85 years to the day after Egyptologist Howard Carter found the hidden tomb of King Tutankhamun, the face of the legendary boy-king has gone on display in Luxor.We're not talking about his ceremonial sarcophagus cover (shown at left), but his actual face.
It turns out that King Tut was a buck-toothed teenager, not that different from other young people in our own time. He was also slight; only five feet, six inches tall. It's unknown what caused his death at the age of 19.
A CT scan conducted on his body two years ago discovered that a few days before he died he had broken his thigh bone. Scientists speculate he may have died from a subsequent infection.
In order to save the king's body from decaying into dust, curators placed Tut into a climate-controlled glass case, where he will be seen by an expected 700 visitors a day.
The display is a reminder of how the past can still reach out and remind us of the march of civilization.
King Tut ascended to the throne at the age of eight, about one thousand years before Christ's time. And yet here he is, in 2007, looking up at us; the boy who led one of the most advanced civilizations in the ancient world.
The 1922 discovery of his glittering tomb decorated with golden objects and jewels, and, of course, the famous mask, captured the world's imagination and intrigues us still.
For more, including photos: King Tut from Associated Press
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Blog photo credit: Enbrut Dani, through the stock.xchng
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