How Tutankhamun died. “He died and was buried”: life, death and the unsolved mysteries of Tutankhamun

The remains of Tutankhamun discovered by Carter are no less mysterious. The tomb was strewn with treasures, representing a total of 2000 objects, and the mummy of the young pharaoh was in three golden sarcophagi. However, practically no documentary evidence was found in the tomb, so today it is very difficult to bring all the facts together and give an accurate picture of Tutankhamun’s life.

It is believed that his parents were heretics from the XVIII dynasty - this is Pharaoh Akhenaten, who ruled Egypt in 1367-1350. BC e. (or 1350-1334 BC), and his second wife Kii. Akhenaten took the unprecedented, revolutionary step of replacing the traditional golden gods of Egypt with a single sun god, Aten. Thus, Tutankhamun’s name at birth sounded like “Tutankhaten” (“living image of Aten”), and a year or two after the beginning of his reign, when polytheism was restored in Egypt, it was transformed into “Tutankhamun” (“living image of Amun”). He apparently ascended the throne at the age of 9, around 1334 BC. e., and reigned for approximately 10 years. Since the new pharaoh was very young and had no close relatives alive, much of the responsibility for his rule lay with his prime minister, Aya, and his army commander, Horemheb.

After becoming pharaoh, Tutankhamun married his half-sister Ankhesenamun, the daughter of Akhenaten and his first wife Nefertiti (daughter of the chief royal adviser Ai). Very little information has been preserved about Tutankhamun's reign: he first ruled in Akhenaten's city of Amarna, located on the east bank of the Nile about 250 miles north of Luxor. He then returned to the old capital Memphis, 12 miles south of modern Cairo on the west bank of the Nile. Apparently, it was Horemheb and Ay who convinced the new pharaoh to abandon the religion of Aten and return to the old faith. The restored stela of the Karnak Temple in Thebes preserves a description of Tutankhamun’s actions to renew old beliefs and traditions, including the creation of a new caste of priests and the initiation of construction and restoration work in temples in honor of the ancient gods.

It is known that the pharaoh and his wife had two children - two girls who died during childbirth, whose mummies were found in the tomb. Another well-known fact is the information that in the nineteenth year, Tutankhamun’s life mysteriously ended. This death seems suspicious to many researchers; probably, as soon as the pharaoh became old enough, he took on the role of the people's leader, without sharing power with Ay and Horem-heb, and therefore was killed. After the death of Tutankhamun, his widow Ankhesenamun married Aya, her grandfather, which is confirmed by the signet ring on which the names Aya and Ankhesenamun are written (presumably, personifying their union). This marriage allowed Ayu, who did not have a drop of royal blood in his veins, to inherit the throne. Soon after her marriage, the name Ankhesenamun disappeared from written sources. Presumably, she was killed on Ai's orders. Shortly after her husband's death and before the name Ankhesenamun was erased from history, she wrote one of the most amazing letters of the ancient world.

A message from the "royal widow", dating from the end of the 18th dynasty, was found in the archives of the capital of the Hittite kingdom, Hattusa (modern Boğazköy in Turkey). The document was addressed to Suppiluliuma I, the king of the Hittites, at that time the ruler of an influential power in the Middle East, which posed a real threat to Egypt. The document says: “My husband is dead and I have no son. They say you have many sons. If you would send me one of your sons, he would become my husband. I will never agree to take one of my subjects as my husband. This really scares me!” At first, the Hittite king doubted the sincerity of Ankhesenamon, but when the messenger he sent to study the political situation in Egypt returned with a second letter from the queen, he agreed to the marriage and sent his son, Prince Zannanzu. However, he met death without even reaching the borders of Egypt. Obviously, the prince was killed by the queen’s opponents, who did not want a foreign king to ascend to the Egyptian throne. This assassination eventually led to a war between Egypt and the Hittite kingdom, which ended in Egypt's defeat in the Amka Valley near the borders of Kadesh (now western Syria). Some historians believe that this amazing letter was written not by Ankhesenamun, but by her mother Nefertiti, but this is unlikely: her husband Ekhnaton had a successor, so there was no need to write a letter to a foreign king.

