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    History and Headlines
    You are at:Home»February»February 16»February 16, 1923: King Tut Discovered: Incest and Mystery!
    February 16

    February 16, 1923: King Tut Discovered: Incest and Mystery!

    Major DanBy Major DanFebruary 16, 2016Updated:February 6, 2020137 Comments4 Mins Read
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    A Brief History

    On February 16, 1923, King Tut’s burial chamber was entered for the first time in over 3,000 years!

    Digging Deeper

    Digging deeper, we find King Tutankhamun becoming “The Boy King” at age nine in 1332 B.C. and reigning over Egypt until his death in 1323 B.C. at age nineteen rediscovered in 1922 A.D. by Howard Carter.

    A tremendous amount is known about Tutankhamun, who is usually referred to as “King Tut,” largely due to the wealth of information gathered from his tomb which is the least disturbed of any tomb yet found.  Techniques for discovering information about Tut include analyzing the hieroglyphics in the tomb.  Other techniques applied to researching Tut involve x-rays and CT scans of his mummy and objects from the tomb, as well as DNA tests of his mummy and possibly related mummies.

    Mummy of Tutankhamun

    From this intensive and extensive research, it is believed that Tut came from a line of incestuous royal predecessors and that he had married his half sister, perhaps fathering the two fetal mummies also located within his burial chamber.  Incest can result in a high incidence of unsuccessful pregnancies.

    King Tut was also determined to have suffered from several malarial parasites and may well have been sickly because of that.  He had broken a leg not long before he died which had become infected and which was originally believed to be his cause of death, although modern researchers now believe he may have died from any number of other causes.

    His DNA shows that Tut was fathered by Amenhotep IV (a.k.a. Akenaten), and Nefertiti appears to be the mother of his wife.  Since Amenhotep IV was married to his own sister and since incest had been practiced for generations before the birth of Tut, it is not surprising that Tut should suffer from a variety of congenital defects, of which one may have been a partially cleft palate, another common sign of incest, and he bore the family trait of an elongated skull, sometimes exaggerated in depictions of him.

    Unfortunately, there is also much that is not known, especially the exact cause of Tut’s death.  Assassination, broken leg, hunting accident, malaria, epilepsy and congenital diseases are some of the possibilities that have been put forth by researchers.  No one knows as no records about Tut’s death or final days have yet been found.

    Most archaeologists today discount the popular idea that Tut’s tomb is cursed and that those who enter it die as a result.  Howard Carter, among others, lived many years after entering the burial chamber.

    Howard Carter and associates opening the shrine doors in the burial chamber (1924 reconstruction of the 1923 event)

    King Tut is a popular figure today, his relics in Cairo are a great attraction, and traveling displays have been seen by millions.  Much has been written about Tut, both academic and popular works including a National Geographic Magazine (September 2010) article and numerous other literature and books.  Portrayed in numerous movies and television productions, Tut has also appeared in comedies, such as in short films featuring The Three Stooges.  A truly memorable reference to King Tut is the 1978 song and video by Steve Martin appropriately called “King Tut,” which reached #17 on U.S.charts!  Not cracked enough?  Try a hot dog at King Tut’s Wiener Hut in North Carolina.  Perhaps most cracked of all King Tut references were the television commercials that appeared in 1988 for King Kuts Dog Food which featured an Egyptian motif! (See it on Youtube.)

    Question for students (and subscribers): Have you ever been to Egypt?  Please let us know in the comments section below this article.

    If you liked this article and would like to receive notification of new articles, please feel welcome to subscribe to History and Headlines by liking us on Facebook and becoming one of our patrons!

    Your readership is much appreciated!

    Historical Information

    The discovery of Tut’s tomb ranks seventh on a list of the Top 10 Most Important Historical Finds.  For more information on this incredibly important find, please read the below listed books.

    Carter, Howard and A. C. Mace.  The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamen.  Dover Publications, 1977.

    James, T. G. H.  Howard Carter: The Path to Tutankhamun.  Tauris Parke Paperbacks, 2001.

    Meyerson, Daniel.  In the Valley of the Kings: Howard Carter and the Mystery of King Tutankhamun’s Tomb.  Brécourt Academic, 2009.

    You can also watch a video version of this article on YouTube:

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    Major Dan
    Major Dan

      Major Dan is a retired veteran of the United States Marine Corps. He served during the Cold War and has traveled to many countries around the world. Prior to his military service, he graduated from Cleveland State University, having majored in sociology. Following his military service, he worked as a police officer eventually earning the rank of captain prior to his retirement.

