What's wrong with Tut?: CT scans and DNA tests conducted over the past two years have uncovered several major problems that contributed to King Tut's death: malaria, broken leg, a club foot and restricted blood flow to Tut's left foot.
Courtesy SanandreasBeing a boy king of Egypt had it’s share of downs along with all the gold and glitter.

CT scans and DNA testing conducted on the mummy to King Tutankhamun (King Tut for short) show that the boy pharaoh was suffering from several medical problems at the time of his death at age 19.

The contemporary medical testing shows that Tut had a cleft palate and a club foot and was suffering from malaria and a broken leg at the time that he died some 3,300 years ago. The results were announced today and will be published Wednesday in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

Medical experts have also been able to untangle the web of intrigue as to who Tut’s parents were, sort of. DNA shows that Tut is the son of the previous pharaoh, Akhenaten, and his likely mother is an unidentified sister of Akhenaten. In total, 16 mummies underwent CT scanning to get a better picture of who Tut was and what the times were like when he was alive.

The 21st Century testing was able to answer more than half of Tut’s paternity questions by identifying his father. And while we know that Akhenaten’s sister was Tut’s mother, her mummified remains confirm Tut’s DNA, her identity is still unknown. It was not uncommon in New Kingdom Egypt for pharaohs to marry to their sisters.

The findings put to bed once and for all long-held speculation that Tut was murdered. That idea was fueled by a hole in his skull, but a 2005 scan of Tut’s mummy showed that hole was made as part of the mummification process.

The majesty that we associated with Tut based on the ornate furnishings found in his burial chamber may be a far cry from what life was like for the finals days of the boy king. The medical testing shows that Tut was a sickly teen who was done in by complications from the broken leg and malaria in his brain.

On top of that, Tut had a club foot that likely required him to use a cane. In fact, 130 canes or walking sticks have been found among his burial goods, with some of the canes showing wear and tear. Tut also suffered from Kohler's disease in which lack of blood flow was slowly destroying the bones of his left foot.

Another theory cleared up through the medical tests: Tut did not suffer from any medical conditions that would have given him female body characteristics or misshapen bones.

Want to learn more? Here’s a Q&A with Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, secretary general of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities, about the new Tut findings.

And here is even more in-depth coverage from National Geographic.

Bummed out that Tut was so sickly and need a pick-me-up? Do you really need a shot of Steve Martin's "King Tut" song right now? Enjoy (with a special guest appearance by Fonzie [aka Henry Winkler]). Maybe Steve needs to add a new verse to include all this new medical information.

Tags : ancient Egypt, club foot, CT scan, DNA testing, Egypt, King Tut, Lost Egypt, malaria, King Tut's untimely demise, infectious disease, infectious diseases

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Theda Bara as Cleopatra: The silent film star portrayed the Queen of Egypt as a vamp in the 1917 production.
Courtesy Mark RyanArchaeologists in Egypt believe they may be on the verge of uncovering the long-sought final resting place of Cleopatra and Marc Antony. The two ill-fated lovers committed suicide together in 30 BC after being defeated in a power struggle over control of the Roman Empire.

Zahi Hawass, the Indiana Jones of Egyptian antiquities says crews are ready to dig up three chambers located 65 feet below the surface, where they hope the remains of Antony and Cleopatra will be found. The chambers were discovered using ground-penetrating radar in the vicinity of the Taposiris Magna, a temple erected in 300 BC in honor of the Egyptian god Isis.

"In my opinion," Hawass said, "if this tomb is found it will be one of the most important discoveries of the 21st century because of the love between Cleopatra and Mark Antony, and because of the sad story of their death."

The two lovers have appeared in stories throughout the ages including a play by William Shakespeare, another by George Bernard Shaw, and a number of major motion pictures (1912, 1917, 1934, 1945, 1963). According to legend, Antony died by his own sword while Cleopatra took her life by holding poisonous asps to her bosom

Discovery of their graves would indeed be a coup, especially for lawyer-turned-archaeologist Kathleen Martinez who seems to have made it her life’s work to restore the Queen of the Nile’s tainted image.

As a young girl in the Dominican Republic, Martinez remembers listening to her father and his colleagues bad-mouthing Cleopatra’s reputation during scholarly discussions in their library.

"They were speaking very badly about her and about her image," Martinez recalled. "I got very upset. I said I didn't believe what they are saying, that I needed to study more about her."

Martinez spent the next 14 years uncovering as much as she could find about Cleopatra’s life. In the end, her studies led her to a portrait of an intelligent leader who ruled as Egypt’s last pharaoh.

