November 26, 1922. After a decade of obsessive searching, the archaeologist Howard Carter and his patron, the Earl of Carnarvonthey are finally before the Tutankhamun’s sarcophagus. In the antechamber, next to the mummy, dressed as befitting a great governor, a terrifying inscription could be read on clay: “Death will strike those who disturb the peace of Pharaoh.” At that time, the superstition of the press and some Egyptians conflicts with the scientific mind of archaeologists, who do not attach importance to it. However, three dozen deaths spread fear and set the first lines of a horror story: the Curse of Tutankhamun.
It may seem like the beginning of a movie, but this is a totally true story. Just 24 hours after the opening of the tomb, a wealthy American businessman, George Jay Goulddied from a pneumonia. Like other magnates of the time, he had wanted to be present at that event that would go down in history, but he did not know that he would become the first victim of Tutankhamen’s curse. After him they died Egyptologists, photographers, X-ray technicians and some curious. They all had in common that they were present when the tomb of Pharaoh was opened. many died of pneumoniasome from an infection in the blood, called septicemia. There were also deaths from insect bites and falls.
One of the last to fall prey to the pharaoh’s curse was the Count of Carnavaron himself, who appeared dead five months later in an Egyptian hotel room. An infection in a wound on his cheek seemed to be the cause. His brother and his wife also died shortly after. But what happened to them? Did the curse of Tutankhamen really exist?
Tutankhamun’s curse strikes again
The solution to the enigma of Tutankhamen’s curse came 50 years later. In 1973, another team of archaeologists met in Krakow to open the tomb of Casimir IV, who was king of Poland in the 15th century. There were twelve scientists involved and ten of them died shortly after, from infections or heart attacks.
One of the two survivors was the microbiologist Boleslaw Smyk. This, when the king’s wooden coffin was opened, he observed clear signs of putrefaction, so he had an idea. What if his companions had died from infection with some microorganism that had survived in the coffin all that time? What’s more, what if that was also the explanation for Tutankhamen’s curse?
He got down to work to investigate possible culprits, until he found Aspergillus flavus. It’s about a saprophytic fungus. That is, it feeds on decaying material, such as wood. This makes him a great candidate. But the thing does not stop there. It is also known that he lives in closed, dark spaces with a moderate and stable temperature. A sarcophagus, therefore, would be her ideal home. And there are still more! As is normal in fungi, it reproduces through spores, that can be inhaled and remain dormant in the lungs until they cause in immunosuppressed people a disease called aspergillosissimilar to pneumonia.
This would explain why many of the deaths were from pneumonia. And it would fit with the passing of the Earl of Carnarvon. The deadly infection was initially thought to be caused by a shaving cut over a mosquito bite. But he was a person with previous health problems, whose weakened immune system could not resist aspergillosis.
Now, is it that they were all immunocompromised? The truth is that no. But the Polish microbiologist also had answers to this question. Apparently, in the absence of oxygen, the fungus can remain dormant, but increasing its virulence, waiting to recover when it is oxygenated again, which would happen when open the burial chamber.
None of this is certain
Many microbiologists support Smyk’s theories. However, there are also scientists who believe that there are not so many deaths to speak of the curse of Tutankhamen.
In fact, in 2002 a study was published in which the deaths of people who were at the opening of the tomb were compared with others who, even being in the vicinity of the place, did not witness it. Thus, it was observed that, on average, those present in the tomb died with 70 yearswhile the unexposed died with 75. It is not relevant and it is a fairly high age, since we are talking about the 20s of the last century.
In addition, the truth is that, of the 58 people who were present when the tomb was opened, only 8 died in the following 12 years. blame the curse of tutankhamen of deaths that occurred more than a decade later is too much. But even the ones that happened soon after could be chance. Let’s not forget that there were some deaths from falls and that there is no fungus that can explain it. Yes, it would be explained by the fear of a possible curse that would lead them to walk distractedly down the stairs.
Does Tutankhamen’s curse continue?
In 2019, the filmmaker and Egyptologist Ramy Romany said to The Jordan Harbinger Show who nearly died after opening a grave while filming for a Discovery Channel television show. Shortly after, at the hotel, her fever spiked, up to 42°C, and she started coughing up blood.
Fortunately, recovered with antibiotic treatmentbut never found out what happened to him. If the antibiotics worked, it appears that bacteria were involved. But could they be opportunistic bacteria that took advantage of the fungal infection? Or was it just a coincidence? We do not know; but, just in case, it doesn’t hurt to use personal protective equipment (PPE) before opening an ancient grave. Some microorganisms can become the worst curse.