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      <span class="dsq-postid" data-dsqidentifier="1247 http://www.crackedhistory.com/?p=1247">137 Comments

      1. Avatar
        dawnatilla on February 16, 2014 1:44 pm

        Kind of an article for a historian, don’t you think? As for incest, it’s alive and well. The Royals have been inbreeding for their entire history here. They are trying to preserve a blood line which contains star seed DNA. Akhenaten was a starseed, as well as king tut. That’s why the elongated skulls. Those that built the Pyramids using the Power of One, were from Venus, and acted much as Jesus did, which was to give a message of love to humanity. As in Jesus case, it was not well accepted. They left without incident.

        Reply
        • Avatar
          Fred on February 17, 2014 1:42 pm

          Is this Gregory Stevens?

          Reply
        • Avatar
          Logan Cole Rieck on February 25, 2014 12:55 pm

          Elongated skulls were from a tradition that would be performed on children by tying their head to a piece of wood to let it go longer and obtusely. Terribly cruel.

          Royality interbred because they would give their sons and daughters to each to broker peace and other diplomatic ties to each other. It got out of hand, obviously.

          Jesus’ message was more than love but holiness towards God, that He is God Incarnate Himself, and an organization of a Church to continue His message that would never be overcome to help the world.

          A star seed? People from Venus?

          Reply
      2. Avatar
        Martin Harris on February 16, 2014 11:55 pm

        Bull shit

        Reply
        • Avatar
          Reader on February 17, 2014 1:42 pm

          See http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=06jF1EG8o-Q

          Reply
      3. Avatar
        cwank on April 10, 2014 8:52 am

        It amazing to see the amount of information they can gather from the tests they ran. I was also unaware that incest was so prevalent.

        Reply
      4. Avatar
        Rachel on April 10, 2014 9:53 am

        i think it’s crazy that they can test DNA from so long ago!

        Reply
      5. Avatar
        Stephan S on April 10, 2014 11:46 pm

        You would think the royal Egyptians would learn from their mistake when peasants were having babies left and right while these incest baby bearing sisters were having miscarriages. Not to also forget about lots of mental/physical complications in the royal lineage like Tut’s deformities.

        Reply
      6. Avatar
        Kayla L on April 12, 2014 7:41 pm

        It’s crazy that the Egyptians practiced incest, not to mention downright disgusting. I suppose they the royals did it to “keep their lineage pure”, since they wouldn’t marry anyone who didn’t have “blue blood” (that being royal blood). The thing I find fascinating about Tut is that he became a king at the age of nine. That’s the age kids start learning their times tables. It’s hard to imagine someone this young ruling over thousands if not millions of people.

        Reply
      7. Avatar
        HO on September 4, 2014 7:38 am

        Incest was very common back then especially among royalty so that doesnt surprise me. What does surprise me is that he had so many problems that could have been the cause of death, not just one or two triggers.

        Reply
      8. Avatar
        Briana Yost on September 4, 2014 10:11 am

        I think it is odd that Egyptians performed incest but maybe it is because they wanted to keep the wealth and royalty in the family. I am surprised after probably generations of incest that King Tut did not have more health problems visible! It makes me wonder what the royal family would have thought of their incest if they knew what science proves today. Also, it is scary King Tut ruled at 9 years old! I could not imagine being a citizen ruled by a kid.

        Reply
      9. Avatar
        CT on September 4, 2014 2:11 pm

        It seems like there is always a lot of mystery that occurs when finding something this old. It is usually hard to find out as well.

        Reply
      10. Avatar
        Cody on September 4, 2014 2:41 pm

        I read the article & thought it was interesting that he started his reign at age 9. That is a very young age to be responsible for so much.

        Reply
      11. Avatar
        Ellen U. on September 4, 2014 3:22 pm

        Amazing how we can just keep learning more and more about past discoveries as we find new technologies with which to examine them.

        Reply
      12. Avatar
        Shannon C on September 4, 2014 3:51 pm

        It’s interesting how there are so many different ways he could’ve died.

        Reply
      13. Avatar
        imengri17 on September 4, 2014 6:11 pm

        I am interested in knowing more about his definite cause of death. Many possible causes are given, including assassination, malaria, and the initial thought that he died of a broken leg. Not knowing how someone who ruled a nation for years could have died can be frustrating.

        Reply
      14. Avatar
        Sun Lee on September 4, 2014 6:44 pm

        It was really cool to read about the different tests (CT, x-ray) that they ran on the body to discover more things. Its not often that you hear about the different procedural things done to receive that sort of information. Some crazy findings came out in the process though. Regardless of some of the information being odd or disturbing to our culture/time, it is interesting to hear about and understand more about the cultures of different nations in the past.

        Reply
      15. Avatar
        PK on September 4, 2014 6:59 pm

        I can’t even begin to fathom the amount of pressure a nine year old boy had when it came to ruling a large group of people at such a young age. I am now interested in knowing more about the short life and death of King Tut through more reading.

        Reply
      16. Avatar
        Audrey S on September 4, 2014 6:59 pm

        I find the claim of incest interesting, I have heard about king tut however i did not know that there were claims of incest, but looking at the line of royals incest type relationships have been happening in royal families for many years, so I guess it is no surprise.

