Tag Archives: Tutankhamun

howard carter and the treasure of tutankhamun’s tomb (volume 4, episode 6) part one

After searching the Valley of the Kings for decades, for a tomb that every other expert in Egyptology declared nonexistent, Howard Carter eventually discovered the most important archeological find of the 20th century.

Howard Carter

From the age of 17, Englishman Howard Carter worked in Egypt in the field of archeology.  In the late nineteenth century with color photography as yet unavailable Carter was Initially hired as an artist in October of 1891 to paint and sketch the discoveries of the archeological excavations of the period.  Eventually trained as an Egyptologist, Carter quickly became prominent and by the age of 25 was named an inspector general of the Egyptian Antiquities Service.

George Herbert, the 5th Earl of Carnarvon

George Herbert, the 5th Earl of Carnarvon.  The Earl initially spent time in Egypt to escape the damp British climate which exacerbated a lung condition.  He became interested in archeology but quickly recognized that as an amateur he needed to partner with an expert in the field.  Initially, this relationship was fruitful and Carter’s excavations near Luxor produced many items of value and interest.

The funeral mask of Tutankhamun

The funeral mask of Tutankhamen, one of the most remarkable objects ever discovered on the planet Earth

Facial detail from the solid gold, eight hundred pound third coffin

After Carter determined how to separate the second coffin from the third and last coffin shell, he was confronted by an object, similar in design to the first two but constructed entirely of gold.  It weighed over eight hundred pounds and contained the mummy itself.  Inlaid semi precious materials colorfully delineated the facial features, ceremonial beard and vulture and cobra festooned crown of Tutankhamun.

Carnarvon, his daughter and Howard Carter at the excavation site

“At last, have made wonderful discovery in Valley; a magnificent tomb with seals intact; recovered same for your arrival; congratulations.”

 In anticipation of accessing the tomb upon Carnarvon’s arrival, Carter completely reburied the staircase and placed giant boulders on top of the location.  Knowing that information about his discovery undoubtedly would reach all sorts of entities intent on exploiting such a potential treasure, armed guards were also stationed at the location.  Carter went to Alexandria, awaiting Carnarvon’s arrival and by November 23rd both Carnarvon and his daughter arrived back in Egypt.

 

Howard Carter and the treasure of tutankhamun’s tomb (Volume 4, episode 6) Part Two

After searching the Valley of the Kings for decades, for a tomb that every other expert in Egyptology declared nonexistent, Howard Carter eventually discovered the most important archeological find of the 20th century.

Anubis, God of the Dead
Alabaster ceremonial cup from the tomb of Tutankhamen
The Lotus Bust of Tutankhamen, which raised suspicion about Carter’s methodology
Detail from the second wooden coffin
The Carnarvon ancestral home, Highclere castle aka as Downton Abbey

Howard carter and the Treasure of Tutankhamun’s tomb (Volume 4, episode 6) Book and Music information

The books used to comprise this podcast include:

“The Discovery of the Tomb of Tutankhamun,” by Howard Carter and A.C. Mace.

“The Shadow King,” by Jo Marchant

“The Complete Tutankhamun,” by Nicholas Reeves.

The part one intro is, “Islabonita,” by An Jone, the part one outro is, “Six Seasons,” by the Unicorn Heads. The part two intro is, “Bohemian Beach,” by Chris Haugen and the outro is, “Time to spare,” by An Jone.

Fletcher Christian, William Bligh and the mutiny on the Bounty (volume 4, episode 5) Part Two

Fletcher Christian And William Bligh are permanently linked to the Mutiny on the Bounty. Here is the true story of this infamous incident.

Wreck of the HMS Pandora

The Pandora, towing a launch constructed by the mutineers during their stint on Tahiti, reached the vicinity of the Great Barrier Reef in late August. Whether he was careless or stupidly sailing in the dark, Edwards struck a reef on the 29th, the collision so severe that the ship took on four feet of water in five minutes.  Throughout the night, desperate efforts were made to save the vessel and three of the men classified by Bligh as blameless in the mutiny, Coleman, McIntosh and Norman were let out of the enclosure.  They helped with attempts to pump water out of the ship to no avail.  The other trapped mutineers, hearing sounds of the crew abandoning ship, attempted to get out of their manacles and screamed for help.  Only the last minute personal intervention of a crew member allowed any of the remaining eleven prisoners to escape. 

Fletcher Christian’s son, Thursday October Christian

The two ships, the HMS Briton and the HMS Tagus, were searching for the American ship USS Essex.  This American raider, not to be confused with the whaler Essex of Moby Dick fame, was in the process of terrorizing British merchant and whaling ships in the region to the extent that the Royal Navy was forced to deploy several warships to put a stop to this War of 1812 US rampage.  On September 17, 1814, as the two ships and their captains Sit Thomas Staines and Philip Pipon puzzled over the unidentified rock in front of them, they could see some natives launching their canoes into the surf.  Like Folger before them, they were stunned when the canoe pulled alongside the boat and an occupant who turned out to be Thursday October Christian, now 24 years old, hailed them in English.  He and another teenager, George Young, the son of Bounty mutineer, Edward Young came on board and were asked to join the officers for a meal. Dressed in minimal Polynesian garb, Fletcher Christian’s son further astonished and ingratiated himself by breaking into Christian prayer before dinner was served.

Pitcairn Island

It is believed that in Bligh’s library, Christian stumbled upon a 1773 journal written by English naval explorer Philip Carteret which gave the location of an obscure island, Pitcairn Island.  Almost four months after leaving Tahiti, the Bounty arrived at the supposed location of Pitcairn but there was nothing there.  Figuring that Carteret may have made a navigational error, Christian sailed along the same latitude, assuming that the longitude was incorrect.  Within days, the rocky, frequently inaccessible and uninhabited island was sighted, on January 15, 1790, approximately 190 miles east of Carteret’s faulty designation.

The epic remake of The Mutiny Of The Bounty, a notorious box office flop
The replica of the Bounty, built for the 1962 film, it sank off of North Carolina, during Hurricane Sandy