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THE CURSE OF KING TUT
IT or Not!
Curses were placed in Egyptian tombs centuries before King Tut lived -- much like ancient "Do Not Disturb" signs. Such curses served to protect the dead and escort them safely to the afterlife. They also were thought to keep grave robbers away, and some even blessed those that let the departed rest in peace.
The Rumors Grow
The unearthing of Tut's tomb in 1922 led to "Tutmania" worldwide, with people demanding the latest news about the boy king. At the time, however, news traveled slowly. As a result, the press would sometimes print gossip and dig up sensational stories to feed their readers' curiosity. Weird happenings, including accidents and the untimely deaths of individuals involved with the discovery and the exhibition of treasures, led to the news reports that said trespassing upon the tomb had unleashed the curse of the Pharaoh. According to rumor, the curse "Death comes on swift wings to he who disturbs the tomb of the pharaoh" had been carved on a plaque above the doorway of Tut's tomb. Proof of this carving, however, was never found. Still, popular belief in Tut's revenge grew and would not die.
Bizarre tales seemed to support the existence of "Tut's Curse." First, Howard Carter, who discovered the tomb, brought a lucky golden canary to the Valley of Kings. Reports stated that a cobra, a royal symbol on a pharaoh's headdress, squeezed into the cage and swallowed the canary whole. Then, Lord Carnarvon died at age 57 from an infected mosquito bite and pneumonia -- just four weeks after he visited Tut's burial chamber. British novelist Marie Corelli had warned Carnarvon in March 1923 against entering the shrine. Her advice, she said, was based on a rare book that predicted "the most dire punishment" by "the hand of Pharaoh."
Reportedly, when Carnarvon died, the lights went out in Cairo, and his dog Susie, left behind in England, howled and fell dead. But Carnarvon was already in ill health before he arrived in Egypt. Further, the power often went out in Egypt, and, due to the time difference between Egypt and England, the dog may have passed hours after Carnarvon died. Yet, many accepted the supernatural stories as true, since, at the time, disturbing the dead was
Why Did Some Survive?
Yet, if the curse did exist, why were some punished and others not? Howard Carter should have been struck down. Yet, he lived 16 years after Lord Carnarvon. Carter even scoffed at "Tut's Curse," which only strengthened its believability. American Egyptologist Herbert Winlock created a chart showing that only 6 of the 26 present at the tomb's opening died within 10 years after the discovery. The doctor who later examined the mummy lived to old age. In 1980, soldier Richard Adamson, hired to guard the tomb, told London's Daily Mail that so many people descended on the site each day that he and those in charge promoted the idea of a curse to scare them away, even going so far as to play eerie music. But, for every story that debunked the curse, another arose to keep it alive and well.
In the 1970s, Dr. Gamal Mehrez of Cairo made known his disbelief in the curse. Soon after, while directing the packing and shipping of Tut's mask to a London exhibit, he dropped dead at age 52 from circulatory failure. In 1980, on the set of a film about the discovery of Tutankhamun's tomb, one actor collapsed and another broke his leg in a car crash. Over time, the list of freak accidents lengthened.
Authors Say 'Yes' -- Others Debunk!
Modern scholars traced the idea of "the mummy's curse" to the 19th century. In Victorian England, mummies were unwrapped in a stage show, inspiring author Jane Webb to write The Mummy, in which the evil being comes to life to wreak vengeance. In American novelist Louisa May Alcott's Lost in a Pyramid, or the Mummy's Curse (1868), a bride turns into a mummy through exposure to seeds brought back from an Egyptian tomb. Scottish writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, well known for his tales about the detective Sherlock Holmes, joined those who believed in the mysterious curse of the pharaohs.
Scientists have proposed theories intended to lay the boy king and his curse to rest. Among these is the suggestion that people may have breathed in spores that contained viruses. Another is the idea that the ingenious Egyptians booby-trapped the mummy with poisonous bacteria that would kill when released, even if millennia had passed. While it sounds possible, in truth, the Egyptians did not know about the effects of bacteria. Other suggestions included radioactivity, bat droppings -- although no bats were found in the tomb -- and exposure to the mummy's embalming fluid.
Did Tut Get His Wish?
Believe it or not, the curse of King Tut may be a blessing in disguise. According to ancient Egyptian beliefs, a pharaoh whose name was repeated aloud through eternity would live forever. If so, the boy king seems to be getting his wish.
