By Andrew Prebble Year 8

The most famous Egyptian King today, is with no doubt King Tutankhamun. The fame today is due to his tomb and its contents inside it. Archaeologist Howard Carter found the tomb in 1922. It was the only Egyptian tomb with most of its treasure intact. There were over 5000 treasures in the tomb, including the famous gold Burial Mask worn by his mummy. Despite all the interest in his tomb, there was always the question of how he died. I believe he was murdered by Ay.

King Tutankhamun of Egypt was born around 1347 BC. At the age of nine he became King. At this stage his mother, stepmother and stepsister had all died. So his uncle Ay, became his adviser. Tut enjoyed going hunting, swimming, shooting and riding. Inside the palace he enjoyed playing with his dogs and playing an old Egyptian board game called Senet. His wife Ankhesenpaaten was older that Tut. At the age of 18 he quickly died, and was buried at the "Valley of Kings".

There are three reasons why I think King Tut was murdered by Ay. Firstly official letters and documents suggested that as Tut became more interested in Politics he might have wanted to rule by himself. Ay must have been reluctant to give up the power he had for nine years, so he disposed of him. Secondly signs of haste were evident everywhere. Ay would not let anyone see his body. He quickly built a tomb, which was small for a royal burial. The availability of the gold coffin and gold mask so early, suggests that it had been already planned. Thirdly. Scientists did x-rays on the body and found a blood clot in the back of his head, which could have been from a blow to the head, which suggests murder, or a heavy fall.

Even though these are only theories, I think with all my evidence that this points to murder. I’m sure that the power of being King was enough for Ay to have Tut disposed of. I suppose we will never know.