Sociological Analysis: The Mysterious Death of King Tutankhamun

This essay explores the potential causes of King Tutankhamun's death, a significant event in the 18th dynasty of the New Kingdom in ancient Egypt. It delves into various conjectures and assumptions surrounding his demise, considering factors such as family illness, pathologies like Kohler disease II, and potential political motivations involving Horemheb. The analysis draws upon studies by Riggs (2017) and Fagan (2016) to examine the evidence and conflicting theories. The essay concludes that while a definitive explanation for Tutankhamun's death remains elusive due to the passage of time and potential historical obfuscation, his establishment of certain dynamics may have inadvertently contributed to his untimely demise.

Running head: SOCIOLOGY
SOCIOLOGY
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1SOCIOLOGY
Introduction
The 18th dynasty of the New Kingdom had been recognized as one of the most dynamic
royal houses of ancient Egypt. Such a dynasty primarily involved the reign of Tutankhamun thus
had been the most recognizable of all pharaohs regardless of his brief tenure. The following
paper will aim to explore the probable cause of Tutankhamen’s demise.
Discussion
Studies of Riggs (2017) have stated that as Tutankhamun died at a young age with no
subsequent heirs, there have been observed several conjectures and assumptions concerning his
illness which may have its incidence in his family thus leading to his cause of death. However
according to authors, researchers found that a number of anonymous mummies or individuals
with supposed identities were able to be identified by name including KV35EL distinguished as
mother of pharaoh Akhenaton and grandmother of Tutankhamen.
Meanwhile, studies of Fagan (2016) have stated that extensive pathologies along with
Kohler disease II, a bone disorder had been medically analysed in Tutankhamun which showed
no specific cause of death. However, according to Fagan (2016), Tut’s deputy known as
Horemheb may have been liable for Tutankhamen’s demise. It has been evaluated from
Horemheb’s actions of eradicating any sacred signs of Akhenaten that Horemheb strategized to
refurbish Egypt to its conventional ways.
Conclusion

2SOCIOLOGY
Hence to conclude, if King Tutankhamun had been murdered it would nearly be
unfeasible to explain because of many years of tarnish. Moreover, it can be claimed that
Tutankhamun by establishing several dynamics could have lead to his untimely demise.

3SOCIOLOGY
References
Fagan, B. (2016). Lord and Pharaoh: Carnarvon and the Search for Tutankhamun. Routledge.
Riggs, C. (2017). Shouldering the past: Photography, archaeology, and collective effort at the
tomb of Tutankhamun. History of Science, 55(3), 336-363.