Egyptian and German scientists are to unveil on Wednesday the results of a two-year study into the mummy of ancient Egypt's King Tutankhamun, perhaps the country's most famous and mysterious king, DPA reported.
The life and death of "the boy pharaoh," whose golden mask ranks after only the Giza Pyramids as the most-recognized symbol of ancient Egypt, have been shrouded in mystery for thousands of years.
Some had speculated that Tutankhamun had been murdered at the age of 19 by a blow to the back of his head, poisoned, or had died when fat was released into his bloodstream after he broke his leg.
But after two years of painstaking DNA and radiological tests in a 5-million-dollar lab built in the Egyptian Museum expressly for the purpose, Egyptian and German archaeologists working under the supervision of Egypt's antiquities chief, Zahi Hawass, have concluded that a combination of hereditary bone disease and malaria likely killed the king.
The scientists, in a study published by the Journal of the American Medical Association on Wednesday, suggested that poor blood supply and a bone disorder known as Kohler disease II might have weakened the king and left him unable to fight off the malaria.
The team suggested that the condition, combined with a club foot, could explain walking sticks, seeds and herbs believed to have been used as medicine found among the priceless treasures in his tomb.
Several of the 16 other royal mummies examined in the study, many of them from Tutankhamun's family, suffered from the same afflictions, Hawass' team found.
DNA analysis of the 16 mummies also clarified family relationships among them, only three of whose identities were clear before the study.
The boy king, who took the throne at age 9, has fascinated Egyptologists and the general public since his mummy and the treasures hidden in his intact tomb were unearthed in 1922.
Scientists found that though he probably sired at least two children, he died after a nine-year reign in 1324 BC and left no heirs, bringing an end to one of the most powerful Pharaonic ruling houses, the 18th dynasty of the New Kingdom.
Egyptologists and other researchers have debated the causes of his death as well as the truth behind his lineage for almost a century.
Tests on DNA found in tissue from Tutankhamun's mummy found no signs of gynecomastia, a condition that results in excessive breast development in males, or the hereditary disorder Marfan syndrome, evidenced by long limbs and heart problems.
Some scientists had suggested these might account for the androgynous portrayals Tutankhamun and other members of his royal family on artifacts.
Hawass' team suggested that the depictions were, rather, stylized to reflect the aesthetic or religious sensibilities of the royal court at time.
"Ancient Egyptian kings typically had themselves and their families represented in an idealized fashion," they wrote.
The new study also identifies the mummies of Tutankhamun's grandmother, Tiye, and his father, Akhenaten.
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