        Reply
      17. Avatar
        JonK on September 4, 2014 7:48 pm

        After viewing a documentary in which King Tut and his discovery by Howard Carter were featured in it, I found this article to be very interesting. I do not know much about Ancient Eqyptian history but I would not have guessed that many of the royal Eqyptian families were involved in incest. It is interesting to learn that through DNA testing that they were able to determine and even prove that such things as incencest had occurred so long ago. All in all, I want to just reiderate that I found this article to be a great incite into some of the history of King Tut.

        Reply
      18. Avatar
        S Eilerman on September 4, 2014 8:30 pm

        It does not completely shock me that King Tut was a product of incest because that seemed to be a common thing during that time to keep the royalty in the family.

        Reply
      19. Avatar
        Trevor on September 4, 2014 8:47 pm

        Incest being the cause is not surprising because it was such a common thing in history. Without the knowledge of the problems it could cause it was normal practice. The idea of a pure blood line was very appealing for ancient rulers.

        Reply
      20. Avatar
        AB on September 4, 2014 8:49 pm

        It is very interesting that the royals would practice incest, but did they have knowledge of the consequences? King Tut was a very sickly person and it sounds like he didn’t have much time to actually make changes and rules when he was in his reign. I am mostly surprised he lived to be 19 years old with all the conditions he may have had.
        AB

        Reply
      21. Avatar
        E.S. on September 4, 2014 9:57 pm

        It does not surprise me that he was possibly involved in incest, or had it in his family tree, with him being royalty. What does surprise me is how we have no records of how he died. What do you think?

        Reply
      22. Avatar
        Drew K. on September 4, 2014 10:01 pm

        It was cool how much we were able to discover about Tut’s health using the technology available to us. I wonder what we will be able to learn in the future…

        Reply
      23. Avatar
        RyMains on September 4, 2014 10:07 pm

        I find it very intriguing that incest played such a large role back in those times, but especially the fact that someone as prestiges as he was, yet there are so many unanswered questions that historians are still trying to figure out.

        Reply
      24. Avatar
        Marisa M. on September 4, 2014 10:36 pm

        From what I understand the royal families of Egypt used to marry siblings off to preserve the “holy” or “godly” line. It was interesting to see what diseases could potentially occur from those types of marriages. King Tut’s tomb was certainly a great find.

        Reply
      25. Avatar
        K. Newman on September 4, 2014 10:48 pm

        I found the thought that tomb and mummies being buried and untouched for 3,000 to be riveting. I would have thought the tombs and caves within would be starting to fall apart because the foundation was so old. The theory of incest running in the family does not surprise me at all. I would believe incest would run in almost every family for the time. What I really wonder is how King Tut died. The mystery is so intriguing and captivates me. I do not believe in curses at all and would not support the thought that a curse would be the cause of his death.

        Reply
      26. Avatar
        MO on September 4, 2014 10:51 pm

        Like many others have said, I am not surprised that Tut was a child of incest. Keeping the bloodline pure was important back then and they had no way of knowing the biological consequences of incest.

        Reply
      27. Avatar
        MS on September 4, 2014 11:09 pm

        It kinda reminds me of Harry Potter. Most of the “pure blood” families committed incest to keep the blood line “as pure as possible.” Maybe it was their way of keeping the royal blood line pure? I also wonder what his cause of death was.

        Reply
      28. Avatar
        Alysha K on September 4, 2014 11:14 pm

        It is truly amazing that so much information can be learned by DNA testing and CT scans when the body has been dead and decaying for over 3,000 years. Hopefully future technological advancements will soon shed light on all of our unanswered questions about history.

        Reply
      29. Avatar
        I.G. on September 4, 2014 11:56 pm

        I find it very interesting how the acceptance of certain sexual norms is so drastically different in today’s society as compared to ancient societies such as Ancient Egypt. The fact that King Tut had various birth defects and no one questioned the idea of mating with family members is fascinating to me. The differences in standards between today’s accepted sexuality versus accepted sexuality in Ancient Egypt shows how far that the human race has come in understanding our origins, genetic makeup, and how the world around us really functions.

        Reply
      30. Avatar
        Reese on September 5, 2014 12:21 am

        It is shocking to me to read about how much archaeologists are able to figure out about events, people, etc that date back so far. The idea of incest being the cause of death is interesting and definitely feasible.

        Reply
      31. Avatar
        Angelina Huber on September 5, 2014 12:28 am

        I never realized that King Tut had two children. It definitely surprises me because he was so young, and died at only 18 years of age. The cause of his death is definitely extremely perplexing, but he had so many different health issues, some due to his genes, that it does not surprise me he died extremely young.

