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Life and Times |
In 1323 B.C., a young Egyptian king died. His name was
Tut.ankh.Amum - "the living image of Amun". Tutankhamun is the
best-known pharaoh of ancient Egypt. He was probably the son of Akhenaten,
the heretic king of the eighteenth
dynasty. His mother was probably Queen Kiya,
one of the king's secondary wives. Ankhesenpaaten (or Ankhesenamum), his older half sister, became his queen. 
He ascended the throne in 1333 B.C., at the age of nine, and reigned until
his early death at the age of about eighteen. Some speculate that
he was murdered and others think he may have been deliberately sent into
battle to be killed. However, the exact
cause of his death
is unknown. Those who believe he was murdered point to the hole
in his skull as evidence, but some experts believe the hole was made
after his death. His mummified body
was so badly preserved that we may never know the true fate of this minor pharaoh.
SEE articles:
Tutankhamun: beneath the mask
Tutankhamun CT Scan
Latest
scans show King Tut was not murdered
Not all scholars agree on the identity of Tutankhamun's parents. One theory suggests that he was the son of Amenophis III and his principal wife Tiy or his secondary wife Meritre. When the results of DNA testing on the pharaohs become available, we may get a clearer picture of the royal lineage.
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This bust was found at the entry to Tutankhamun's tomb. Tutankhamun
is depicted as the sun god, Re, emerging from a blue lotus in the
primeval sea at the moment of his birth. The features are unmistakably
those of Tutankhamun, and the exaggerated elongated skull is reminiscent
of the Amarna princesses who may have been his half-sisters (the daughters
of Akhenaten). Wood, plaster and paint Full-scale replica by Aded Zeibdawi |
SEE articles
Tutankhamun
Facial Reconstruction
"King
Tut's New Face: Behind the Forensic Reconstruction"