King Tutankhamen (King Tut)
1336 - 1327

The Golden Mask of Tutankhamun at Cairo Museum

Photo courtesy Richard Deurer at Ancient Gallery Directory
Used with permission.

King Tutankhamen was the twelfth king of the eighteen Dynasty. He was only eight or nine when his father died at the age of 25 leaving him king. King Tut married Akhenaten's daughter. King Tut died at the age of 19 from a head injury. Some archaeologists think he may have been murdered. He was buried in the Valley of the Kings.

The tomb of King Tutankhamen was discovered in November of 1922. The reason it was not discovered earlier was because tomb robbers had broken into a tomb near King Tut's. They tossed all the loose dirt and rocks down the hill on King Tut's tomb. It was buried and out of sight for hundreds of years. King Tut's tomb had been broken in by robbers before, but little had been taken. The burial chamber containing the coffin was untouched. In the burial chamber was the golden mask seen above.