King Tut Unwrapped
United Kingdom. – World-renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass leads an unprecedented forensic investigation into the life and times of King Tut that reveals for the first time the identity of Tut’s parents and grandparents, his cause of death and new details of his reign in a two-night UK premiere, King Tut Unwrapped, airing on Discovery Channel Wednesday, March 3rd at 9pm and Thursday, March 4th at 9pm (For when to watch in your region, please see below).
Papers published on Wednesday, February 17th 2010 in The Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) detail the medical and archeological research conducted by an international team of field experts.
On Wednesday, 3rd March at 9pm part one of King Tut Unwrapped follows the first ever DNA extraction from Tutankhamun’s mummy, setting into motion a series of cross-reference studies to determine the Boy King’s family.
Part two, on Thursday, 4th March at 9pm, uses the new evidence from Tutankhamun’s mummy to conclude what caused his death and how this information sheds new light on his reign as a military, religious and political leader.
A new chapter in Egyptology
“Discovery is honored once again to work with Dr. Zahi Hawass. The life and death of King Tut continues to hold a special power and mystery for people all over the world. Dr. Hawass’ trailblazing leadership has successfully fused traditional, methodical archeology with cutting-edge, advanced forensics. This is a new chapter in Egyptology firmly establishing Cairo as a centre for innovation and scholarship,” said Dan Korn, Senior Vice President Programming, Discovery Networks UK.
The road to understanding the Tut family tree begins with his parents. Based on historical records and previous digs, Dr. Hawass determines Tutankhamun’s father could be one of three great Egyptian pharaohs: the successful and popular ninth pharaoh of the 18th Dynasty Amenhotep III; the radical and controversial Akhenaton, who moved Egypt into the age of monotheism or the little-known Smenkhare who reigned just prior to Tutankhamun’s rule.
To solve this mystery, the team tests Tutankhamun’s DNA against the mummies of the three candidates.
When British archaeologist Howard Carter discovered the riches of King Tut’s tomb in 1922, nobody predicted that almost a century later the ancient chamber would be the site for the cutting edge of Egyptology.
DNA extracted for the first time
King Tut Unwrapped details the process as researchers successfully extract DNA for the first time from Tutankhamun’s mummy.
Specimens are now ready for testing and the team assembled at Discovery Channel’s DNA lab at the Cairo Museum faces the challenge to connect the forensic dots.
In order to test the ancient DNA, Assistant Professor Dr. Carsten M. Pusch of the University of Tübingen’s Institute of Anthropology and Human Genetics in Tubingen, Germany and Professor Albert Zink of the EURAC-Institute for Mummies and the Iceman in Bolzano, Italy, work with Dr. Yehia Zakaria Gad of the Department of Medical Molecular Genetics at Cairo’s National Research Center to perform, for the first time, microsatellite-based DNA-fingerprinting on familial Egyptian mummies.
With successful DNA sequencing of Tutankhamun’s father, Hawass is able to pursue leads that will eventually point to Tutankhamun’s mother and grandparents.
KING TUT UNWRAPPED – ON TV
UK – 3 and 4 March at 9pm
Latin America - 28 February to 01 March
Germany – 07 March (TBD)
EMEA – May
Asia – April to July (varies per territory)
SEA – 18 and 25 April
China - 03 and 10 May
ANZ – 06 June
Japan – 14 and 21 June
Taiwan – Early July
Source: Discobery.com
Mystery of King Tut’s short life and death reveale
The Assassination Of King Tut
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3825027364813108547
