DISCOVERING TUT

Summary
Tut was the last heir of a powerful Egyptian dynasty. He died in his teens about 3,300 years ago.
He was laid to rest laden with gold and was eventually forgotten. An English archeologist Carter
discovered his tomb in 1922. The mummy had to undergo CT scan in order to unveil numerous
mysteries about Tut’s life and death. Many tourists from all over the world came to see the most
famous mummy. It was in a deplorable state. Carter found three nested coffins of Tut. On
opening the first one, he saw a shroud decorated with garlands, willow, olive and lotus petals.
When he finally reached the mummy, he encountered a major problem. The ritual resins had
hardened which left Tut cemented to the bottom. He tried hard to loosen the resin by putting it in
the blazing sunlight, but he did not succeed in doing so. Finally, he had to chisel away the
solidified resins to raise the king’s remains. If he had not done so, thieves would have cut it apart
to remove the gold. Carter’s men removed the mummy’s head and separated almost every part
and joint. A CT machine scanned his mummy from head to toe. It created 1,700 hundred digital
X- ray images. But the scanner did not work due to sand going into the machine. It was
considered to be the ‘curse of the Pharaoh’. But the substitute fans which were used made it
possible for the whole process to finish. A technician pulled up wonderful images of Tut on
computer screen. Everything went off smoothly. After the completion of scan, his mummy was
carried back to his tomb. Just above Tut’s tomb stood a cluster of stars known as Orion,
watching over the boy king.
1. Why was Tut’s body buried along with gilded treasures?
Answer: The people of Ancient Egypt believed that the soul of the dead person will return to the
same body. Their kings were extremely rich and they were buried along with their treasure. The
eternal brilliance of the gold was meant to guarantee resurrection. Tut was also buried with
everyday objects that he would want in his afterlife. Some of the things that were found were
board games, a bronze razor, linen undergarments and cases of food and wine.

2. Which questions still linger about Tut?

Answer:The two biggest questions that still linger about Tut are –how did he die and how old
was he at the time of his death? He was the last of his family’s line, and his funeral was the death
rattle of a dynasty but the particulars of his passing away and its aftermath were unclear.

3. Which evidence proves that tut's burial happened in March or April?

Answer:The first coffin, on being opened, revealed a shroud adorned with garlands of willow
and olive leaves, wild celery, lotus petals and cornflowers, the faded evidence of a burial in
March or April. Since most of these plants blossom during the moths of March or April, it can be
deduced that he was buried during these months.

4. What is so special about the contents of Tut’s tomb?

Answer:Tut’s tomb not only contained a number of adornments of pure gold on his body but
also he had been buried with everyday things he would want in the afterlife: board games, a
bronze razor, linen undergarments, cases of food and wine.

5. What problem did Carter face when he reached the mummy? How did he find a way
out?

Answer:Carter, on investigating, opened the three nested coffins. When he finally reached the
mummy, he saw that the ritual resins had hardened, cementing Tut to the bottom of his solid gold
coffin. It was difficult to remove it. He had to chisel away the consolidated material from
beneath the limbs and trunk.

6. What according to A.R Williams were the thoughts of the visitors who stood silently near
Tut’s Grave?

Answer:According to A.R. Williams, the visitors stood silently perhaps pondering over Tut’s
untimely death. Perhaps they wondered if the pharaoh’s curse – death or misfortune falling on
those who disturbed him – was really true.

7. How was the atmosphere like when Tut’s body was taken for C.T scan?

Answer:As King Tut’s body was taken from his resting place in the ancient Egyptian cemetery
known as the Valley of the Kings, an angry wind stirred up ghostly dust devils. Dark-bellied
clouds had moved across the desert sky all day and covered the stars in grey colour.

8. The boy king changed his name from Tutankhaten to Tutankhamun. What was the
reason?
Answer:Tutankhamun means ‘Living image of Amun’. He was a major god in ancient Egypt.
King Amennotep smashed the images of Amun and closed his temples. Tut oversaw a restoration
of the old ways. He also changed his name to express his belief on Amun.

