TUT-ANKH-AMEN), son-in-law of the Pharaoh, Ikhnaton (q.v.), and himself Pharaoh for not less than six years in the middle of the fourteenth century B.c. The fame of this politically unim portant sovereign is due to the discovery of his tomb still contain ing the larger part of its magnificent equipment. Even in Egypt, the survival of royal burial equipment is unique; for the plunder ing of royal tombs began at a remote date. A pyramid is a gigantic husk of masonry to protect the body of the Egyptian sovereign ; but not a single pyramid escaped plundering by the ancient tomb-robbers. The Egyptian rulers, therefore, abandoned the pyramid and excavated the kings' tombs in the face of the Nile cliffs. For four hundred years the excavation of these royal cliff-tombs continued ; by 115o B.C. there were over half a hun dred. After the fall of the Empire about 115o B.C. not a single known royal tomb was left intact.
The preservation of the burial of Tutenkhamon was due to accident, to its small size and to the unimportance of its occu pant. The demoralisation of the government at the death of Tutenkhamon, about 1350 B.C., was such that the cemetery ghouls found no difficulty in robbing his cliff-tomb. Fortunately they were caught in the act, and much of their plunder was re turned; although the heavy golden vessels and much other mag nificent work were evidently too great a temptation for the officials. The tomb was never molested again, and two hundred years later, when the Empire was tottering, the architects of Rameses VI, excavating the tomb of this Pharaoh just above that of Tutenkhamon, ordered the workmen to throw their waste lime stone chips down the slope below it, thus completely covering up the tomb of Tutenkhamon.
The expedition which discovered the tomb of Tutenkhamon was maintained by Lord Carnarvon (q.v.), but the actual was due to Howard Carter (q.v.), who on November 4, 1922 un
covered the steps leading down to the entrance gallery. For eight seasons (October to April) following, Carter salvaged this magnificent treasure, nearly all of which is now at the national museum in Cairo. The body of the youthful Pharaoh still lies in his beautiful stone sarcophagus in the burial chamber of his tomb. The stone lid has not been replaced, and the gorgeous outer coffin, richly wrought in gold, is a unique and impressive sight.
The mortuary furniture of Tutenkhamon will continue to make his name a household word, notwithstanding his lack of political significance. He owed his succession to the throne to his marriage with Ikhnaton's third daughter, and he must have been hardly twelve years old when he was crowned. A helpless puppet in the hands of the priestly party which was vindictively striving to exterminate his father-in-law's memory, the boy king had little chance to survive. The examination of his mummy showed that he was about eighteen years old at his death, after a reign of probably not more than six years. The body showed no discernible traces of foul play.
BiBuoGRAPHY.—Content of the Tomb: Preliminary publications: Howard Carter and A. C. Mace, The Tomb of Tutankhamen, Vol. I (1923) ; Howard Carter, The Tomb of Tutankhamen, Vol. II (1927). A final detailed publication of the content of the tomb has not yet been begun.
Treatises on the History: J. Baikie, The Amarna Age (1926) ; J. H. Breasted, Development of Religion and Thought in Ancient Egypt (1912) ; and History of Egypt (1912) ; also chapters 5 and 6 in Vol. II, Cambridge Ancient History; T. E. Peet and C. L. Woolley, The City of Akhenaten, Vol. I (1923) ; G. van der Leeuw, Achnaton