So, what is the reason that prompted Ankhesenamon to conduct dangerous correspondence, which in essence should be regarded as an offer to the king of an enemy state to seize the country? The problem was that Tutankhamun died without leaving an heir. According to one theory, the queen wrote these letters out of fear of the impending threat from the strengthened power of the Hittite Empire. A marriage alliance with a Hittite could have saved Egypt from conquest. The queen, apparently, intended to rule together with the Hittite protege, relying on the military power of the Hittite Empire, but her plans were destroyed: Prince Zannanza was killed. This is so reminiscent of the fate of Tutankhamun himself.

Since Tutankhamun's body was first unwrapped and studied by a team of scientists working with Howard Carter in the 1920s, the question of how and why the pharaoh died has not been answered. X-ray examinations of the skull, carried out first by researchers at the University of Liverpool (in 1968), and then by researchers from the University of Michigan (in 1978), revealed a bone fragment and traces of hemorrhage in the back of the head, which could have been caused by a blow to the skull . X-ray data and the mysterious circumstances of the death of the young pharaoh led many scientists to the conclusion that the king was killed. But who?

Most likely, the killer of Tutankhamun was the one who was more interested in his death than others - the elderly royal nobleman Ai. Having eliminated Tutankhamun, Ay ascended the throne and ruled for a little over four years. Therefore, he had a motive for the murder, although to date there is no evidence of his involvement in the death of the pharaoh. Other researchers consider Horemheb, who inherited power from Ay in 1321 BC, to be guilty. e. and became the last pharaoh of the 18th dynasty of Ancient Egypt. Horemheb reigned for 27 years. During his reign, he carried out major transformations in the country, as a result of which Egypt became a powerful state of the ancient world. He also decided to completely restore traditional religious beliefs in Egypt, destroying everything that was associated with the cult of Aten. There is a version that Tutankhamun is not on the list of the great kings of Egypt because Horemheb appropriated most of the architectural monuments in honor of the young pharaoh, including those erected in Karnak and Luxor. So, could a certain “gray cardinal” (or perhaps two) organize the murder of a minor pharaoh?

In January 2005, the 3,300-year-old skeleton of Tutankhamun was examined using CAT (computed axial tomography, a technology that produces X-ray images of detailed cross-sections of the tissue structure) - the first study ever carried out on a mummy. Surprisingly, Egyptian scientists did not find any traces of a blow to the back of the young man's head or other signs of violent death. The report said a bone fragment found in a previous X-ray scan of the skull had likely become dislodged during embalming. When Tutankhamun was mummified, his brain was removed and his skull was filled with resin, which hardened over time. If the piece of bone had become dislodged as a result of damage done before death, it would still be in the skull. The dark spot at the back of the head, which can be seen on previous X-rays, was widely believed to be the result of trauma. However, today scientists attribute its appearance to careless handling of the body during photography during the period when Howard Carter discovered Tutankhamun: a rod was used to prop up the back of the skull during photography. Overall, the researchers concluded that the pharaoh did not have a strong physique, but was a fairly healthy young man, standing 5 feet 6 inches tall. Using high-magnification images obtained with CAT, three teams of forensic aces from France, Egypt and the United States, working independently, created identical models of the royal face. It was possible to establish a striking resemblance of the copies not only to the famous golden mask that covered the face of Tutankhamun, but also to the well-known image of the young pharaoh in the form of the Sun God rising from a lotus flower at dawn. But how then did the king die?

