King
Tut Not Murdered Violently, CT Scans Show.
The painting in Tutankhamun’s burial chamber depicts
Ay at the "opening of the mouth" ceremony,
giving life and breath to the young deceased pharaoh. Ay, a commoner, is
wearing the leopard skin of a high priest and
the crown of a pharaoh. Since Tutankhamun did not have a child to succeed
him, it appears that Ay decided to seize the crown and declare himself
King of Egypt.
There were at least two other deaths following that
of Tutankhamun. His young wife
Ankhesenamum pleaded
with the king of the Hittites to send her one of his sons for
a husband. She did not want to marry a servant, such as Ay. A son
was sent, but he was murdered before he arrived.
Queen Ankhesenamun offers Tutankhamun a bouquet of flowers. Scene
taken from the lid of an ivory chest found in Tutankhamun's tomb.
Papyrus painting, modern
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So who did Ankhesenamum marry? There is now evidence
that she married Ay. A ring has been found with her
cartouche
inscribed next to his. Did Ay force her to marry him, thus legitimizing
his claim to the throne? Within three years of Ay's death, Ankhesenamum
disappeared. Could she also have been the victim of a serial killer?
What happened to Ay? He died within a few years of
seizing the throne. His cartouches, which he had inscribed on temple walls,
were eradicated, his tomb was robbed and vandalized, and his mummy
disappeared. His name was also eliminated from the official list of
pharaohs, as was that of Tutankhamun.
Another theory on Tutankhamun's death suggests that he was murdered
by General Horemheb, a man
of low birth who became one of Akhenaten's closest advisors. Under
Tutankhamun, he was appointed commander-in-chief of the army and deputy
of the king. Following the demise of Tutankhamun and Ay, Horemheb became
pharaoh. During his reign, he had the names of Akhenaten, Tutankhamun
and Ay removed from the royal list of pharaohs, which suggests that he
had personal reasons for eradicating those rulers from the records.
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Tutankhamun menu
Researchers continue to investigate
the cause
of Tutankhamun's premature death.
Bob
Brier, a mummy specialist from Long Island University, has been
tracking down clues that indicate Tutankhamun may have been
killed by his elderly chief advisor and successor,
Ay.
An X-ray of his skull revealed a calcified blood clot at its base. This could have been caused
by a blow from a blunt implement, which eventually resulted in death.
