What went wrong when the king rode under the arch?

It was too low and knocked off his crown

How does the chain of blame unfold in the poem?

Each accused person blames another, ending with the king's own changes

Who wrote this article and who is its subject?

A.R. Williams (for National Geographic); the subject is the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun and his mummy.

Why has King Tut's body been subjected to repeated scrutiny?

To solve lingering mysteries about how he died and how old he was, using improving scientific technology.

Why was Howard Carter's investigation of the mummy resented?

Because his rough methods badly damaged the mummy, including severing it at the joints to remove the gold.

Why did Carter chisel away the solidified resins?

The hardened ritual resins had cemented the mummy to its solid-gold coffin, and no legitimate force could move it.

Why was Tut's body buried with gilded treasures?

The royals believed the gold's eternal brilliance would guarantee resurrection, and they wished to take riches into the afterlife.

What deeds led Ray Johnson to call Akhenaten "wacky"?

He promoted worship of the sun-disk Aten, changed his name, moved the capital, and attacked the god Amun, smashing his images.

Why did the boy king change his name from Tutankhaten to Tutankhamun?

To signal his restoration of the old religion of Amun after Akhenaten's upheaval.

What did the CT scan involve and aim to reveal?

It produced 1,700 cross-sectional images to study Tut's body and clarify the cause and age of his death.

What advances in technology have improved forensic analysis of mummies?

X-rays in 1968 revealed missing ribs and breast-bone, and CT scanning now builds a three-dimensional virtual body.

What is meant by "King Tut is one of the first mummies to be scanned — in death, as in life"?

Just as he was a privileged king in life, in death he was again given precedence, scanned ahead of other mummies.

Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues

Class 11 English · Hornbill · Chapter 3

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The story in short

A.R. Williams's National Geographic article describes how modern science continues to investigate the mummy of the boy pharaoh Tutankhamun, who died in his late teens over 3,300 years ago. Discovered in 1922 by Howard Carter in the Valley of the Kings, Tut's tomb held the richest royal collection ever found, but Carter's rough handling damaged the mummy: to free it from hardened resins and remove the gold adornments, his men severed the body at major joints. The article explains that archaeology has since shifted from treasure-hunting to studying the details of life and death using medical technology. On 5 January 2005 the mummy was taken from its tomb for a CT scan, creating 1,700 cross-sectional X-ray images to probe how Tut died and how old he was. The piece sketches Tut's dynasty: his father or grandfather Amenhotep III, the "wacky" Akhenaten who promoted worship of the sun-disk Aten and attacked the god Amun, the brief ruler Smenkhkare, and finally Tut, who restored the old ways and reigned about nine years. The scan is interrupted by a malfunction jokingly blamed on the "curse of the pharaoh," but is completed. The article blends history, archaeology, mystery and the power of modern forensic science to question the past.

Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues

Characters & key ideas

Mummythe preserved body of Tutankhamun, the boy pharaoh studied in the article.

CT scancomputed tomography producing 1,700 cross-sectional X-ray images of the body.

Howard Carterthe British archaeologist who discovered Tut's tomb in 1922.

Valley of the Kingsthe ancient Egyptian royal cemetery where Tut was buried.

Resinshardened ritual substances that cemented the mummy to its gold coffin.

Forensic reconstructionusing scan data to rebuild an accurate image of the pharaoh.

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Who is the subject of "Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues"?

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Discovering Tut: the Saga Continues

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