tomb and performed a CT scan to obtain a three dimensional image. These were the first scan on an Egyptian mummy. The scan revealed a badly broken left thigh, that proved to have happened a few days before he died. This injury may have caused a fatal infection, thus ruling out murder.

Will the death of King Tut ever be solved? The search for clue's continues and there are still many questions that may never have an answer.

sources:

Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Associated Press

, Anna Johnson

kingtutone.comcaptivated ancient Egypt fans since the tomb was first discovered in 1922. The tomb was of gold and lay hidden in it were precious stones and a gold treasure.