The Valley of the Kings · The Cursed Tomb Passage

The Valley of the Kings holds dozens of pharaohs of the New Kingdom; the tomb passages were cut into the rock, and the walls carry the Book of the Dead: spells and gateways to guide the dead.

In 1922 the tomb of Tutankhamun was found, and Lord Carnarvon, who took part in the excavation, died a few months later of an infection from an insect bite; the newspapers wrote it up as “the curse of the pharaoh” and it spread around the world overnight. Since then the “mummy’s curse” has been the starting point of modern paranormal culture.

Photography and touching are not allowed in the passages now. The guides add one remark: most of those who died back then were no longer young.

Historical Mysteries / Luxor · Egypt / 1550 BC