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The Mystery of King Tutankhamun
Tutankhamun was a pharaoh that ruled ancient Egypt between 1325 and 1334 BC. He was the last of their royal family to possess the throne. According to the conventional chronology, Tutankhamun ruled towards the end of the 18th century, during the New Kingdom (Sayre). He was the son of Akhenten, who was also a pharaoh. His mother was his father’s sister and popularly referred to as ‘the younger lady.’ Tutankhamun took over the throne at the tender age of nine years. He married Ankhesenamun, his half-sister with whom he sired two daughters born as stillborn. His name has been translated to mean the ‘life of Aten is pleasing.’ He was responsible for the reinstatement of the Ancient Egyptian religion, which his father had dissolved. He later died at the age of eighteen years under mysterious circumstances that have elicited public debate up to date.
Many theories have been developed to address the mysterious death of this pharaoh. Some argue that his death resulted from murder, while others claim he died due to illness. One of the popular theories created is that King Tutankhamun was murdered. Bob Brier is a famous mummy specialist who supports this theory and has been tracking down clues to support this hypothesis. This theory claims that the pharaoh was murdered by Ay, who was his successor and chief advisor (Lowe). When an x-ray was carried out on the calcified skull of Tutankhamun, a blood clot was detected at the base. Scientists claim that this was a result of blunt trauma that resulted in his untimely death. Another theory proposed to address his mysterious death is that he died from a gangrene infection. The scientists that support this theory claim that ancient history art shows Tutankhamun riding different chariots throughout his life. In one of the artistic depictions, he is seen with an injured leg, which the scientists propose occurred due to a chariot accident. The scientists claim that he injured his leg, developing a wound that did not heal. Instead, it developed gangrene, which spread to his blood, causing blood poisoning.
The most plausible theory is that Ay murdered the pharaoh. Since Tutankhamun lost his children and didn’t have an heir, Ay was to be his successor. He became impatient and decided to murder the pharaoh so that he could take over the throne. After the death of Tutankhamun, Ay became the pharaoh and wanted to marry Tutankhamun’s wife, Ankhesenamun. She begged the King Hittites to send her one of his sons to marry her as she did not want to be married to Ay. One son was sent, but he never arrived as he was murdered on the way. This resulted in Ankhesenamun marrying Ay. It is presumed that he forced her into marriage against her will. Shortly after their marriage, Ankhesenamun disappeared. Despite the circumstances leading to his death being a mystery up to date, I support this theory for two reasons. First, this theory explains the presence of a blood clot at the back of the late pharaoh’s head. In addition to this, the death of the King of the Hittie’s son and the disappearance of Ankhesenamun is too coincidental to be fiction.
In conclusion, this mystery is essential as it sheds light and gives insight into the culture of the ancient Egyptians. Through this, we acquire a deeper understanding of the New Kingdom of Egypt. The death of Tutankhamun remains a mystery as no definitive theory has been supported. This mystery is fascinating up to date due to the numerous interesting theories that have been postulated in an attempt to uncover the truth.
Works Cited
Lowe, Adrian. “The murder of King Tut? A case far from closed!” Skeptic (Altadena, CA) (2004): 100-102.
Sayre, Henry. The Humanities: Culture, Continuity and Change. Pearson Publishers, 2007.