ASL King Tut for Kids

What would it be like to be a king or queen as a kid? That's what life was like for King Tutankhamun, or King Tut! He was a pharaoh of ancient Egypt in the 1300s BCE. Historians believe he became the pharaoh, or king, of Egypt around the age of nine. And his reign was pretty short, lasting only about 10 years.Show more

The ancient Egyptians were very religious and believed their pharaohs were earthly gods who communicated with the other gods. Their beliefs focused a lot on the afterlife, and the people believed people passed through to the afterlife in the same form as when they were alive. They developed burial processes to preserve the body for its afterlife. This process is known as mummification.

King Tut was mummified and buried in a beautiful tomb like any other pharaoh. Tombs included other items the pharaoh might need in addition to just the body, such as food, jewelry, weapons, art, and even pets. The reason we know so much about King Tut specifically is that archaeologists who discovered his tomb in 1922 found the tomb completely untouched. There were over 5,000 artifacts! Because the items included in a tomb were personal items, the archaeologists studied the artifacts to recreate King Tut's life!

The boy king died pretty young at about 18 or 19 years old. There are several theories. Some historians believe he was murdered by his advisors who wanted to seize his power. Others think his own family killed him. Thanks to modern DNA testing and physical evidence, however, most scientists believe that the young pharaoh died because of poor health.