The Death of King Tut
Tutankhamun’s tomb is the only royal tomb in Egypt to have escaped the discovery of looters and was discovered by archeologist Howard Carter. The death of Tutankhamun was a sudden tragedy that til this day has yet to be solved. The cause of the famous teenage king’s death has been a long drawn out mystery with a range of theories as to how he met his end. There are no historical records explaining the cause or circumstances of his death, nor is there no positive evidence to suggest how he died. However, there are several theories and many of which have changed over the years.
One theory suggests that King Tut was murdered. During an xray of the mummy in 1968, scientists found “bone fragments in King Tut’s skull prompting this theory”. Another theory as to what caused King Tut’s death was a genetic disorder known as gynecomastia, a hormone imbalance which gives males a female appearance. The final theory was that he died from a “break in the bone just above his left knee. ” Technology showed that this happened while he was still alive and was probably the result of falling from a chariot and developed an infection in the wound.
Furthermore, after many speculations and testing performed on the mummy to find the cause of death, it still remains a mystery. Although there is evidence to potentially prove each of these theories to be true, I believe there are two reasons why he died. While he was alive, he fractured a thigh bone which had gotten infected. This infection spread throughout his body and eventually killed him. The CT scan showed a thin coating of embalming resin around the leg break which suggested that he broke his leg just before he died. The resin “flowed through the wound and got into direct contact with the fracture and became solidified. There was no evidence or signs of healing of the bone and that is most likely what had killed him. There were no antibiotics 3,000 years ago, and according to Ashraf Selim, a radiologist at Kasr Eleini Teaching Hospital at Cairo University in Egypt, “the probability of a severe infection resulting from such a break would be quite high. ”
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In addition, the authors led by Dr. Zahi Hawass from the Supreme Council of Antiquities in Cairo, results suggest “avascular bone necrosis (condition in which the poor blood supply to the bone leads to weakening or destruction of an area of bone) in conjunction ith the malarial infection” was most likely the cause of death in Tutankhamun. In conclusion, there has not yet been a definite cause of death for King Tut, but studies and tests performed on the mummy body mostly point to infection as his cause of death. He died at a very young age, however the medications and technology was not there like it is today. There will continue to be studies and testing done, but there will always only be speculation because he died so long ago.
Resources Alleyne, Richard. (February 16, 2010). King Tut Died of Malaria and Bone Condition, Says New Research. http://www. elegraph. co. uk/science/science-news/7251320/King-Tut-died-of-malaria-and-bone-condition-says-new-research. html Hasan, Lama. Crystal Phend (February 16, 2010). How King Tut Died Revealed in New Study. http://abcnews. go. com/Health/LivingLonger/king-tut-died-revealed-study/story? id=9853119 Lovgren, Stefan. (December 1, 2006). King Tut Died From Broken Leg, Not Murder, Scienctists Conclude. http://news. nationalgeographic. com/news/2006/12/061201-king-tut. html. Sayre, Henry. (2011). The Humanities: Culture, Continuity and Change. The Stability of Ancient Egypt. Upper Saddle River, NJ. Prentice Hall
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