While examining Tutankhamun's body, researchers discovered a crack in the femur of his left leg, which Howard Carter previously believed to be damage caused by embalming or mummification. After conducting a repeated study, scientists were able to establish that a serious leg fracture occurred just a few days before the death of Tutankhamun and probably led to gangrene, from which the ruler died. Thus, the data available today does not confirm the assumption that the pharaoh died as a result of a conspiracy by Tutankhamun’s closest advisors, Ay and Horemheb. A more plausible theory is that the fracture probably occurred during a hunt. Treatment was not started immediately, so it was not possible to prevent the spread of infection. But whether Ay and Horemheb could have taken action in time and saved the life of the young pharaoh is another question.

By the beginning of the twentieth century, researchers were sure that there was nothing to do in the Valley of the Kings: everything had long been dug up and studied. But the English archaeologist and Egyptologist Howard Carter had a different opinion. He worked a lot, turned to various sources, interrupted research during the First World War and returned to it. On the morning of November 4, 1922, an extraordinary silence reigned at the excavation site, carried out under the leadership of a brave Englishman: this is how the workers reacted to a descent found in the rocky ground, which was located several meters below the entrance to the tomb of Ramesses VI. Soon the sealed door was found. This is how the tomb of Tutankhamun was discovered, whose name is still associated with many legends and speculations.

Curse of the Pharaoh

All newspapers of that time wrote about the mysterious premature death of those who opened the tomb of Tutankhamun. By 1935, there were already more than twenty “victims” of the pharaoh. The circumstances of the death of many of them caused superstitious horror: someone died from the bite of a poisonous insect, and the scar on the cheek resembled a wound on the face of the mummy herself, someone died as a result of a sudden illness, and someone died from an accident.

Howard Carter (left) with an assistant at the golden sarcophagus of Tutankhamun. 1922 (colorized photograph)

There was even a popular theory about pathogens that were allegedly preserved in the sarcophagus and allegedly entered the lungs of those who unwrapped the mummy, but this does not stand up to criticism. In general, all the evidence of the “curse” had only one goal - to create a newspaper sensation. After all, in fact, most of the participants in Carter’s expedition (including himself) lived to old age.

Final diagnosis

A great many unconfirmed theories have been put forward as to what caused the death of Tutankhamun himself. Thus, a team of criminologists led by Egyptologist Dr. Chris Naunton believes that the pharaoh was hit by a chariot, as he had several broken ribs (and some not at all), and a damaged leg and skull.

Other researchers believe that these injuries are a “side effect” of embalming, and that in fact the pharaoh was strangled. In the 1960s, after X-ray studies, a version appeared about a fatal blow to the head - the assassination attempt could be related to the struggle for power.

A photograph of the remains of Tutankhamun (above) and a replica of the pharaoh's skull (below) on display at the Los Angeles County Museum of Art. 2015

Carter himself was sure that Tutankhamun was poisoned. An accident is supported by the fact that a wreath of spring flowers was placed around the mummy’s neck, and since the mummification process lasts about 70 days, the young ruler died, apparently in winter, at the height of the hunting season, which supports the theory of injury obtained during hunting.

Other possible causes of death for the ruler include obesity and malaria. The latest version arose relatively recently, in 2010, after the DNA analysis of Tutankhamun. The fact that remnants of anti-malaria drugs were found in the tomb also speaks in its favor.

Far from being a standard

Many Egyptologist researchers portrayed Tutankhamun as a handsome man - a tall, stately young man with expressive eyes and regular facial features. In reality, everything was much more prosaic: the ruler had more than enough problems with his appearance and health, and the reason for this was the close family ties of his parents.

Thus, according to later studies, the pharaoh had a bunch of genetic diseases, a cleft palate, improperly formed foot bones and an elongated skull. He probably had difficulty walking, since unique shoes were found in the tomb, never before found in other tombs. Most likely, he also had to use a cane.

Tutankhamun's tomb. 1922

The version about obesity belongs to Dutch scientists. They studied the material in which the mummy was wrapped and came to the conclusion that the volume of the pharaoh’s hips was 30 cm greater than the volume of the chest, that is, he had a “female” body type. His height was about 170 centimeters. However, this version is more than controversial: if previously it was believed that Tutankhamun was protected from physical activity due to his pain, now scientists are inclined to believe that he led an active lifestyle. Thus, in his tomb a hunting chariot and weapons were found, which were clearly often used. However, there were also walking canes - about 130 pieces.

