Egypt was a land ruled by kings and pharaohs. These men were treated like gods, they had power over all lf there land, and everyone worshipped them. When a king would die it was a ritual to have massive burial tombs with grand celebrations. The tombs were filled with many riches including, gold, emeralds, rubies, and sapphires. Some kings would die before the tombs were even finished. After time passed grave robbers would break into the tombs and steal the jewels inside.
There was one particular king named Tutankhamen. King Tut was also referred to as the Boy-King only because of the age he came to the throne. King Tut was fourteen when he was crowned king and died at the age of nineteen. He is one of the most well-known Egyptian kings because of his mysterious past. King Tut was the only known king whose tomb had not been discovered. It was said that the king who replaced him had Tut’s name erased from all records (Radford).
A man named Howard Carter set off on an excavation mission to find the tomb of King Tut. His expedition was funded by a wealthy Englishman who they called Lord Carnovarn. Howard was a very motivated man and stopped at nothing until his job was complete. He searched a famous strip of land called the VALLEY OF KINGS where may kings were buried. He still came up short after searching for many years, until one day when a man on his excavation team found a step that lead nowhere. Eventually the team dug down and found more steps until they reached a door with a sign that read “TUTANKHAMEN” (Smithsonian Journeys). The tomb had been buried under another king’s tomb completely sealing it off. When Howard and Lord Carnovarn entered the tomb it was untouched. After discovering the tomb, the media took over, from interviews to viewings of the tomb.
The tomb was filled with Gold, and many other jewels, but what laid in the middle of the room was King Tut’s casket where his mummy was held. The casket was made mainly of gold
After a few weeks had passed Lord Carnovarn was bitten on the cheek by a mosquito causing him to become ill. One-night Lord Carnovarn was speaking to his daughter about his illness and suddenly passed away (Rompalski). This event was what sparked the curse. Many rumors started following this event including that Howard Carter found a tablet that read “Those who disturb the king at rest will suffer (Radford).” Carter claimed these acquisitions were false, but they continued to arise. After Carnovarns death many different tragic events followed like more suspicious deaths.
Researchers have been studying this case for many decades and still cannot figure out if the curse was real. There really is no way to scientifically tell if the occurrences were related to the tomb. However, some scientists have created a theory that the cause of the deaths may be related to mold spores that have grown overtime inside the tomb. The one thing that keeps the speculations down is that Howard Carter, the man who opened and discovered the tomb, was around Tut the most and was in the tomb more than anyone. Carter lived to be 68 (Smithsonian Journeys), which was an average age back then.
In my opinion the curse is not real and was an act from the media. They most likely were trying to get citizens scared and worried. The media were the ones who started the rumor about Carter finding a tablet warning anyone who entered would be cursed. The curse has bought a lot of attention to itself, and many years of research. To this day there is no reasonable explanation behind the events that happened over the course of those years, but after researching it appears that there have been no recent happenings.
The curse will most likely pass down to younger generations, but in the end I feel it will eventually fade away.
Works Cited:
“King Tutankhamen’s Tomb.” Photograph. Crystalinks. Crystalinks. Web. 20 Oct. 2015
Dunn, Jimmy. “King Tut’s Coffins.” Photograph. Toureygypt. Toureygypt. Web. 20 Oct. 2015
Radford, Benjamin. “The Curse of King Tut: Facts & Fable.” Did the financer pay with his life? 2014. Web. 21 March 2014.
Rompalske, Dorothy. "King Tut's Tomb, Buried Treasure, And The Curse." Biography 4.9 (2000): 80. Academic Search Premier. Web. 12 Oct. 2015.
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