        Reply
      32. Avatar
        Matthew Oswald on September 5, 2014 6:48 am

        It intrigues me on the grounds of his tomb actually being cursed. I thought that was something that Hollywood exaggerated. The incest from his father to his sister did not really come as much of a surprise considering the customs back in those days.

        Reply
      33. Avatar
        Alex Colucy on September 6, 2014 11:44 am

        It’s amazing how much we can find out about the past just from studying these ancient tombs. It blows my mind.

        Reply
      34. Avatar
        Daniel on September 8, 2014 2:28 am

        That’s very interesting. Although with all the science and forensics we have in these days we should be able to find out the cause of King Tut’s death… Shouldn’t we?

        Reply
      35. Avatar
        DAVID WARDLE on September 8, 2014 6:22 pm

        The
        mystery of the past is what draws me to it! — DAVID WARDLE

        Reply
      36. Avatar
        N. Proud on September 9, 2014 6:31 pm

        I was never aware that incest was common in ancient Egypt, though it makes sense for those customs back then with royal families. What really interests me is that there is no known cause of death; assumptions always got the better of me. It’s intriguing how the incest could have played a part in his death, involving his deformities. However, assassination would also be a viable reason, seeing as he was extremely young to be named Pharaoh. I am very interested to see what information is discovered next.

        Reply
      37. Avatar
        Amanda Evaleen Lint on September 22, 2014 9:32 pm

        the thing that surprises me is no record of him dieing…… so depressing i would love to know how he died

        Reply
      38. Avatar
        AN on December 9, 2014 8:27 pm

        Scientists have tossed around quite a few ideas to the cause of Tut’s death ranging from a broken leg to a possible assassination.

        Reply
      39. Avatar
        Rachael Petrime on December 11, 2014 10:22 am

        wow that commercial! I’ve heard of incest in the Egyptian royalty. I don’t care how powerful someone is, it’s still gross.

        Reply
      40. Avatar
        Rhonda Donda on February 16, 2015 11:54 am

        I thought that incest was a common thing then so they could keep their blood line “pure”. Maybe he got at bad infection from the broken leg that contributed to his death?

        Reply
      41. Avatar
        Hannah Louk on February 16, 2015 1:03 pm

        I find the entire idea of Egyptian culture fascinating. They were such arrogant, selfish people. They truly belived that they were so much higher up than the rest of civilization that they married and procreated with their family.

        Reply
      42. Avatar
        Natalie Sholtis on February 16, 2015 2:34 pm

        I’m curious as to how tall Tut may have been. Sometimes with inbreeding or a very small gene pool seem to cause shortness or stunted growth. -Slightly off topic: Did anyone hear recently about King Tut’s golden outer casket had the “beard” section fall off while it was being cleaned? That’s so sad!

        Reply
      43. Avatar
        DAVID WARDLE on February 16, 2015 6:52 pm

        History is a mystery… that is what keeps me intrigued! — DAVID WARDLE

        Reply
      44. Avatar
        Heather H on February 17, 2015 11:33 am

        incest is the biggest surprise for me. i was unaware how popular it was then

        Reply
      45. Avatar
        BS on February 17, 2015 4:17 pm

        the incest was interesting.. weird it’s unknown how he died.

        Reply
      46. Avatar
        J.B. on February 17, 2015 6:31 pm

        Many monarchs and emperors married inside the family to keep the royal blood “pure”.

        Reply
      47. Avatar
        Jake Woolf on February 17, 2015 7:37 pm

        Royal inbreeding? Surely you jest!

        As E.S. said, it’s surprising they can’t tell what killed him. One might think a preserved body in a box would make that task a bit easier.

        Reply
      48. Avatar
        w.y. on February 18, 2015 9:59 am

        I guess it was common back then but I just can’t see how someone could partake in incestuous relationships

        Reply
      49. Avatar
        gsack89 on February 19, 2015 5:48 pm

        I thought this article was interesting. I have heard of theories stating that King Tut was part of an alien human hybrid. The side effects of incest are a more realistic explanation, just not as interesting.

        Reply
      50. Avatar
        Samantha on February 19, 2015 5:57 pm

        Doesn’t shock me that they married within the family, to keep the royal blood pure.. but still weird. Amazing that we can learn so much from one person

        Reply
      51. Avatar
        tevin k on February 21, 2015 4:52 pm

        Its no wonder he died young seeing that his whole family was incest. He must have just had bad genes from it. The dog food commercial was hilarious.

        Reply
      52. Avatar
        James T. on March 11, 2015 5:41 pm

        It’s really surprising that nobody seems to know how he died.

        Reply
      53. Avatar
        JB on March 22, 2015 2:20 pm

        I had heard that he died from an infection after breaking his leg but I had not heard about the other theories about his cause of death

        Reply
      54. Avatar
        Nathan Beauchemin on September 8, 2015 9:23 pm

        Royal incest is nothing new, look at even as modern as the Tudor Monarchy of the late middle ages and early renaissance. Pedigree was far more important than modern social norms.

