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Howard Carter: The Real Indiana Jones

Biography

In Egypt more than 3,300 years ago, Pharaoh TutankhamenKing Tutwas


laid deep in a four-room tomb. He died in approximately 1323 BCE at just 19
years of age. King Tut was buried in a desert location known as the Valley of the
Kings near many other pharaohs. Thousands of years later, King Tuts tomb
still sat undiscovered, but legends about
the power of the Valley of the Kings
endured. People said that anyone who
disturbed a grave would experience bad
luck. This Pharaohs Curse, as it became
known, could strike anyone, from grave
robbers to highly educated archaeologists.
People believed that the Pharaohs Curse
could cause illness, accidents, and even
death.

One man, an archaeologist named Howard


Carter, confronted this curse head on.
Along the way, he made important
discoveries about King Tut and his tomb. Pharaohs were buried in the Valley of the Kings near
Carters work in the Valley of the Kings Thebes, the ancient capital of Upper Egypt. Each tomb
has helped us learn more about early was constructed underground to hide the coffin and
treasures from greedy robbers.
civilizations such as ancient Egypt.

Exploring Egypt
Howard Carter, an Englishman, arrived in Egypt in 1891 at the age of 17.
Although he would eventually find and excavate King Tuts tomb, Carter began
his professional career as an artist. Like his father, Howard Carter could draw
and paint animals well.

Initially, Carter worked for the Egyptian Exploration Fund as a tracer, copying
drawings and hieroglyphics from different tombs within the Valley of the Kings.
His drawings of ancient Egyptian art included owls, ducks, falcons, dogs, and
people. He worked during the day and slept in the caves at night. He was soon
promoted to Principal Artist.

Carter learned the skills of excavation and restoration from expert


archaeologists in the field. By the age of 25, Carters knowledge of Egyptology
was recognized. Egyptology is the study of ancient Egypt, including its
language, culture, and history. He was hired to supervise archaeological digs in
Upper Egypt. As a supervisor, he excavated some important tombs, including
that of Queen Hatshepsut. With his next promotion, he became Supervisor of

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Howard Carter: The Real Indiana Jones


Biography

Excavations under Lord Carnarvon, a man who used his wealth to help pay for
the search for tombs in Egypt. This proved to be a valuable partnership.
Together, Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon teamed up to find King Tuts
hidden tomb.

Discovering the Tomb


Howard Carter was convinced that Tuts tomb existed, although it had not yet
been located. Funded by Lord Carnarvon, Carter dug throughout the Valley of
the Kings from 1915 to 1922. All the while, Carter was searching for more
success. He wanted to find Tuts tomb. After seven years of searching, in 1922
Carnarvon decided that it was time for Carter to stop. Carter disagreed. He
convinced Carnarvon to let him work one more season and explore the final
part of a triangular area.

On November 1, 1922, Howard


Carter returned to the Valley of the
Kings to finish his search for King
Tuts tomb. He knew he had to be
close. The needed breakthrough
came on November 4, 1922, just
three days after restarting the
search. Carters assistant found a
small flat area, which turned out to
be the top step of a rock-carved
staircase. These were the steps
leading into King Tuts tomb. No
one had noticed them before. King
Tuts tomb was long-hidden and This photo shows tourists around the modern-day
well-preserved because its entrance to Ramses VIs and Tutankhamens tombs.
Tutankhamens four-room tomb is located below
entrance was buried beneath the Ramses VIs larger tomb.
rubble of another excavated tomb.
Carter immediately telegraphed
Lord Carnarvon and waited for him to arrive. Carnarvon arrived a few weeks
later, and the work resumed.

On November 26, 1922, they uncovered the staircase. They walked through the
first sealed door and were ready to open the second sealed door. Carter
described the moment in his book The Tomb of Tut-ankh-Amen:

Slowly . . . the remains of passage debris that encumbered the lower


part of the doorway were removed . . . With trembling hands I made a
tiny breach in the upper left hand corner. Candle tests were applied as a

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Howard Carter: The Real Indiana Jones


Biography

precaution against possible foul gases, and then, widening the hole a
little, I inserted the candle and peered in . . . At first I could see nothing,
the hot air escaping from the chamber caused the candle flame to
flicker, but presently, as my eyes grew accustomed to the light, details
of the room within emerged slowly from the mist, strange animals,
statues, and goldeverywhere the glint of gold.

A Labor of Love
Howard Carter spent 10 years carefully documenting what he found in the four
chambers of King Tuts tomb. It took Carter a decade to do this work because
there were so many artifacts and because he wanted to be sure his work did not
damage any of the objects. In total, there were 5,398
objects. Carter found hundreds of treasures around
the mummified body itself, including three separate
gold coffins (outer, middle, and inner coffins), the
famous golden mask, a scarab (beetle shape) made
from black resin and inscribed with words from the
Book of the Dead, a pair of gold hands, amulets,
bracelets, and collars. Only one photographer was
allowed in the burial chambers. To supplement the
photographs, Carter completed drawings of many
objects.

In addition, Carter created a unique numbering


system. This helped him keep track of everything he
found and to know where it came from in the tomb.
He published two books, Thoutmsis IV and The
Tomb of Tut-ankh-Amen. However, he died in 1939
King Tuts famous golden mask.
before he could publish his complete findings and
his drawings of King Tuts tomb.

The discovery of Tuts tomb catapulted Howard Carter and King Tut into
stardom. Carter went from a little known artist-turned-archaeologist to a
celebrated expert Egyptologist. Tutankhamen went from a forgotten,
unimportant boy-king to the most recognized of all pharaohs. Carters find also
shed light on one other important part of ancient Egypt: the Pharaohs Curse.
Many people believed Carter was doomed because of this curse. In fact, many
people who worked on the excavation of Tuts tomb did die early deaths. People
expected Carter, who was not healthy as a child, to die a terrible death. Carter,
however, experienced no ill effects of the Pharaohs Curse. In fact, he lived on
for 17 years after discovering King Tuts tomb, until his death at age 66. He

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Howard Carter: The Real Indiana Jones


Biography

dreamed of making more discoverieshe hoped to one day find the tomb of
Alexander the Greatbut he was never able to realize this dream.

After reading the passage, answer the following questions:

1. Why was King Tuts tomb such a valuable archaeological find?


A. It contained the code to translate hieroglyphics to English.
B. King Tut was the most powerful pharaoh of all time.
C. His tomb showed the daily life of commoners in ancient Egypt.
D. It was the most intact, or undisturbed, pharaoh tomb found.

2. Why did Carter feel it was important to work carefully during the
excavation of King Tuts tomb?
A. to not disturb the artifacts
B. to allow the artifacts to gain value
C. to build global interest
D. to appreciate the moment

3. How did Carter prove the Pharaohs Curse wrong?


A. He found an ancient text that said the curse was made up.
B. He died immediately after excavating King Tuts tomb.
C. He lived for 17 years after finding King Tuts tomb.
D. He wrote a book criticizing the curse.

4. Carter had a career as an artist before supervising digs and


excavating King Tuts tomb. How might this background have helped
him with his archaeological work in King Tuts tomb? Use details
from the reading passage in your answer.

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