The Curse of Tut’s Trumpets
December 4, 2021
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By: Allie Little
"Cursed be those who disturb the rest of a Pharaoh. They that shall break the seal of this tomb shall meet death by disease that no doctor can diagnose."
For nearly a century now, the Curse of the Pharaohs was used by many to explain certain strange and unfortunate occurrences. After the discovery of King Tutankhuman’s tomb in 1922, archeologist Howard Carter and his team found themselves analyzed by onlookers for evidence of this supposed curse. Beginning with the death of Carter’s pet bird at the fault of a cobra, many wondered if the opening and further pillaging of this ancient burial place had released a curse upon these men. While the ‘curse of King Tut’ is referenced enough to have movies and tv shows based on it, rarely do people associate the curse with specific artifacts found during the excavation. However, the notable exceptions to this are a couple of supposedly cursed instruments of destruction.
Among the many artifacts found in King Tutankhuman’s tomb, two metal, trumpet-like instruments are those most associated with the Curse of the Pharaohs: one of silver and the other of copper or bronze. Horns and other loud musical instruments have a long and storied history in times of conflict. They have often been used to communicate clearly over the chaos and confusion of battle, but could it be possible that these trumpets have a more disastrous effect? Historians believe that these trumpets were used by the Pharaoh to call his fighters into battle.
After their discovery, these instruments found a home at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo with many other treasures of King Tut. Although museums are viewed as a safe resting place for unearthed items, these trumpets had anything but an easy stay in their new home. The bronze trumpet was among many other artifacts that were stolen from the museum after being on display for less than 20 years. Lucky for history, this and many other artifacts were later found in a bag on the Egyptian Metro. In the spring of 1939, the BBC revealed their intention to perform a live broadcast of the trumpets playing for the first time in over 3,000 years. After this announcement, concern amongst the British public began to grow, as information of the Curse of the Pharaohs spread throughout the world. Despite the nerves of many, a substantial number of people were curious and cautiously excited to hear how 3,000 year old instruments would sound to the modern equivalent--or they wanted to see if they could hear the curse through the airwaves. Either way, 150 million listeners tuned in for the broadcast hoping to hear something spectacular.
It is because of this broadcast that these instruments have the nickname of “Tut’s Trumpets of War.” As previously stated, this broadcast aired in the Spring of 1939. Subsequently,in September 1939, the German military, under instruction by Adolf Hitler, invaded Poland and officially began the Second World War. Because these instruments were once used to call for battle in Ancient Egypt, the public began to link the playing of the trumpets to the world-stopping conflicts spreading throughout Europe at the time. After all, they were found in King Tut’s burial place, which was supposed to be protected by the Curse of the Pharaohs -- a curse that brought illness, death and disease to all those who broke the seal of the tomb.
Suspicions continued to rise as more stories began to emerge, one story in particular revealing that during a rehearsal for the broadcast, the silver trumpet fell to the ground and shattered.Apparently, a performer tried to insert a modern mouthpiece onto the ancient instrument and the bell at the bottom came off entirely. Despite being made of melted down silver, the fallen half shattered like glass after striking the ground. Although the shattering was later explained as being caused by the silver crystallizing after the thousands of dormant years in the tomb, the explanation did nothing to prevent panic from those in the room who attempted to gather every piece of silver they could find strewn across the floor. This incident also happened while the Egyptian King Farouk visited the studio. Upon hearing news of this disaster, Alfred Lucas, who was an original member of the team that found the tomb in 1922, collapsed and needed to be hospitalized.
Talk of a curse was further amplified from stories from the day of the broadcast. While driving to the studio, the broadcast engineer’s car was nearly run off the road by a runaway horse and carriage. When he finally arrived at the studio, the power had gone out in the entire building. Lanterns were used to establish the connection to the BBC host in London, and perform one last rehearsal. After final checks and nearing five minutes until the start of the broadcast, the few lanterns they were using as light went out. Having to think on their feet, the men in the room lit candles and held it up to the music score for the performer to see. It was a broadcast that would go on to live in history: 150 million people listening to a man play two ancient trumpets, in the dark using only candlelight, one having previously been in pieces. The amount of bad luck was unexplainable to some, while others found a very easy explanation in the Curse of the Pharaohs.
The pattern of conflicts following the playing of these trumpets doesn’t stop with the beginning of World War II in 1939. Other examples can be found throughout the years: The silver trumpet was played again in 1967 before a conflict erupted between Egypt and Israel, known as the Six-Day War and in 1990 just before the start of the Gulf War. Recently, it was played in 2011 with the Egyptian Revolution following a week later.
Despite common belief, there was no curse found inscripted on the tomb of King Tutankhuman. In fact, many of the famous curses were mistranslations of quite benign statements of protection. For example, something stating that Anubis would ‘prevent the sand from blocking the secret chamber’ was changed for newspapers to be, ‘I will kill all of those who cross the threshold.’ Even the commonly referenced ‘Curse of the Pharaohs’ has unclear origins. One thing most Egyptologists agree on is the lack of such a curse found on, in, or around King Tut’s Tomb. If the ‘Curse of the Pharaohs’ was actually found written anywhere, it was most likely found somewhere in the opening of the Valley of the Kings, rather than on the most famous tomb in history.
This then begs the question: are these trumpets truly cursed, or does war and destruction follow humans instead? Historians vowed that these trumpets are never to be played again, due to their fragility and historical significance, so hopefully, we never have to know.
Want to learn more about the history of Egypt? Visit our Egypt Exhibit on the first floor of the museum today!
Work Cited:
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-13092827
https://www.classicfm.com/discover-music/king-tutankhamun-trumpet-oldest-in-existence/
https://www.penn.museum/sites/expedition/the-curse-of-the-curse-of-the-pharaohs/