Mummies babies

The young pharaoh's wife Ankhesenpamon was also his close relative - perhaps even a half-sister or niece, there are also several versions on this matter. They married when they were 12–13 years old, and from this marriage the couple had two children, who were apparently born prematurely and died in infancy, probably immediately after birth.

The mummies of two girls were found in the tomb of Tutankhamun. They are very tiny, one is 30 cm tall, the other is 38.5 cm. Scientists believe that they could be twins, and DNA analysis confirmed that, most likely, their father was the pharaoh. In particular, the blood type of one child exactly matches the blood type of Tutankhamun.

Image of Tutankhamun and Ankhesenpamun on the back of the golden throne of the pharaoh

X-rays of both mummies revealed abnormal bone shapes - again due to inbreeding. But the very fact of mummification of children is almost unique and indirectly indicates that Ankhesenpamun and Tutankhamun loved each other, and funerary paintings on the walls of the tomb also indicate this.

Strange spots

Archaeologists who were present at the opening of the tomb saw strange stains on the walls. Some of them covered the faces of figures depicted on the walls, such as the goddess Hathor. Almost a hundred years have passed since the tomb of the pharaoh was discovered, and the nature of the appearance of the spots could not be unraveled.

One of the most convincing versions is that these are waste products of bacteria and fungi. However, no living bacteria were found in the samples. Scientists have come to the conclusion that Tutankhamun was buried when the paint on the walls had not yet dried, that is, the funeral rite was carried out in a hurry, and the death of the young king was unexpected. Since the decoration of the tomb itself is relatively modest, and some inscriptions have been erased and redone in the name of the pharaoh, there is a version that the tomb was not intended for a royal person at all, but rather for one of the courtiers.

An insignificant figure?

Tutankhamun is one of the most famous Egyptian pharaohs, his name is the first that comes to mind when many people think of Ancient Egypt, but in reality he was not at all a significant figure in the political arena of the New Kingdom. He reigned for only a short time: he ascended the throne when he was 10 years old, and died before his 20th birthday. Throughout the nine years of his reign, Tutankhamun was under the powerful influence of two politicians - the dignitary Ey (who is considered the probable killer of the pharaoh) and the commander Horemheb.

Moreover, the memory of Tutankhamun was not only not taken care of - they tried in every possible way to get rid of reminders of him, for example, by destroying his images, knocking off the faces of statues. And it was no coincidence that the entrance to his tomb was filled up in such a way that it was difficult to find, and it took more than one month to dig out.

Tutankhamun did not accomplish anything noteworthy during his reign, except for several religious reforms and the construction of several large projects. Nevertheless, the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb became one of the greatest archaeological events of the past century; it was not for nothing that Howard Carter himself, who discovered it, said about Tutankhamun: “The only remarkable event in his life was that he died and was buried.”

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Tutankhamun was the ruler of the New Empire of the 18th Dynasty. He lived in 1342-1323 BC. Tutankhamun was the son of Akhenaten, also known as Amenhotep, while his mother remains unknown. He took his place on the throne at the age of 9 and ruled the country until his death. At the age of 19, the monarch dies...under what circumstances? Murder, accident or serious illness? The death of Tutankhamun is still a mystery to everyone. There are several versions of his unexplained death.

Incurable disease

The museum in Cairo houses the largest collection of Egyptian relics in the world. There are about 5,000 of them from the tomb of Tutankhamun alone. Some of these specimens, discovered by archaeologists, have traveled all over the world. Others remained secret for decades. In addition to the treasure with jewelry, many seeds of various herbs that had medicinal purposes were found in the tomb.