        Reply
      55. Avatar
        nate haller on September 8, 2015 11:15 pm

        I’m not shocked by him being involved in incest since back then they wanted to keep the blood and the family tree all together instead of having it branch off to other blood lines.

        Reply
      56. Avatar
        Emma Mitchell on September 9, 2015 11:50 am

        It’s cool to know that they haven’t really figured out his cause of death. It’s especially interesting that even with all the advances in technology, the past still remains a mystery.

        Reply
      57. Avatar
        Josh Browning on September 9, 2015 4:23 pm

        It’s amazing what has been discovered by testing the artifacts in tut’s tomb. So much is yet to found out though.

        Reply
      58. Avatar
        Bailey DiMenna on September 9, 2015 9:49 pm

        The topic of incest makes me wonder if any other species practices it. Furthermore, why do humans not have some sort of instinctive thought against doing it. It is no surprise that Tut had so many health problems after generations of incest before his birth.

        Reply
      59. Avatar
        J L on September 9, 2015 10:15 pm

        Read it! 🙂

        Reply
      60. Avatar
        R. Hammel on September 10, 2015 9:30 am

        I didn’t realize that he was so young when he died.

        Reply
      61. Avatar
        E. Parker on September 10, 2015 11:28 am

        After reading this article and the previous, I would like to know more about the area where King Tut was found. Why was the tomb found before the burial chamber? Hopefully the mystery about his death will be solved. I also did not know about the broken leg; perhaps they used casts back then, since everything was mummified.

        Reply
      62. Avatar
        Cheyenne Johnson on September 10, 2015 12:54 pm

        I am surprised by the fact that there are no records of king tuts death or his final days, but what does not surprise me is that he was involved with incest, because it was very popular back then.

        Reply
      63. Avatar
        MN on September 10, 2015 8:02 pm

        I think it is so cool that scientists have been able to find all of this out about his life and incest and what not even though he hadnt been touched in over thousands of years.

        Reply
      64. Avatar
        Anthony Jones on September 10, 2015 9:06 pm

        It’s very interesting to see all of the potential causes of death King Tut dealt with. It would be neat if they were able to determine which of them was the actual cause of his death.

        Reply
      65. Avatar
        Madison Ertle on September 11, 2015 1:07 pm

        Incest is common among families in power so that did not surprise me but I found it interesting that his cause of death is still not known and that there is no record of it!

        Reply
      66. Avatar
        Allison S on September 11, 2015 2:21 pm

        Today incest is a crazy thing to think about…but in ancient times it was not uncommon for families to do it in order to keep the royal blood “pure”. Incest can lead to a multitude of complications which may have lead to King Tut’s death but also could have been the reason why many people back then did not live long past their thirties (advancements not yet made in medicine is obviously another big reason).

        Reply
      67. Avatar
        LW on September 12, 2015 1:48 pm

        The incest part does not surprise me since that was popular during those times. But something that stumps me is that they do not know the main cause of King Tuts death. They already have done a lot of research and DNA testing, and I’m surprised that they haven’t figured out the cause of his death.

        Reply
      68. Avatar
        Robert Richmond on September 12, 2015 8:44 pm

        Would like to know the exact cause of his death.

        Reply
      69. Avatar
        TR on September 14, 2015 11:12 am

        Wow.That’s crazy how his death could have resulted from a number of different things. It will be interesting to see if they can pin point one single cause. If the ancient Egyptians were so advanced in many other areas, then how could they not realize through the years, that breeding with family members could cause abnormalities or death at a young age?

        Reply
      70. Avatar
        AB on September 14, 2015 4:33 pm

        Most families and dynasties at this time practiced incest as a means of keeping the royal bloodline pure. It’s not that big of a surprise at all.

        Reply
      71. Avatar
        K. Sandor on September 14, 2015 10:26 pm

        I hope they find some sort of record of his cause of death. Definitely curious.

        Reply
      72. Avatar
        N. Mills on September 15, 2015 9:55 am

        King Tut is like The Beatles of his generation. He had a very short rule, yet he was one of the most influential leaders of his time.

        Reply
      73. Avatar
        jkidd on September 15, 2015 11:14 am

        I wonder if the incest could have affected the mental state and decision making of the royal line?

        Reply
      74. Avatar
        DSciury on September 15, 2015 11:39 am

        It doesn’t really surprise me that incest was involved as most royal family’s wanted to stay pure. what is interesting is how there is no record on how he died. leaves a lot to speculate on!

        Reply
      75. Avatar
        Tammy T. on December 1, 2015 9:07 pm

        I know that incest was common because it was a way to keep bloodlines pure and to keep power in the family. I have also heard (in an anthropology class) that when siblings would marry, the wife would sometimes be impregnated by a helping hand in the palace instead of her brother in order to avoid the effects of incest. I wonder if there is any truth to this or if this could have been common practice?

