What kind of ruler was tutankhamun

But the new findings seem to challenge this idea, because historical records do not indicate that Nefertiti and Akhenaten were related. Instead, the sister with whom Akenhaten fathered King Tut may have been a minor wife or concubine, which would not have been unusual, said Willeke Wendrich , a UCLA Egyptologist who was not involved in the study. The team's examination of King Tut's body also revealed previously unknown deformations in the king's left foot, caused by the necrosis, or death, of bone tissue.

The affliction would have been painful and forced King Tut to walk with a cane—many of which were found in his tomb—but it would not have been life threatening. The scientists found DNA from the mosquito-borne parasite that causes malaria in the young pharaoh's body—the oldest known genetic proof of the disease. The team found more than one strain of malaria parasite, indicating that King Tut caught multiple malarial infections during his life.

The strains belong to the parasite responsible for malaria tropica, the most virulent and deadly form of the disease. The malaria would have weakened King Tut's immune system and interfered with the healing of his foot. These factors, combined with the fracture in his left thighbone, which scientists had discovered in , may have ultimately been what killed the young king, the authors write. Until now the best guesses as to how King Tut died have included a hunting accident , a blood infection, a blow to the head, and poisoning.

UCLA's Wendrich said the new finding "lays to rest the completely baseless theories about the murder of Tutankhamun. Another speculation apparently laid to rest by the new study is that Akhenaten had a genetic disorder that caused him to develop the feminine features seen in his statutes, including wide hips, a potbelly, and the female-like breasts associated with the condition gynecomastia.

When the team analyzed Akhenaten's body using medical scanners, no evidence of such abnormalities were found. Hawass and his team concluded that the feminized features found in the statues of Akenhaten created during his reign were done for religious and political reasons. In ancient Egypt, Akhenaten was a god, Hawass explained. Egyptologist John Darnell of Yale University called the revelation that Akhenaten's appearance was not due to genetic disorders "the most important result" of the new study.

In his book Tutankhamun's Armies , Darnell proposes that Akhenaten's androgynous appearance in art was an attempt to associate himself with Aten, the original creator god in Egyptian theology, who was neither male nor female.

The generally good condition of the DNA from the royal mummies of King Tut's family surprised many members of the team. Indeed, its quality was better than DNA gathered from nonroyal Egyptian mummies several centuries younger, study co-author Pusch said. The team suspects that the embalming method the ancient Egyptians used to preserve the royal mummies inadvertently protected DNA as well as flesh. Preserving DNA "was not the aim of the Egyptian priest of course, but the embalming method they used was lucky for us.

However, it is unlikely that he saw any military action. Around B. While the young couple had no surviving children, it is known they had two daughters, both likely to have been stillborn. The Hittite king sent a candidate, but he died during the journey, most likely assassinated before he got to the royal palace.

This attempt to forge an alliance with a foreign power was most likely prevented by Ay and Horemheb, who were still in control behind the scenes.

Evidence shows that Ankhesenamun later married Ay, before disappearing from history. Research suggests King Tut died circa B. The infection was possibly the result of a broken leg. King Tut was buried in a tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

It's believed that his early death necessitated a hasty burial in a smaller tomb most likely built for a lesser noble. Seventy days after his death, Tutankhamun's body was laid to rest and the tomb was sealed. There are no known records of Tutankhamun after his death, and, as a result, he remained virtually unknown for centuries.

Even the location of his tomb was lost, as its entrance had been covered by the debris from a tomb structure built later. Much of what is known about Tutankhamun today derives from the discovery of his tomb in British archaeologist Howard Carter had begun excavating in Egypt in , and after World War I he began an intensive search for Tutankhamun's tomb in the Valley of the Kings.

On November 26, , Carter and fellow archaeologist George Herbert, the Earl of Carnarvon, entered the interior chambers of the tomb. To their amazement, they found much of its contents and structure miraculously intact. Inside one of the chambers, murals were painted on the walls that told the story of Tutankhamun's funeral and his journey to the afterworld. Also in the room were various artifacts for his journey — oils, perfumes, toys from his childhood, precious jewelry and statues of gold and ebony.

Personality Quizzes. Funny Fill-In. Amazing Animals. Weird But True! Party Animals. Try This! Explore More. Tutankhamun, however, has no heart. Instead he was provided with an amuletic scarab inscribed with a funerary spell. This may have happened simply because the undertakers were careless, but it could also be a sign that Tutankhamun died far from home.

One dagger had a gold blade, while the other had a blade made of iron. Each dagger had a gold sheath. The fact that these pieces are not particularly well made, combined with their small size, suggest that they were made by local craftsmen who struggled to work the rare meteorite iron.

The dagger blade, however, is very different. Beautifully crafted, it is likely to have been imported to Egypt from a region accustomed to working iron. In fact, his trumpets should more properly be classified as military equipment, while his clappers and sistra are likely to have had a ritual purpose. On 16 April , the two trumpets were played in a BBC live radio broadcast from Cairo Museum, which reached an estimated million listeners.

Bandsman James Tappern used a modern mouthpiece, which caused damage to the silver trumpet. In the bronze trumpet was played again, this time without a modern mouthpiece. They have suggested that it was the broadcast which caused Britain to enter the Second World War. To listen to a clip of the broadcast, click here. This coffin measures 1.