The ancient Egyptians believed that life continues after death. And everything that was needed during earthly life will be needed in the next world. Thus, the tomb of the pharaoh was more like a pharmacy. After the tests, it became known that some of the herbs found in the tomb are still used in Egypt today. Tutankhamun trusted most of all the fruits of the sidr tree. About 36 baskets containing these fruits were found in the tomb. The fruits were used as an ambulance, soaked in water or milk and eaten.

Pharaoh also passed away with a huge amount of coriander. During Ancient Egypt, it was considered a vital medicine. Coriander was used for headaches and to reduce fever. Since during the life of the pharaoh, epidemics raged in the Mediterranean, which killed a large number of people, there is a version that Tutankhamun became a victim of some kind of disease. This explains the presence of medicines in his tomb. But this version still remains open.

Murder of Tutankhamun

Since the discovery of the pharaoh's tomb, many theories have arisen about his death. New versions appeared with progress in branches of science. The first x-ray in 1968 showed signs of injury, there was swelling in the lower part of the skull. So was Tutankhamun killed? His father had very strong opponents. Maybe they just used the chance to seize power before the young ruler took the throne?! But there is no direct evidence for this theory.

Tutankhamun did not leave a single descendant behind him. A stillborn child and a five-month-old unborn baby were found in his tomb. Clear evidence that the royal couple were trying to conceive children. An ambitious opponent would have to seize the throne before an heir was born. Scientists have chosen two suspects who needed Tutankhamun's death.

One of them was the commander of the troops of Pharaoh Haremheb. He was of humble origin, but despite this he achieved a high rank. After the death of Tutankhamun he became pharaoh. It is clear that when Haremheb took the throne, he wanted to destroy all memories of Tutankhamun. He ordered that all inscriptions and reminders disappear. He did the same with all the documents. Therefore, there are practically no records of Tutankhamun. Haremheb easily erased him from history.

Most of all, his dignitary is suspected of killing the pharaoh. After Tutankhamun, he immediately married his widow and took over the royal tomb, which was “reserved” especially for the ruler. Indirect evidence pointed to the possibility of murder. But new technologies, namely, computed tomography, showed that the pharaoh did not have any head injuries and, most likely, this version is invalid.

The latest CT scans showed a fracture in my left leg, just above the knee. Scientists suggest that this could have happened when falling from a chariot. Today, such injuries do not pose any danger, but in the times of Ancient Egypt, such a fracture could have fatal consequences (due to infection in the wound or loss of blood). Many archaeologists suggest that as a result of a fall from a vehicle and a fracture, the pharaoh developed gangrene and then died.

Recently, former Scotland Yard employee Graham Melvin and professor of medicine, neurologist Ian Isherwood, now retired, made a sensational statement - they managed to solve one of the most ancient detective mysteries in human history. They revealed the mystery of the death of the heir of the Egyptian king Akhenaten - the young pharaoh Tutankhamun, who at the age of nineteen in 1352 BC. e. died suddenly.

It was only in the 20th century that the unprecedented treasures of his luxurious tomb were revealed to the world. As it turned out, the years of his reign fell on an era of turbulent and sometimes bloody events in the history of Ancient Egypt.

Tutankhamun ended his life early, becoming a victim of the pharaohs' passion for incestuous marriages, and court intrigues. Incest flourished in the powerful empire for many years. Ancient Egypt was the only country where brother and sister, father and daughter, not to mention cousins, could freely marry each other. The desire to have a close relative as a faithful life partner was explained simply. The pharaohs wanted to preserve the purity of the royal blood and not add a drop of the blood of a commoner or even a high-ranking nobleman to it.

The opinion that only physical and mental deformities can be born as a result of incest is fundamentally wrong. If the relatives are in ideal health, their common child will be completely healthy, and such a marriage can even improve heredity. But if some congenital defect wedges itself into the gene chain, the offspring are doomed. Tutankhamun was probably a victim of unsuccessful incest.