        Reply
      76. Avatar
        LHW on January 21, 2016 5:07 pm

        I guess that is one way to keep the throne in the family.

        Reply
      77. Avatar
        MMA on January 27, 2016 11:48 am

        While reading this article I found it crazy to believe that because of incest in his family and blood, tut could have gained some types of diseases. I wonder how we know that is possible and how it actually comes about. King Tut seemed to have many medical issues that could have lead to his death, I just wonder how long it will take till we know what his actual cause of death was.

        Reply
      78. Avatar
        Megan Arrendale on February 4, 2016 10:09 am

        I am not surprised incest might have been involved for that was very common in that time period. After all, it is believed we are all related in some way anyway. I find it odd that they cannot find any records on how he died. Hopefully one day that mystery will be solved.

        Reply
      79. Avatar
        SydneyK on February 5, 2016 1:40 pm

        Poor King Tut, it is sad to hear that his possible death wasn’t in his control.

        Reply
      80. Avatar
        Matt M on February 11, 2016 5:30 pm

        I think its pretty cool the amount of attention King Tut gets especially because there is not much known about him and yet he appears to be the most popular. I think a lot of this popularity is because of the unknown and people find this intriguing

        Reply
      81. Avatar
        Alexa B on February 15, 2016 10:55 am

        The information in the article solidifies the various possibilities that King Tut was created through incest which brought on multiple diseases and complications. Although with all the test that were run with is DNA you would think we would know more.

        Reply
      82. Avatar
        SRP on February 21, 2016 8:14 pm

        I think that it is interesting on how they would make chambers. I also find it weird how they would marry their own sisters and family and have kids. It is weird to think because that is not what happens in today’s life. I find it interesting they found two other bodies in the chamber with Tut.

        Reply
      83. Avatar
        Sarah Shaheen on February 29, 2016 10:36 am

        Its kind of cool how even after all those years they can still find the reason for why he may have died

        Reply
      84. Avatar
        Mariam on March 7, 2016 1:24 pm

        I definetely think that it is just a matter of time before we know the real reasons behind King Tut’s death. I can’t imagine that something like that was not recorded in some way, shape, or form.

        Reply
      85. Avatar
        Emily Seiter on March 7, 2016 1:47 pm

        The incest within the royal bloodline is not unique to Egyptian royalty. It is seen repeatedly throughout history leading to diseases being more prevalent in royal bloodlines such as hemophilia in European royalty. King Tut being extremely sickly because of his lineage makes sense. Hopefully as technological analysis of mummies and artifacts continues it will lead to the result of how he did die. As for Steve Martin’s King Tut very catchy and entertaining.

        Reply
      86. Avatar
        Matthew Barnewall on March 9, 2016 8:38 am

        Incest in a royal family is not surprising. What surprised me is the sheer number of possible causes for his death.

        Reply
      87. Avatar
        Erin R on March 17, 2016 5:37 pm

        I am not at all surprised to hear that King Tut was involved in incest. This was a very common practice used to keep the bloodline to the throne pure.

        Reply
      88. Avatar
        Cori Anter on April 6, 2016 8:31 pm

        Although incest was a very common royal practice, it still does surprise and disgust me. I found it extremely unfortunately that two of the fetal mummies could have been children that died because he married within his family. I do however, find it very interesting that his death could be from a different cause than the one that was always assumed.

        Reply
      89. Avatar
        JV on April 17, 2016 8:49 pm

        Incest seemed to be commonly practiced in order to keep the royal bloodline going, but pretty gross at the same.

        Reply
      90. Avatar
        rpugliese16 on April 18, 2016 7:57 pm

        I wonder how long it took, or if they even did, for the Egyptians to find out that incestuous relations were causing diseases and miscarriages…

        Reply
      91. Avatar
        Clayton Cassidy on April 22, 2016 2:13 am

        It is great to see that we are using our modern technology, such as DNA analysis, to investigate and contribute to history in a greater way. The conspiracy between whether King Tut died of a malarial disease acquired by his broken leg or whether he was assassinated is very fascinating to me. Incest was the result of many miscarriages which is a good reason for why he was buried with two mummified fetuses.

        Reply
      92. Avatar
        Zachary Zupancic on April 25, 2016 8:55 pm

        Ironic that today is World Malaria Day and that King Tut suffered from several Malarial infections. Unfortunately Malaria is still a problem for youth in society today.

        Reply
      93. Avatar
        Tevin Knerr on April 29, 2016 12:28 am

        Im not surprised about the incest due to them wanting to keep it in the family . as for his death i still wish we knew !

