The world long has been fascinated by the history of ancient Egypt, its pyramids and Sphinx, and the excavation of embalmed mummies of ancient pharaohs. But surely the “best-known” ruler of ancient Egypt was “King Tut,” although he was far from having been among the most important ones.
King Tut — one version of his full name is Tutankhamun — gained fame when archeologist Howard Carter discovered Tut’s previously undisturbed tomb on Nov. 5, 1922, revealing 3,500 “wonderful things.” They included Tut’s golden death mask and other exciting artifacts.
Tut is believed to have been born in 1343 B.C., the son of famed “Heretic King” Akhenaten and famed Queen Nefertiti. Her beautiful likeness is on display in a Berlin museum.
King Tut was a relatively minor pharaoh but has gotten lots of “press.”
He was only 9 years old when he became pharaoh — and died when he was just 18 or 19. Why did he die so young? That question is one of the reasons for such fascination about him. Was he a victim of foul play, as many have surmised, or …?
Well, now the mystery may have been solved. Recent examination of his mummy has confirmed that he had “many disorders,” including a broken leg. But, according to an article in the Journal of the American Medical Association, King Tut’s death in 1324 B.C. is now believed to have involved malaria — there were lots of mosquitoes along the Nile River — and bone degeneration.
The latest revelations about King Tut only add to the world’s longtime fascination about the boy king, and many other Egyptian personalities, the way of life in the ancient civilization — and the Bible account of the Exodus of the Jewish people from Egyptian captivity under Moses’ leadership, more than a century before King Tut lived and died.