9. Why did Carter have to chisel away the solidified resins to raise the king’s remains?

Answer:Carter found that the ritual resin that was used as a polish had hardened. The result was
that the mummy was cemented to the bottom of the solid gold coffin. Neither the strongest force
could move the mummy nor the burning sun could loosen the remains of the king.

10. Why was Howard Carter’s investigation resented?

Answer:Howard Carter’s investigation was resented because he used unscientific methods to cut
the body away from the wooden base. He also focused more on the discovery of gold than on the
fascinating details of Tut's life and the mysteries of his death.

11. A.R Williams says, ‘King Tut is……. In death, as in life moving regally ahead of his
countrymen’. How far do you agree with the assertion and why?

Answer:

The Pharaohs of Egypt, over the years have fascinated historians, archaeologists and public but
the Geatest marvel ever, is the boyish king- Tutankhamun. He had died 3300 years ago when he
was in teens and had ruled for only nine years. He had brought about a few changes during his
brief rule. These changes were significant because they marked restoration of the old ways of
worship of Amun. After his death, his dead body has been a centre of scientific examination.
Howard Carter, the British archaeologist discovered Tut’s tomb in 1922. Later, in 1968, an
anatomy Professor X-Rayed the mummy only to find a few of its bones missing and broken. The
next phase of C.T scanning with a portable C.T machine began on 5th January 2005. King Tut’s
mummy was the first to undergo C.T scan. Hence, the assertion that in death as in life, King Tut
moved regally ahead of his countrymen.

12. The treasure found in Tut’s tomb remains the richest royal collection ever found. Tut
was buried with this treasure for use in his afterlife. Do you think those riches which were
buried with him were of any use to him? What should be our attitude towards wealth?

Answer:

King Tut was buried with all those precious goods which were absolutely useless for his afterlife.
The ancient Egyptian royals were fabulously wealthy and they thought that they could take their
riches with them beyond this world.

King Tut remains in his chamber stripped of all the wealth. It teaches us a great truth. The wealth
of this world will follow us till our death. After death they are of no use to us. What remains with
us and of use to us even after death are the deeds of kindness which we have extended to our
fellow human beings. But still people are crazy for wealth. Riches can neither satiate ones greed
nor provide real happiness. We should realize the futility of riches and try to lead a life of
service.
13. The mummy is in a very bad condition because of what Carter did in the 1920s.’ Who is
Carter? What did he do to the mummy?

Answer:

Howard Carter was the British archaeologist who in 1922, discovered Tut’s tomb after years of
futile searching. He and his team, had searched the tomb trying to look for objects of royalty
from the rich collection of the pharaoh’s legend. They ended up spoiling and destroying the
carefully kept mummy. To separate Tut from his adornments, Carter’s men removed the
mummy’s head and severed nearly every major joint. Once they had finished they reassembled
all the severed pieces on a layer of sand in a wooden box with padding that carefully concealed
the damage. This lead to formation of many false theories about how Tut died.

14. Why was King Tut’s body subjected to repeated scrutiny?

Answer:

King Tut’s body has been subjected to repeated scrutiny for the riches it was buried with. they
remained the richest royal collection ever found and have become the part of the pharaoh's
legend. stunning artifacts in gold which were supposed to bring resurrection for the king caused a
sensation at the time of the discovery and still gets the most attention. Also there has also been a
lot of speculation about the manner of his death and the time of his death. King Tut's demise was
a big event, even by royal standards. He was the last of his family's line and his death announced
the death knell of his dynasty. But the facts about his death still remain clouded in mystery.
Another reason for its continuing appeal is the unscientific method used by Carter to cut the
mummy away from the wooden base that resulted in spoilage of the mummy. Later archeologists
tried to properly reassemble the pieces of the mummy.