The legendary discovery of the treasures of Tutankhamun, on November 4, 1922, was not only the triumph of archaeological research in Egypt, but a trigger of the general imagination that brought that remote civilization to the consciousness of the modern world. Tutankhamun, whose untimely death at age 18 is still a mystery, revived 3,200 years after his burial, when hundreds of treasures were extracted from his tomb in the Valley of the Kings, and his name became a general patrimony, such as those of Howard Carter, the English archaeologist who discovered the tomb, and Lord Carnarvon, who provided moral and material support for the operation.
Wood, alabaster and precious stones, ivory and ebony, but mainly gold, much gold, converted into statues and carriages, thrones and stools, floats, scepters and pieces of jewelry. Decorated chests contain many domestic and personal objects of the king. Alabaster vases, wine amphoras, cups and containers for cosmetics illustrate the richness that we could only guess in paintings and reliefs.
Having lost all hope of discovering an intact royal tomb, after the specialists claimed that the Valley of the Kings was exhausted, the discovery of a limestone step on the wadi bed rekindled expectations. One step led to another, and the sixteenth led to a sealed door stamped with Tutankhamun cartridge belts. It was evident that in ancient times thieves entered the tomb; however, it was sealed, so maybe it still contained something, possibly the king's mummy. After years of hard work, Carter introduced the world to Tutankhamun's mummy and all its treasures. An exquisite gold mask and three anthropoid coffins, one inside the other, protected the mummy. The innermost was solid gold. A stone sarcophagus and four golden reliquaries, with religious and magical inscriptions, provided additional protection. The canopic alabaster ark containing the king's internal organs was inside a golden reliquary, decorated with a double frieze of uraeus (cobras). Four goddesses with outstretched arms protected him in all four directions. No one could approach the canopic ark without being challenged by Anubis, the jackal god guardian of the Egyptian tombs. A statue of Anubis on alert was mounted on an ark in the shape of a tomb, so that no one could enter the side enclosure in which many real treasures had been deposited.
In fact, the thieves had entered the tomb twice in antiquity and had taken small but precious objects, such as gold figurines, jewels and aromatic ointments; some were found hiding in the Valley. It is possible that the robbers were apprehended and that the grave was resealed to end their activities. The dignitaries of the necropolis who resealed the tomb must have acted quickly, because the disorder caused by the thieves was evident at the time of the discovery. The excavation of a later and nearby royal tomb (Ramses VI of the 20th dynasty) completely covered the entrance to the tomb, which preserved it from future losses.
The Egyptian government insisted on its right to keep all the findings of the tomb under one roof, in the Cairo Museum. Everything, except the mummy of the king, the stone sarcophagus, one of the anthropoid coffins (which was left in the tomb) and a few objects transferred to the Luxor Museum, is displayed on the second floor of the Cairo Museum.
The rumors about the alleged "curse of Pharaoh" against those who entered his grave lack sustenance. They were shot by the unfortunate death of Lord Carnarvon in Cairo, caused by the bite of an infected mosquito.