His father, the legendary Pharaoh Akhenaten, was the greatest ruler of antiquity, whom historians call the first genius of mankind. He had an outstanding mind, but was physically deformed. Akhenaten may have suffered from Froelich syndrome, which caused his appearance to undergo horrific changes throughout his life. In portraits created in ancient times, the great pharaoh appears as an effeminate man with a painfully elongated face, drooping ears and an elongated nose. The name of Tutankhamun's mother is unknown, but Egyptologists have no doubt that she was a close relative of Akhenaten. The father's defective genes may have led to Tutankhamun's poor health and early death. The son did not inherit his father's deformity, but his body was defective. The mummies of two newborn babies were found in the famous tomb of the young pharaoh. They were apparently the children of Tutankhamun and his wife Ankhesenamun, who was the pharaoh's half-sister.

Tutankhamun ascended the throne when he was very young - he was only eight years old. After the death of his father, Tutankhamun, although he became a pharaoh, naturally could not rule the state due to his early age. This honorable, and most importantly profitable, responsibility was taken on by Tutankhamun’s stepmother, the wise beauty Nefertiti, and several courtiers close to her. Archaeologists have found inscriptions on ancient bas-reliefs that reported on the far from chaste relationship of the already matured Tutankhamun and Nefertiti. She had to break off this connection, but she did not want to lose power over her stepson, the pharaoh, and therefore took care of the fate of her daughter Ankhesenamun in advance, marrying her to Tutankhamun.

As soon as Nefertiti passed away, the court intrigues of the powerful priest Ey and the talented commander Horemheb began around the pharaoh. They actually became the absolute masters of the country. Tutankhamun indulged in entertainment, hunting ostriches, lions and gazelles. Historians are not sure that Tutankhamun showed himself as a military leader, but in his tomb there are images of the pharaoh who brutally dealt with enemies and killed prisoners.

The reign of the young man was the most troubled in the history of the Old Kingdom. The reason for this was the religious conflict that erupted during the reign of the great Pharaoh Akhenaten. This king was the first to begin to worship a single sun god and banned the traditional polytheism of Egypt, closing hundreds of temples and executing many stubborn and warlike priests. But the cult ministers hid, waited for Akhenaten’s death, and through intrigue and promises forced his son to renounce his father’s faith.

As a result, Tutankhamun actually established a dictatorship of the priests, and declared his father a heretic pharaoh. The noble young man was an inexperienced and weak politician, unable to master the cunning language of intrigue and the art of power. Some historians suggest that Tutankhamun could have been poisoned or strangled, since after his death the elderly priest Ey immediately reigned on the throne, who would hardly have waited for the natural death of the ruler if he had lived at least another ten years.

Tutankhamun's death was unexpected. This is confirmed by the absence of a pre-prepared tomb, although all the royal predecessors of Tutankhamun, even those who died in their youth, showed such forethought. Thus, the funeral ceremonies were already carried out under the leadership of the new pharaoh Ey, who inherited from the young man not only the throne, but also his wife. If Tutankhamun had died slowly, as usually happens with a hereditary disease, he would certainly have taken care of the place of his eternal rest.

Having passed into another world, Tutankhamun put an end to the history of the 18th dynasty - one of the most glorious dynasties of Ancient Egypt. The era of religious unrest ended with this young man, but court intrigues and fatal incestuous marriages continued to undermine the foundations of the state and destroy its powerful rulers. Howard Carter was almost right when he said that the most remarkable event in the life of Tutankhamun was his death, surrounded by unprecedented luxury. But the young pharaoh gave the world not only a majestic and beautiful tomb, but also the story of a man whose love and faith were trampled upon by court intriguers.

English detective Melvin and physician Isherwood, however, do not agree with this. Based on documents and their research data, they came to the conclusion that the pharaoh was most likely the victim of a palace conspiracy. Tutankhamun reigned for nine years. He was a completely healthy child. In adolescence he also developed normally. About a year before his death, Tutankhamun married and was happy in his marriage. Researchers have not found any documents that would talk about his illnesses. Therefore, death came suddenly. But why?

