She continues saying;
“Archeologists removed the mummy from his stone sarcophagus in his underground tomb, momentarily pulling aside a white linen covering to reveal a shriveled leathery black face and body. The mummy of the 19-year-old pharaoh, whose life and death has captivated people for nearly a century, was placed in a climate-controlled glass box in the tomb, with only the face and feet showing under the linen covering.”
King Tut! No doubt, one of the 7 wonders of the Modern world. The Mysteries and rumors that surround this historical figure, have been talked about and speculated upon from the time of his resurrection. In deed, as Anna interviews Egypt’s antiquities chief Zahi Hawass, he is quoted as saying;
“The golden boy has magic and mystery and therefore every person all over the world will see what Egypt is doing to preserve the golden boy, and all of them I am sure will come to see the golden boy,” … “scientists began restoring King Tut’s badly damaged mummy more than two years ago. Much of the mummy’s body is broken into 18 pieces — damage sustained when British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the mummy, took it from his tomb and tried to pull off his famous golden mask”.
Well, you know, as much as we would like to call archaeologist Howard Carter, an IDIOT!, we really can’t and shouldn’t as Egypt’s antiquities chief Zahi Hawass expressed his fear of “a more recent phenomenon — mass tourism — is further deteriorating Tut’s mummy.” -writes the AP reporter, “Thousands of tourists visit the underground chamber every month.”
“The humidity and heat caused by … people entering the tomb and their breathing will change the mummy to a powder. The only good thing (left) in this mummy is the face. We need to preserve the face,” said Hawass, who wore his signature Indiana Jones-style tan hat.
The AP writer then gives a brief yet descriptive review of King Tut’s recent history, stating;
“The mystery surrounding King Tutankhamun and his glittering gold tomb has entranced ancient Egypt fans since Carter first discovered the hidden tomb on Nov. 4, 1922, revealing a trove of fabulous gold and precious stone treasures.”
“Archeologists in recent years have tried to resolve lingering questions over how he died and his precise royal lineage. Several books and documentaries dedicated to the young pharaoh, who is believed to have been the 12th ruler of ancient Egypt’s 18th dynasty and ascended to the throne around the age of 8, are popular around the world.”
“In an effort to try to solve the mysteries, scientists removed Tut’s mummy from his tomb and placed it into a portable CT scanner for 15 minutes in 2005 to obtain a three-dimensional image. The scans were the first done on an Egyptian mummy.”
“The results did rule out that Tut was violently murdered — but stopped short of definitively concluding how he died around 1323 B.C. Experts for the time though suggested that days before dying, Tut badly broke his left thigh, apparently in an accident, that may have caused a fatal infection.”
“The CT scan also provided the most revealing insight yet into the life of ancient Egypt’s most famous king. He was well-fed, healthy, yet slightly built, standing at 5 feet, 6 inches tall at the time of his death. The scan also showed he had the typical overbite characteristic of other kings from his family, large incisor teeth and his lower teeth were slightly misaligned.”
“The unveiling of Tut’s mummy comes amid a frenzy of international publicity for the boy king. A highly publicized museum exhibit traveling the globe drew more than 4 million people during the initial four-city American-leg of the tour. The exhibit will open later this month in London and after it will make a three-city encore tour in the U.S. beginning with the Dallas Museum of Art.” —
Trash Dispatch: “The Dallas Museum of Art.” (http://dallasmuseumofart.org/Dallas_Museum_of_Art/index.htm) A visit to their website reveals that the “Tutankhamun and the Golden Age of the Pharaohs” exhibit, begins October 3, 2008. And runs through May 17, 2009. And while those dates appear to be distant, if the first tour of the King Tut exhibit is any indication of what might be expected for the second tour, then, you might want to get your tickets early.
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