9 Debates Surrounding King Tut's Legacy

This year marks a century since the discovery of Pharaoh Tutankhamun's tomb (commonly known as King Tut). Sponsored by British Earl of Carnarvon, British archaeologist Howard Carter began excavations in Egypt's Valley of Kings around 1907. When Carter uncovered the tomb in 1922, it made headlines worldwide.

However, much remains uncertain about Tut's excavation, his life, and his legacy, with ongoing debates surrounding the figures involved in the discovery. Here, we explore nine of the most intriguing controversies surrounding the boy king of Egypt.

1. The cause of King Tut's death remains a mystery.

To gain fame as a mummy, one must first pass away—but the exact circumstances surrounding King Tut's death remain hotly debated. Was he murdered? Did he meet his end during a chariot race, literally riding off into the sunset? Or did the tragic effects of generational inbreeding finally take their toll on him at a young age?

The theory of inbreeding seems most plausible to modern historians, especially considering that Tut was known to have been disabled and sickly for much of his life. He used a cane to walk and likely had a club foot. His parents, potentially siblings, were closely related, with DNA analysis suggesting a familial connection. He also suffered multiple bouts of malaria, carrying the oldest known genetic evidence of the disease. Given his health challenges, it’s unlikely that his death was caused by something as dramatic as a chariot race or battle. Many believe a femur fracture, which became infected, may have been the final blow.

2. The true intended occupant of King Tut’s tomb remains a mystery.

By royal standards, King Tut’s tomb is relatively small: it’s the tiniest in the Valley of Kings. Speculation swirls around why such a modest burial was chosen for the boy king. Some believe that Tut’s intended tomb was the one eventually used to house the body of his vizier and successor, Ay. The theory suggests that Tut’s premature death left the caretakers scrambling to prepare his tomb before the larger one was completed.

However, this theory raises more questions than it answers. If Tut wasn’t buried in the tomb originally intended for him, whose tomb did he occupy? Was it merely a storage room, or a small chamber meant for someone else? And if it was meant for another body, what happened to that person’s remains? Perhaps their restless spirit is what fuels the legendary Curse of the Pharaohs.

3. Howard Carter Exploited Children During the Excavation of King Tut’s Tomb.

Photographs confirm that Carter employed Egyptian children to work on the King Tut excavation. While this was not highly criticized at the time, looking back, it raises significant ethical concerns. Britain had long abolished child labor, so Carter, as a British archaeologist, should have been aware of the ethical dilemma. To make matters worse, Carter never gave credit to these children for their contributions or discoveries during the excavation, and their names have been lost to history.

4. Carter is Suspected of Looting King Tut’s Tomb.

According to the law, all items found in King Tut’s tomb belonged to Egypt’s Antiquities Service. The first antiquities regulation law in Egypt was passed in 1835; however, it was often ignored, allowing many artifacts to end up in European collections. In 1922, just months before Tut’s tomb was discovered, the newly independent Egyptian government strengthened and began enforcing its previously lax laws. However, Carter’s relationship with the Egyptian authorities was far from amicable, and he showed little respect for their laws and protocols. Egyptians have long suspected Carter of stealing from the tomb, with some even accusing him of staging a break-in before the official opening and blaming ancient grave robbers for his own 20th-century theft.

These suspicions were bolstered when letters between Carter and his philologist, Sir Alan Gardiner, were published in August 2022. In one letter, Gardiner mentioned that Carter had given him an amulet that was “undoubtedly stolen from the tomb of Tutankhamun.” Whether Carter took these items during a planned early break-in or simply pocketed them during the excavation remains a matter of speculation.

5. British Photographers Were Granted Exclusive Photography Rights to the King Tut Excavation.

By the time Howard Carter began his work at King Tut’s tomb, the Earl of Carnarvon was no stranger to Egyptology. Recognizing the importance of media coverage in financing long-term archaeological efforts, Carnarvon struck a deal to grant exclusive photography rights to the Times of London. Photographer Harry Burton’s images captivated the world, but his foreign status angered the Egyptian press. The media of the newly independent Egypt was unhappy to be excluded from covering what was, in their view, a monumental story happening in their own country. The issue of photography rights only intensified the already existing tensions between Carnarvon, Carter, and the Egyptian government over who truly owned the excavation.

6. Howard Carter’s Team Disturbed King Tut’s Corpse.

The archaeologist’s team placed immense value on the treasures discovered in the boy king’s tomb, especially the gold and jewelry. They valued the jewelry so much that they went so far as to twist Tut’s mummified arms off to retrieve the items from his wrists. To accomplish this, they first left Tut’s body under the intense sun until it began to melt, then soaked it in wax to make the mummy soft enough for the desecration. After breaking the arms to remove the jewels, Carter’s team concluded their actions by hacking off Tut’s head.

7. Henry Kissinger Strong-Armed the Living for a King Tut Tour.

No 20th-century figure escaped the influence of Henry Kissinger, and even King Tut wasn’t exempt. After Kissinger and Richard Nixon negotiated a new agreement with Egypt in the early 1970s, they looked for a way to improve Egypt’s image in the eyes of the American public. They decided to send Tut’s artifacts on a tour across the United States, hoping Americans would associate their new ally, Egypt, with splendor rather than conflict. However, the idea of hosting the exhibition met resistance, with American museum curators not eager to take on the responsibility of presenting such an expensive, delicate, and risky collection to support Nixon’s public relations goals.

Kissinger, however, wasn’t willing to accept rejection. He cornered the president of the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s board of trustees, pressuring him until he agreed to host the exhibition. It’s rumored that Kissinger threatened severe tax audits if the museum refused to participate. Whatever the tactics, they worked: The Met ended up hosting the wildly successful final leg of King Tut’s U.S. tour, bringing in $110 million in revenue for New York City.

8. King Tut’s Beard Was Improperly Reattached.

In 2014, a museum worker at the Egyptian Museum accidentally knocked King Tut’s beard off his famous burial mask. It wasn’t just any beard—it was the blue and gold braided beard, which made the mishap even worse. In a rushed attempt to fix the mistake, museum staff used epoxy resin to reattach the mask. Unfortunately, as it turns out, epoxy resin is not the best material for ancient Egyptian artifacts.

But the attempts didn’t stop there. Museum staff tried to cover up the damage and repair the mask with resin not once, but four separate times. After each attempt, they also tried to scrape away the telltale marks of the resin three times, to no avail. Unsurprisingly, their efforts proved ineffective.

In the end, eight museum employees were taken to court for gross negligence. Meanwhile, a team of German and Egyptian conservators set to work removing the resin and properly reattaching Tut’s beard. Fortunately, they succeeded by using beeswax—a substance far more common in ancient Egypt than epoxy resin—and Tut’s mask was back on display by the end of 2015.

9. Legal Issues Surrounded the Latest King Tut Tour.

In 2020, a massive collection of 150 artifacts from King Tut’s tomb was set to embark on a world tour, beginning in London. This would be the largest exhibition of Tut’s treasures ever to travel outside of Egypt.

The reason exhibits like this had never been done before was due to questionable legality. Shortly after the contract for the tour was finalized, a BBC investigation revealed that the tour might be in violation of Egypt’s antiquities laws by sending “unique” artifacts abroad. An Egyptian lawyer filed a lawsuit in an attempt to halt the tour. However, COVID-19 did the job for him, bringing the London leg of the tour to an early end, six weeks ahead of schedule.