In the X-rays, Isherwood carefully examined the bones at the base of the skull and discovered that a strong blow had been struck from behind, from which Tutankhamun apparently died. The only persons interested in his death could be the vizier Ey and the military leader Horemheb. It is known from history that they, the regents and teachers, wanted the death of the young pharaoh, whose father died before his birth. They feared that the young pharaoh, who had recently married, would soon have children. The heirs would have deprived both viziers of the hope of seizing the throne. Ey and Horemheb could have colluded. They urgently needed to eliminate the ruler: they longed to take power into their own hands and rule one by one. That's exactly what happened.

We will never know how Tutankhamun was killed. According to Melvin and Isherwood, he was hit on the head from behind with a heavy object and the base of his skull was fractured. Then they staged the apparently unsuccessful fall of the pharaoh. After his sudden death, power passed into the hands of both conspirators.

They gave the deceased the due honors, hid the body deeper underground and began to destroy all his temples, everything that was connected with the memory of Pharaoh Akhenaten, whose heir was Tutankhamun.

…Today the sarcophagus of Egypt’s youngest ruler is kept in the same crypt in the Valley of the Kings where it was discovered by Howard Carter in 1922.

Recently, former Scotland Yard employee Graham Melvin and professor of medicine, neurologist Ian Isherwood, now retired, made a sensational statement - they managed to solve one of the most ancient detective mysteries in human history. They revealed the mystery of the death of the heir of the Egyptian king Akhenaten - the young pharaoh Tutankhamun, who at the age of nineteen in 1352 BC. e. died suddenly.

It was only in the 20th century that the unprecedented treasures of his luxurious tomb were revealed to the world. As it turned out, the years of his reign fell on an era of turbulent and sometimes bloody events in the history of Ancient Egypt.

Tutankhamun ended his life early, becoming a victim of the pharaohs' passion for incestuous marriages, and court intrigues. Incest flourished in the powerful empire for many years. Ancient Egypt was the only country where brother and sister, father and daughter, not to mention cousins, could freely marry each other. The desire to have a close relative as a faithful life partner was explained simply. The pharaohs wanted to preserve the purity of the royal blood and not add a drop of the blood of a commoner or even a high-ranking nobleman to it.

The opinion that only physical and mental deformities can be born as a result of incest is fundamentally wrong. If the relatives are in ideal health, their common child will be completely healthy, and such a marriage can even improve heredity. But if some congenital defect wedges itself into the gene chain, the offspring are doomed. Tutankhamun was probably a victim of unsuccessful incest.

His father, the legendary Pharaoh Akhenaten, was the greatest ruler of antiquity, whom historians call the first genius of mankind. He had an outstanding mind, but was physically deformed. Akhenaten may have suffered from Froelich syndrome, which caused his appearance to undergo horrific changes throughout his life. In portraits created in ancient times, the great pharaoh appears as an effeminate man with a painfully elongated face, drooping ears and an elongated nose. The name of Tutankhamun's mother is unknown, but Egyptologists have no doubt that she was a close relative of Akhenaten. The father's defective genes may have led to Tutankhamun's poor health and early death. The son did not inherit his father's deformity, but his body was defective. The mummies of two newborn babies were found in the famous tomb of the young pharaoh. They were apparently the children of Tutankhamun and his wife Ankhesenamun, who was the pharaoh's half-sister.

Tutankhamun ascended the throne when he was very young - he was only eight years old. After the death of his father, Tutankhamun, although he became a pharaoh, naturally could not rule the state due to his early age. This honorable, and most importantly profitable, responsibility was taken on by Tutankhamun’s stepmother, the wise beauty Nefertiti, and several courtiers close to her. Archaeologists have found inscriptions on ancient bas-reliefs that reported on the far from chaste relationship of the already matured Tutankhamun and Nefertiti. She had to break off this connection, but she did not want to lose power over her stepson, the pharaoh, and therefore took care of the fate of her daughter Ankhesenamun in advance, marrying her to Tutankhamun.

