November 26, 1922. After a decade of obsessive searching, the archaeologist Howard Carter and his patron Earl of Carnarvonthey are finally in front Sarcophagus of Tutankhamun. In the vestibule, next to a mummy dressed as befits a great ruler, one could read a frightening inscription on clay: “Death will strike those who disturb the peace of the pharaoh.” At that time, the superstition of the press and of some Egyptians conflicted with the scientific mind of archaeologists, who did not attach any importance to this. However, three dozen deaths sowed fear and set the first lines of a terrible story: Curse of Tutankhamen.
This may seem like the beginning of a movie, but it’s an absolutely true story. Just 24 hours after the opening of the tomb, a wealthy American businessman, George Jay Goulddied from pneumonia. Like other magnates of that time, he wanted to be present at the event that would go down in history, but did not know that he would become the first victim of Tutankhamen’s curse. After him they died Egyptologists, photographers, radiologists and some curious. All of them were united by the fact that they were present at the opening of the tomb of the pharaoh. many died from pneumoniasome due to an infection in the blood called septicemia. There were also deaths from insect bites and falls.
One of the last victims of the pharaoh’s curse was Count Carnavaron himself, who turned up dead in an Egyptian hotel room five months later. Infection in wound on the cheek it would seem the reason. Shortly thereafter, his brother and wife died. But what happened to them? Did Tutankhamen’s Curse Really Exist?
King Tut’s curse strikes again
The answer to the riddle of Tutankhamen’s curse came 50 years later. In 1973, another group of archaeologists gathered in Krakow to discover tomb of Casimir IVwho was the king of Poland in the 15th century. Twelve scientists were involved, and ten of them soon died of infections or heart attacks.
One of the two survivors was a microbiologist. Boleslav Smyk. It was when the king’s wooden coffin was opened that he saw clear signs of decay, so he had an idea. What if his comrades died from infection by some microorganism, survived in a coffin all this time? Moreover, what if this was also the explanation for Tutankhamen’s curse?
He set to work investigating possible culprits until he found aspergillus yellow. It’s about saprophytic fungus. That is, it feeds on decaying material, such as wood. This makes him an excellent candidate. But the matter does not stop there. He is also known to live in closed, dark rooms with a moderate and stable temperature. Thus, the sarcophagus would be his ideal home. And there is more! As usual with fungi, it reproduces through controversy, which can be inhaled and which remain in the lungs until they cause a disease in immunocompromised people called aspergillosislooks like pneumonia.
This could explain why many of the deaths were due to pneumonia. And that would be consistent with the death of the Earl of Carnarvon. The fatal infection was originally thought to be caused by a cut after a mosquito bite. But this was a man with previous health problems, whose weakened immune system could not resist aspergillosis.
So, they all had a weakened immune system? The truth is, no. But the Polish microbiologist had answers to this question as well. Apparently, in the absence of oxygen, the fungus can remain dormant, but amplifying its virulence, waiting to recover when it is re-oxygenated, which will happen when open the burial chamber.
None of this is certain
Many microbiologists support Smyk’s theories. However, there are also scientists who believe that there are not so many deaths to talk about the curse of Tutankhamun.
In fact, a study was published in 2002 that compared the deaths of people who were at the opening of the tomb with others who, even being in the vicinity of the site, did not witness it. Thus, it was observed that, on average, those in the tomb died with 70 years oldwhile unexposed died from 75. This is not relevant and this is a rather high age, since we are talking about the 20s of the last century.
In addition, the truth is that of the 58 people who were present at the opening of the tomb, only 8 died in the next 12 years. blame Tutankhamun’s curse the deaths that occurred more than ten years later are too many. But even those that happened soon after could have been an accident. Let’s not forget that there have been cases of death from falls, and no fungus can explain this. Yes, it would be due to the fear of a possible curse that would make them absentmindedly descend the stairs.
Does Tutankhamun’s Curse Continue?
In 2019 director and Egyptologist Rami Romani said The Jordan Harbinger Show who nearly died after opening a grave while filming the Discovery Channel TV show. Shortly thereafter, his temperature rose to 42°C in the hotel and he began to cough up blood.
Luckily, he recovered after being treated with antibiotics, but never found out what happened to him. If the antibiotics work, then the bacteria are to blame. But could they be opportunistic bacteria that took advantage of fungal infection? Or was it just a coincidence? We do not know; but, just in case, it does not hurt to use personal protective equipment (PPE) before opening an ancient grave. Some microorganisms can be the worst curse.
Source: Hiper Textual
