What really killed the people in Howard Carter's group after they opened King Tut's tomb? Was it?

Question

something real, (fungus, bacteria, etc.), or was the whole story
completely overblown?

One more thing...is there documentation?

I thought of something else---vandals had been in there several times over the centuries, yet we don't hear if that sort of
thing happened to them.


Maybe others never bothered to write about it(?)...I'm not totally sure!

Answer 1

Here is the whole story-


Curse of the Pharaohs
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The Curse of the Pharaohs refers to the belief that any person who disturbs the mummy of an Ancient Egyptian pharaoh is placed under a curse whereby they will shortly die. Many tombs of pharaohs have curses written on or around them, warning against entering.

The belief was brought to many people's attention due to the deaths of some members of the team of Howard Carter, who opened the tomb of Tutankhamun (KV62) in 1922, launching the modern era of Egyptology. The first of these "mysterious" deaths was that of Lord Carnarvon. He had been bitten by a mosquito, and later slashed the bite accidentally while shaving. It became infected and blood poisoning resulted. This was before antibiotics, thus little could be done and the aristocratic archeologist died. It should be noted, however, that there was nothing mysterious about Carnarvon's death. He had been in frail health for years since a serious car accident. His doctors had recommended that he go to Egypt because the warm climate would benefit his fragile health. Several others directly or indirectly involved with the tomb of Tutankhamun followed the Earl in death. Skeptics pointed out that many, many others who visited the tomb or helped to discover it lived long and healthy lives. A study showed that of the 58 people who were present when the tomb and sarcophagus were opened, only eight died within a dozen years. All the others were still alive, including Howard Carter who died peacefully at the age of 64 in 1939.

Some have speculated that deadly fungus could have grown in the enclosed tombs and been released when they were open to the air. Arthur Conan Doyle, author of the Sherlock Holmes mysteries, favoured this idea, and speculated that the mold had been placed deliberately to punish grave robbers. A newspaper report printed following Carnarvon's death is also believed to have been responsible for the wording of the curse most frequently associated with Tutankhamun – "Death shall come on swift wings to him who disturbs the peace of the King" – a phrase which does not actually appear among the hieroglyphs in KV62.

While there is no evidence that such pathogens killed Lord Carnarvon, there is no doubt that dangerous materials can accumulate in old tombs. Recent studies of newly opened ancient Egyptian tombs that had not been exposed to modern contaminants found pathogenic bacteria of the Staphylococcus and Pseudomonas genera, and the moulds Aspergillus niger and Aspergillus flavus. Additionally, newly opened tombs often become roosts for bats, and bat guano may harbour histoplasmosis. However, at the concentrations typically found, these pathogens are generally only dangerous to persons with weakened immune systems. Air samples taken from inside an unopened sarcophagus through a drilled hole showed high levels of ammonia, formaldehyde and hydrogen sulfide; these gases are all toxic, but at dangerous concentrations are easily detected by their strong odours. [1]

Partly as a result, many modern archaeologists wear protective clothing when opening long-closed burial chambers.

Answer 2

historical Egypt has fascinated me because of the fact that i grew to become right into a youthful baby. i could get the sensation that I merely had to have been there in some lifetime. The final museum demonstrate I attended grew to become into "Egypt, city of The Nile" on the Seattle Asian paintings Museum in 1998. My oldest son and his spouse liked the demonstrate plenty that they went back to work out it a 2d time. in certainly one of my collections, I nevertheless have the tickets for "The Treasures of Tutankhamun", la, June 2d, 1978. (There are adjustments on the spelling. One is Tutankhamen) i did no longer understand that it grew to become into Carter's birthday on the instant. it is likewise my youngest son's birthday.

Answer 3

it was a type of lethal bacteria that only activated after the doors were sealed for a while and moisure collected in there. when the people went in there after all those years they touched the walls and the bacteria got on their hands so then they died.