        Reply
      94. Avatar
        Charles Lalli on April 29, 2016 8:10 am

        It’s unfortunate that we don’t know much about his death. As for his familial relations, it’s not surprising considering the lack of understanding of genetics and the idea of royalty in their blood.

        Reply
      95. Avatar
        Branden Nau on May 3, 2016 7:37 pm

        I guess if you’re old enough to be a king, you can get married so young. Hopefully not to a family member, but back then they did not know what we know today.

        Reply
      96. Avatar
        Andrew Orie on May 5, 2016 1:46 pm

        Incest is not too surprising, because ancient civilizations could have wanted to keep a “royal” bloodline. So it stands to reason that some incest could have occurred for the sake of keeping the throne in the family

        Reply
      97. Avatar
        Greg B on May 6, 2016 9:07 am

        The technology used benefited the research aspect in the long run. Had they found him earlier, it would have been more difficult to identify him as King Tut and explore how he died at such a young age.

        Reply
      98. Avatar
        APG on May 7, 2016 9:46 pm

        It’s astounding that DNA can still be tested thousands of years later and we can actually learn various aspects about these people we would never know as a result.

        Reply
      99. Avatar
        Max Bechara on May 9, 2016 1:27 pm

        Not hard to think they didn’t have incest around back then, there’s not really much to do except haul stones and the ol’ bump n’ grind

        Reply
      100. Avatar
        mmahoney17 on May 9, 2016 3:36 pm

        Oh, man. The cleft palate would have probably been a large issue for a developing young man.

        Reply
      101. Avatar
        Marlene Villa on May 9, 2016 10:57 pm

        Even though he died before he was even in twenty years old, he is mostly known for his incredible burial site instead of what he did as pharaoh. I wonder… if he would have lived longer, would he have also had an enticing reputation as Alexander the Great?

        Reply
      102. Avatar
        Jonathan Beard on May 11, 2016 3:08 pm

        I was surprised to learn that it is believed that King Tut suffered from Malaria, but it makes sense based on the African continent having many cases of Malaria. It is also interesting that King Tut supposedly married his half-sister and possibly had two kids with her!

        Reply
      103. Avatar
        Frankie Alvarez on May 12, 2016 1:21 pm

        It’s crazy how Tut had so many birth defects yet was still treated as royalty. Obviously it was in his bloodlines. but most ancient civilizations aren’t known to have treated people with disabilities very well.

        Reply
      104. Avatar
        Joe Kleinmann on May 13, 2016 12:25 am

        In my genetics class this semester, we learned all about the dangers of incest and how it hurts the genetic variance of a population. When I learn of ancient societies such as Egypt, it is surprising that they did not put two and two together. I feel as if it should have been quite evident that incest was leading to many problems such as these.

        Reply
      105. Avatar
        Liam Flaherty on May 13, 2016 5:33 am

        I find it intriguing that so many monarchal countries throughout history, ancient Egypt included, practiced rampant incest. That royal incest was being practiced thousands of years ago raises the question in my mind of what makes it so universally appealing.

        Reply
      106. Avatar
        Ben on May 13, 2016 11:03 am

        Tragic that the ancients thought that that in order to preserve their royal-ness they had to practice incest and intermarrying and more incest and more intermarrying…

        Reply
      107. Avatar
        Shane Skuhrovec on September 18, 2016 9:47 pm

        It is shocking that with all of the technology advancements of our time that we still do not know for sure how King Tut died. Also during those times it was not uncommon for incest to take place and I believe that King Tut was involved in incest.

        Reply
      108. Avatar
        Tim Moroz on September 19, 2016 2:41 am

        I agree with the point E.S. makes, not a single records exists relating to the death of a Pharaoh? I think his infection killed him.

        Reply
      109. Avatar
        JIW on September 19, 2016 9:45 am

        While yes incest was rampant in royalty in all of history, you can also look at the religions to shed some light on the situation too. Many polytheist religions we know about (Greek, Egyptian, Norse) had weird and messed up family trees. For example Isis and Osiris were siblings as well as husband and wife. So it is possible that the Pharaohs wanted to be more like the gods, and practiced some disturbing things.

        Reply
      110. Avatar
        KR on September 26, 2016 1:03 am

        Incest among royalty wasn’t that odd in a lot of cultures, since it was a pretty convenient way for making sure power stayed within certain family lines, but could lead to many unhappy side effects down the family line. It wouldn’t be terribly unlikely for Tut’s ancestry to have negatively impacted his health.

        Reply
      111. Avatar
        Matthew Goss on November 24, 2016 12:09 pm

        A shame King Tut died at such a young age. Crazy that we cannot determine exactly what killed him despite all we know about him.

        Reply
      112. Avatar
        Matthew Olen on December 13, 2016 9:52 pm

        It does not surprise me incest is a possibility for King Tut considering how prevalent it was in that day. It is strange how much we know about him for how long ago he lived, but seem to know nothing about his death.