"[Cleopatra] spoke nine languages, she was a philosopher, she was a poet, she was a politician, she was a goddess, and she was a warrior."

Four years ago, Martinez convinced Hawass to allow her to join his archaeological team, and for the last three years has been excavating the hillside site near Abusir about 30 miles east of Alexandria, where the tombs are thought to be located.

According to writings by Greek historian Plutarch, Antony’s political rival Octavian (Caesar Augustus) allowed for Antony and Cleopatra to be buried together although it’s not mentioned where.

But artifacts from the Abusir site – including a piece of male statuary, coins with Cleopatra’s image, and a mask fragment with a cleft-chin - seem to point to this being Marc Antony’s burial site. And if his remains are buried here, then so are Cleopatra’s.

"She couldn't be buried in a different place from Mark Anthony and be protected by Isis,” Martinez said.

The scientists hope to begin digging into the chambers as soon as next month but a modern hitch may postpone that for a few months. One of the summer homes of Egyptian president President Hosni Mubarak is located near the dig-site, and security concerns could delay digging into the chambers until autumn.

LINKS
CNN story
Telegraph story
Story on Yahoo
Egyptology News story

Tags : Lost Egypt, Egyptology, Egyptian tombs, Egyptian leaders, Egypt, Cleopatra, archaeology

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Rule like an Egyptian: This statue of Hatshepsut can be seen as at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. She posed as a man to rule as an Egyptian pharaoh from 1479-1458 B.C.
Courtesy User:PostdlfThere were a lot of women trying to break the political glass ceiling last year. Think Hillary Clinton or Sarah Palin. And while their efforts were noteworthy, they were far behind the curve when it came to female leadership of a great nation.

April's National Geographic has a huge profile on Hatshepsut, the female ruler of Egypt from 1479 to 1458 B.C. who actually took on the appearance of a man to be able to lead the nation. That story is amazing enough, but the National Geographic piece goes on to tell about all the modern science that was used on a random, anonymous mummy to pin-point that it was the remains of this famous Egyptian leader.

It's a great summary of a project I've been a part of in the past year. We've been creating an exhibit called "Lost Egypt: Ancient Secrets, Modern Science." It will open Memorial Day time at COSI – a museum in Columbus, Ohio – and eventually travel here to SMM sometime on its six-year tour. A good portion of that exhibit will focus on how researchers can use modern technology – CT scanning and rapid prototyping to name two – to gather information on mummies without ever unwrapping them or doing physical damage to them.

If you're like a lot of people, you'll find ancient Egypt fascinating and want to check out this story on Hatshepsut or the Lost Egypt exhibit. Why do you think ancient Egyptian culture is so cool? Or what do you think of Hatshepsut's unique story? Share your thoughts here with other Buzz readers.

Tags : mummies, Lost Egypt, Hatshepsut, Egypt, ancient Egypt, archaeology

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Bending pyramid rules: An engineering adjustment on the fly changed the dimensions of the Bent Pyramid of Dasher, giving the pyramid its unique shape and its name.
Courtesy Ivrienen The pyramids of Giza get all the hype, but there are plenty of other cool pyramids to check out in Egypt. And this week, one of the most unique pyramids in the region will have greater access to the public.

The burial chamber of the Bent Pyramid in Dashar will have its inner chambers opened to the public. Only about five percent of the tourists in Egypt go to see the Bent Pyramid, which is too bad in my mind.

I actually haven't been to Egypt but have been working on a new traveling exhibit about Egypt and archaeology, and that's how I learned about the Bent Pyramid. As you can see by the accompanying photo, it has a very unique shape. It's believed that the Bent Pyramid started out to be the tallest pyramid ever constructed. But engineering problems encountered along the way forced a redesign of that concept, lowering the angle of the pyramid's ascent and giving it a "bent" appearance.

Having full access into a burial chamber of a pyramid is a rare thing. Human traffic, and the moisture that comes from all those people's breaths, are not conducive to a pyramid's dry interior. Zahi Hawass, Egypt's top archaeologist, was so concerned with the twists and turns of the Bent Pyramid's winding tunnels on his first trip inside that he had aides tie a rope around his waist so they could pull him out if he got lost.

All in all, it adds up to be another great reason to some day visit Egypt. Have you already been there, or some other points of interest in Egypt? Share them here with other Buzz readers.

Tags : Bent Pyramid, archaeology, Egypt, Lost Egypt, burial chamber, pyramids

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