Tutankhamun [antikvár]

preface The superlatives applied to Howard Carter and the momentous discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun, piled up and reiterated over the years since 1922, should have dulled the responses of most people In fact, interest in the tomb is perhaps greater today than at any time since the early years of the discovery. When the tomb was found in November 1922, the news broke with unexpected force on a world public which seeived to be only too ready to enjoy the thrill and drama of what was happening in distant Luxor. It was not as if there had been no archaeological discoveries of importance in the few years since the Hirst World War: but nothing could compete with tiw tantalizing revelation of a tomb entrance, blocked and sealed with the promise of untold treasure beyond. Carter himself was notât all sanguine: he had received disappointments in the past when expected success turned to naught Now to discover a new tomb in the Valley of the Kings was in itself a dramatic achievement: to discover one wltich was still furnished with a huge quantity of remarkable objects, and an intact coffin and burial was almost too much to expect The representatives of the world press descended on Luxor like vultures on a dying prey. Every stage in the clearance of the tomb was watched with dose attention: every day brought new insights into ancient Egyptian life and death