        Reply
      113. Avatar
        Bryan Mersol on December 15, 2016 5:13 pm

        The embedded video was really cool

        Reply
      114. Avatar
        Tom Kubrak on December 16, 2016 4:56 am

        Since the medicine was very poor back in these times, I can only imagine the pain that King Tut had to deal with when his broken leg became infected. Knowing that there is no way to survive an infection must be such a terrible way to go.

        Reply
      115. Avatar
        shane myers on January 31, 2017 6:37 pm

        Its amazing what people back then to get/keep power.

        Reply
      116. Avatar
        Sydney P. on January 31, 2017 7:15 pm

        Its so interesting to me that incest changes the physical features of a human being, such as their family line having elongated skulls. It makes sense that there would be deformities and problems that would occur.

        Reply
      117. Avatar
        Todd Carlson on February 1, 2017 12:59 pm

        Would it not be great to get on Ancestery DNA and find out that you are related to King Tut! I mean if you got his DNA then it should be on their. As for incest… Who really knows the truth to that.

        Reply
      118. Avatar
        kayla connelly on February 1, 2017 5:58 pm

        it is not suprising that he died of a disease because they probably didn’t have the proper medical care

        Reply
      119. Avatar
        Victoria Riley on February 8, 2017 11:09 am

        Sad to think about incest. In today’s society, thankfully, that is a crime. To my knowledge, I’ve never known anyone that was attracted to, or in love with any family member. That suggests to me that they must have been forced to marry.

        Reply
        • Avatar
          Trever Himes on February 8, 2017 12:08 pm

          Oh it still happens, I’m not sure if it is technically illegal or not. I don’t know if you can get married, but I don’t think you’ll get arrested for it either, never been an issue I’ve had to deal with lol

          Reply
      120. Avatar
        Marynette Holmes on February 8, 2017 11:58 am

        Incest was practiced very often in those days because they wanted to keep the blood line the same! However after so many still births and defects i wonder why they didn’t notice that maybe incest was contributing to their ill and sickly leaders.

        Reply
        • Avatar
          Trever Himes on February 8, 2017 12:07 pm

          Probably because the infant mortality rate was so high anyway, they just never put 2 and 2 together.

          Reply
          • Avatar
            Marynette Holmes on February 13, 2017 3:25 pm

            Good point

            Reply
            • Avatar
              Trever Himes on February 13, 2017 9:44 pm

              You’re point about keeping the blood lines the same, is the reason they did it. Mostly contributed to their class system. I would think. Only so much royalty to go around, and if that’s all you can be with, makes he choices limited. Lol

              Reply
      121. Avatar
        Trever Himes on February 8, 2017 12:09 pm

        It’s interesting to see how body modification, started so early, and in different parts of the world. While still being continued on today, with tattoos and piercings.

        Reply
      122. Avatar
        Jordan Coleman on February 9, 2017 9:39 am

        Although incest is awful and is definitely something we do not practice today, I understand why the royal families saw it as normal and beneficial. They wanted to keep the bloodline “clean” so that the future rulers were of the purest bloodline possible. Obviously today with the help of modern medicine and better morals we understand that, if anything, marrying and reproducing within the family actually did more harm than good.

        Reply
      123. Avatar
        Aurora Umberger on February 17, 2017 12:03 am

        I guess I really didn’t think about that incest was a common thing back then, but I still find it very odd that someone made of incest was considered a common thing.

        Reply
      124. Avatar
        Robert Miller on February 21, 2017 2:34 pm

        What is it with royalty keeping it in the family? Gross.

        Reply
      125. Avatar
        Mason Nist on February 27, 2017 2:29 pm

        I find it interesting that they mummified the fetuses from the unsuccessful pregnancies and placed them in the burial tomb with king Tut in this time period.

        Reply
      126. Avatar
        Layne W on March 6, 2017 10:20 pm

        It’s hardly worth a raised eyebrow that there is incest in his family tree. It might be a scandal nowadays but incest wasn’t taboo until just recently, especially in royal lineage.

        Reply
      127. Avatar
        Heather Layton on March 15, 2017 8:35 pm

        It isn’t surprising that he had incest in his family tree, it may be frowned upon now but it wasn’t uncommon back then.

        Reply
      128. Avatar
        Casey Jones on May 6, 2017 1:34 pm

        Not the least bit surprised about incest being prominent in the family tree of Egyptian royalty.

        Reply
      129. Avatar
        M. Williams on May 8, 2017 7:21 pm

        No surprise about the incest in his family tree. There was alot of that in royal families.

        Reply
      130. Avatar
        Caitlyn Seebach on May 10, 2017 7:24 pm

        I thought most royal families were involved in incest to keep their families in the throne. Also might be a reason he died so young, it could have been a result of his parents being related ??

        Reply

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