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| King Tut |
King Tutankhamun - King Tut - was born in 1341 BC during the New Empire Period and died in 1323 BC (in that era, the years go backward). He was born with some physical deformities that hindered his ability to walk as he got older, forcing him to use a cane or be seated at most functions. He reigned as Pharaoh for about ten years and died when he was 17.
His tomb laid relatively undisturbed for over 3,000 years until 1922 when British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered it while on a funded expedition. To his surprise, the tomb was almost completely intact.
Inside the tomb, Carter found many expensive artifacts and treasures had been entombed with King Tut, meant for him to enjoy in his afterlife, as per the custom.
When we think of King Tut, we picture the mask image as seen in the above picture. For years, scientists and archaeologists have wondered what the boy king really looked like because artistic renderings were very different from each other, with no two being the same.
What King Tut looked like physically was directly related to his lifestyle and the massive amount of inbreeding that was acceptable between first and second generational family members. His whole life, he suffered from illnesses that scientists believe were directly related to inbreeding.
Tut's Parentage
Akhenaten, Tut's father, married a woman who, for centuries, was believed to be Tut's mother. But findings from a DNA study say that it isn't true and that Tut's mother was likely one of Akhenaten's long line of consorts, five of whom were his own sisters. Her real name is not known. She is referred to as "The Younger Lady" in Egyptian documents.
Tut's Wife's Parentage
A 2010 study revealed the parentage of King Tut's wife, Ankhesenpaaten. Her father was Tut's own father and her mother was one of his consorts named Nefertiti. This means that King Tut married his half-sister.
When she married King Tut, she changed her name to Ankhesenamun. They had two daughters, but both died in infancy.
Controversy has long surrounded King Tut's cause of death. Egyptian experts claim King Tut was aware that he was surrounded by bad actors among his advisors, and that he always had to be on guard for assassination attempts. Since Tut had no heirs waiting in the wings, the family line would come to an end with his death, and any number of advisors thought they could step into the job.
Not so fast. For King Tut's wife to keep the queenly status she had become accustomed to as the wife of Pharaoh, her only option was to marry again. Then that man could take over as Pharaoh, which is exactly what happened.
In 2008, scientists studied the DNA of Tut's mummy to learn more about Tut's life, health, and possibly shed more light on his cause of death.
The scientists discovered that, for a young man, he had quite a few health problems, and they felt that some of them may have contributed to his death.
Tut was about 5 foot 6 inches tall, which is considered average height for a young teen who was probably still in his growing phase. However, his growth could have been stunted by reoccurring malaria which he suffered with for most of his life. Malaria would have also hindered his immune system's ability to heal from infections and broken bones.
In 2011, another study revealed that Tut was most likely physically challenged so that he had to walk with a cane when he was able to walk.
Tut had Kohler's Disease which is a fragile bone disorder that causes infections to heal slowly. Comfort comes with avoiding weight-bearing activities which probably accounts for why there are so many images of Tut in a seated position, whether he was practicing archery, attending festivals and military campaigns, supervising the building of temples and his tomb.
At the time of his death, King Tut had a broken thighbone and was in the throes of a bout of malaria. Scientists say there was evidence he had a club foot, a trait that is typical of inbreeding between first and second generation family members.
The 2011 study revealed that one of Tut's daughter was born prematurely at around six months of pregnancy. The other daughter was full-term pregnancy but she had scoliosis like her father, as well as spina bifida and Sprengel's deformity.
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| Scientists say this is what King Tut looked like |
Nefertiti and her husband the Pharaoh Akhenaten were known for the religious revolution in Egypt, worshipping just one god named Aten, who was a sun disc.
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| Bust of Nefertiti |
Based on the sculpture, Nefertiti was considered beautiful with her defined facial features. With 3D imaging technology, experts were able to determine what they think Nefertiti may have looked like.
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| This is what scientists say Nefertiti looked like in life |
First, the mummy’s face was scanned, then paleoartist Elisabeth Daynes took about 500 hours to recreate the face on the bust. This project seems to prove that “The Younger Lady” was indeed Nefertiti. Upon its release, the image caused much controversy over the supposed color of Nefertiti’s skin.
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