Unlucky for some
MARION MCMULLEN looks at famous curses as we mark the centenary of the discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb
THE discovery of Tutankhamun’s tomb 100 years ago was quickly followed by reports that it came with a deadly curse attached for anyone who dared disturb the 3,000 year sleep of the pharaoh.
Howard Carter and the Earl of Carnarvon became the first men to see inside the tomb in Egypt’s Valley Of The Kings in November, 1922 and it was hailed as one of the greatest archaeological finds in history.
There was a chariot, jewellery, statues, weapons, the golden mummy of the boy pharaoh and, of course, the pesky curse.
Sherlock Holmes writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle believed the curse was a ploy circulated by Howard Carter to keep curious tourists and thieves from tramping their way to the see the burial site.
Carter noted: “We were totally unprepared for such a large quantity of visitors and, in view of the preservation of the antiquities they being very crowded and in poor preservation, we were obliged to refuse admission until some preparation was made to safeguard the objects.”
However, the untimely deaths over the following years of several people involved in the expedition have been blamed on the curse.
Carter said when the inner chamber of the tomb was first discovered: “I think at the moment we did not even want to break the seal, for a feeling of intrusion had descended heavily upon us. We felt we were in the presence of the dead King.”
He finally broke through a mud brick wall to find the intact resting place of the boy king surrounded by 5,000 artefacts.
He told Lord Carnarvon, who financed the expedition, he could see “beautiful things” but Carnarvon himself died a year after the tomb was opened after being bitten on the cheek by a mosquito.
Team member Arthur Mace is said to have died of arsenic poisoning in 1928 and Carter’s secretary Richard Bethell is believed to have died smothered in his bed in 1929.
Carter himself later tried to play down the curse and lived until he was 64.
But he died alone of Hodgkin’s disease at his London flat. Tutankhamun, who ascended to the throne as a child in 1333BC, was also frail and suffered numerous health complaints. His tomb contained 130 walking sticks, suggesting he was unable to walk unaided. Tut’s Curse is among several famous curses that have been causing trouble down the years. Legend has it that the 45.52 carat Hope Diamond was prised from the eye of an Indian goddess and it is supposed to bring bad luck to anyone who owns it. One previous owner, the American socialite Evalyn Walsh Mclean, bought it in 1912. Tragedy struck many times during her life. Her eldest son was killed in a car accident aged nine, and her daughter died of a drug overdose at 25. Newspapers were reporting back in 1908 on the diamond’s trail of misfortune with one-time owner Jacques Colet dying by suicide and Princess de Lamballe being torn to pieces by a French mob after wearing the jewel. The Hope Diamond is now housed at the Smithsonian in America.
Another famous jewel was also said to invite trouble. The Koh-inoor diamond is part of Britain’s crown jewels but is considered to bring bad luck to anyone who owns it. The first mention of it was in the 14th century and it was kept in the Tower Of London for many years.
The Koh-i-noor, or “mountain of light,” diamond, was set in the Maltese Cross at the front of the crown made for Britain’s late Queen Mother Elizabeth and was seen on her coffin.
The 106-carat diamond was given as a gift to Queen Victoria by an Indian king in the mid-19th century, but the crew bringing the controversial jewel to England suffered an outbreak of cholera outbreak and were then hit by a violent storm.
The curse of the Scottish play began soon after Shakespeare wrote Macbeth, with its power-struggle story of murder, visions and witches.
It is said the Bard used real spells in the play, and as a result a coven of witches at the time is believed to have put a curse on the play for his impertinence. There have been reports of productions plagued by accidents and death ever since.
Laurence Olivier was nearly hit by a falling stage weight in a 1937 production at the Old Vic and Oscar winner Charlton Heston suffered burns while playing the role in Bermuda in 1957.
Lawrence Of Arabia star Peter O’toole chose Macbeth to mark his return to the stage after 17 years and the 1980 production at the Old Vic was a sell-out. The actor insisted everyone should only call it The Scottish Play backstage, but that did not stop it becoming one of the biggest flops of his career.
He dismissed the savaging by the critics saying: “The reviews will be fish and chips paper tomorrow.”