Judy Donnelly - Tuts Mummy: Lost...And Found

To Kathy

Tutankhamen is dead! The boy king is dead! The news travels through Egypt. King Tutankhamen (tootonKAHmen) was only

eighteen years old. His wife and family are very sad to lose him. But the Egyptians are glad for their king.

They believe his spirit will travel to a wonderful placethe Land of the Dead.

There the king will do all the things he loved to do when he was alive. He will feast and play games. He will go hunting and fishing. His spirit will be happy forever.

A golden necklace that belonged to the king

A gameboard buried with the king

Tutankhamen will need many things in the Land of the Dead. He will need food and furniture and clothing.He will need games and jewelry. All these things must be buried with him.

Most of all, the king will need his body. The Egyptians believe a spirit cannot live on without its body. So dead bodies are dried out to last forever. They are turned into mummies.

Priests come to the palace. They say prayers for the king. Then they dry out the kings body. They use a special kind of salt called natron. It takes many days. The mummy is wrapped in yards of fine cloth. More than one hundred jewels and charms are tucked in the folds. The charms will keep evil spirits away from the king.

It takes seventy days to make a mummy. But finally the mummy is ready.

Now it is time for the funeral. It is time for the kings spirit to travel to the Land of the Dead.

Tutankhamens mummy must be kept in a very safe place. At one time Egyptian kings were buried in giant pyramids. But robbers broke into all of them. They stole the treasure. So Tutankhamen will be buried in a secret underground tomb.

The kings funeral begins. A long parade walks slowly to the Nile River. The kings gold coffin shines in the sun.

The young queen walks nearby. She prays aloud.

The Egyptians believe some gods take the shape of animals. So there are priests in leopard skins and animal masks. They chant and sing. One priest wears the mask of a dog. He is supposed to be Anubis, the god of mummies.

Women cry and tear at their clothing. They are showing how sad they are to lose their king.

Behind them come hundreds of servants. They carry the kings treasure. They carry chests of clothes and jewels. They bring weapons and chariots. They carry baskets of flowers and food and wine.

The servants also bring hundreds of tiny statues. These statues are supposed to turn into magic servants in the Land of the Dead. There they will serve the king.

Beautiful boats carry the people and the treasure across the river. They are going to a rocky, deserted valley.

The kings coffin is put onto a kind of sled. It is pulled up a rocky path.

The people follow behind. It is hot and dusty. They walk for miles. Finally they reach the secret entrance to the valley. Here is the royal graveyard. Priests guard it day and night.

An opening has been cut into the rocky ground. A fire burns beside it. This is Tutankhamens secret tomb.

The priests pray. They touch the mouth, eyes, and ears on the mummy. Now the kings spirit can speak and see and hear.

The mummy is put in the coffin and carried inside the tomb. With it goes all the kings treasure.