Scientist breaks ‘mummy’s curse’

Almost 80 years since the dreaded mummy’s curse was associated with the opening of the Egyptian Pharaoh Tutankhamen’s tomb, an Australian scientist has disproved the legend, says this week’s issue of the British Medical Journal.

Twenty-five westerners were present at the breach of sacred seals in a previously undisturbed area of the young Pharaoh’s tomb in Egypt in 1923, thus exposing them to the curse, according to the writings of Howard Carter, the archaeologist who discovered the tomb.

Nineteen others were involved in the project who were not present during the excavation. The main financier of the dig, Lord Carnarvon, died weeks after the discovery.

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Mark Nelson of Monash University in Australia went back to the original diaries of Carter.

In the 25 people exposed to the curse, the average age at death was 70 years compared with 75 in those not exposed.