As soon as Nefertiti passed away, the court intrigues of the powerful priest Ey and the talented commander Horemheb began around the pharaoh. They actually became the absolute masters of the country. Tutankhamun indulged in entertainment, hunting ostriches, lions and gazelles. Historians are not sure that Tutankhamun showed himself as a military leader, but in his tomb there are images of the pharaoh who brutally dealt with enemies and killed prisoners.

The reign of the young man was the most troubled in the history of the Old Kingdom. The reason for this was the religious conflict that erupted during the reign of the great Pharaoh Akhenaten. This king was the first to begin to worship a single sun god and banned the traditional polytheism of Egypt, closing hundreds of temples and executing many stubborn and warlike priests. But the cult ministers hid, waited for Akhenaten’s death, and through intrigue and promises forced his son to renounce his father’s faith.

As a result, Tutankhamun actually established a dictatorship of the priests, and declared his father a heretic pharaoh. The noble young man was an inexperienced and weak politician, unable to master the cunning language of intrigue and the art of power. Some historians suggest that Tutankhamun could have been poisoned or strangled, since after his death the elderly priest Ey immediately reigned on the throne, who would hardly have waited for the natural death of the ruler if he had lived at least another ten years.

Tutankhamun's death was unexpected. This is confirmed by the absence of a pre-prepared tomb, although all the royal predecessors of Tutankhamun, even those who died in their youth, showed such forethought. Thus, the funeral ceremonies were already carried out under the leadership of the new pharaoh Ey, who inherited from the young man not only the throne, but also his wife. If Tutankhamun had died slowly, as usually happens with a hereditary disease, he would certainly have taken care of the place of his eternal rest.

Having passed into another world, Tutankhamun put an end to the history of the 18th dynasty - one of the most glorious dynasties of Ancient Egypt. The era of religious unrest ended with this young man, but court intrigues and fatal incestuous marriages continued to undermine the foundations of the state and destroy its powerful rulers. Howard Carter was almost right when he said that the most remarkable event in the life of Tutankhamun was his death, surrounded by unprecedented luxury. But the young pharaoh gave the world not only a majestic and beautiful tomb, but also the story of a man whose love and faith were trampled upon by court intriguers.

English detective Melvin and physician Isherwood, however, do not agree with this. Based on documents and their research data, they came to the conclusion that the pharaoh was most likely the victim of a palace conspiracy. Tutankhamun reigned for nine years. He was a completely healthy child. In adolescence he also developed normally. About a year before his death, Tutankhamun married and was happy in his marriage. Researchers have not found any documents that would talk about his illnesses. Therefore, death came suddenly. But why?

In the X-rays, Isherwood carefully examined the bones at the base of the skull and discovered that a strong blow had been struck from behind, from which Tutankhamun apparently died. The only persons interested in his death could be the vizier Ey and the military leader Horemheb. It is known from history that they, the regents and teachers, wanted the death of the young pharaoh, whose father died before his birth. They feared that the young pharaoh, who had recently married, would soon have children. The heirs would have deprived both viziers of the hope of seizing the throne. Ey and Horemheb could have colluded. They urgently needed to eliminate the ruler: they longed to take power into their own hands and rule one by one. That's exactly what happened.

We will never know how Tutankhamun was killed. According to Melvin and Isherwood, he was hit on the head from behind with a heavy object and the base of his skull was fractured. Then they staged the apparently unsuccessful fall of the pharaoh. After his sudden death, power passed into the hands of both conspirators.

They gave the deceased the due honors, hid the body deeper underground and began to destroy all his temples, everything that was connected with the memory of Pharaoh Akhenaten, whose heir was Tutankhamun.

…Today the sarcophagus of Egypt’s youngest ruler is kept in the same crypt in the Valley of the Kings where it was discovered by Howard Carter in 1922.