What Does the Tomb of Tutankhamun Reveal About Burial Practices and Egyptian Beliefs in the Afterlife During the New Kingdom?

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Tutankhamun was an Egyptian pharaoh who ruled in the New Kingdom in the 18th dynasty. His tomb’s discovery in 1922 by Howard Carter made a significant contribution to the study of Ancient Egypt and in particular, their burial practices and beliefs in the afterlife during the New Kingdom. After numerous thorough investigations and vigorous recordings of Tutankhamun’s tomb have taken place investigators have evidence to believe that the Ancient Egyptians regarded the mummification of the pharaoh as a necessary practice to ensure the preservation of the body to be used again in the afterlife. They stressed the importance of securing the pharaoh’s body in its final resting place. Once these requirements are fulfilled, the Ancient Egyptians believed that the journey of the king in the afterlife can be reassured. Thus, as one of the most important and intact archaeological find of the century, Tutankhamun’s tomb reveals the burial customs and religious beliefs of New Kingdom Egypt. The study and investigation of Tutankhamun’s body along with evidence from his tomb has revealed funerary practices during the New Kingdom of Ancient Egypt. The Ancient Egyptians stressed the importance of the preservation of the Pharaoh’s body that can be used to gain immortality. Thus, mummification was a 70-day complicated preservation technique used to prevent the royal body from decay. This involved the process of embalming and drying the dead body in the belief that the body would be necessary in the Ancient Egyptian afterlife. At first glance, there were large amounts of evidence of black sticky resin and ointment which have been spread throughout the body that have blackened the cloths and parts of the body. These chemicals the Ancient Egyptians used have caused the body to become hard and dry to prevent microbial decay from dampness. Experts have made further analysis on the external

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