圖坦卡蒙的秘密

by Jennie Cohen

三千年前，圖坦卡蒙僅僅統(tǒng)治了古埃及十年，在歷史上并不出名。然而三千年后，英國人霍華德·卡特（Howard Carter）在圖坦卡蒙墓穴內(nèi)挖掘出近五千件珍貴陪葬品，震驚了西方世界。由于幾個(gè)最早進(jìn)入墳?zāi)沟娜送蝗凰劳?，被媒體大肆渲染成“法老的詛咒”，圖坦卡蒙的名字在西方更為家喻戶曉。近年來，研究人員對(duì)圖坦卡蒙做了大量分析，破解了很多關(guān)于這位法老的秘密，讓我們一起看看背后的真相吧。（CE：Teens分別在2008年2月號(hào)和2011年5月號(hào)的“探索區(qū)”介紹過圖坦卡蒙，有興趣的同學(xué)可以查閱。）

Ninety years ago， the British archaeologist[考古學(xué)家] Howard Carter opened the sealed doorway to the treasure-filled burial chamber[房間] of Tutankhamen in Egypts Valley of the Kings. King Tuts tomb and the riches it contained would fuel a worldwide obsession[著魔] with ancient Egypt and the long-dead ruler， who reigned[統(tǒng)治] for just one decade some 3，300 years ago. Follow us to explore five surprising facts about the teenage pharaoh[法老] and his final resting place.

九十年前，英國考古學(xué)家霍華德·卡特在埃及的帝王谷打開了那扇密封的大門，進(jìn)入裝滿珍寶的圖坦卡蒙墓室。圖坦卡蒙的陵墓以及里面的財(cái)寶令全世界人迷上了古埃及以及這位逝去已久的統(tǒng)治者，而圖坦卡蒙只在大約三千三百年前統(tǒng)治了埃及十年而已。跟隨我們的腳步，發(fā)掘有關(guān)這位年輕法老及其安息地的驚人事實(shí)吧。

1. There is no curse[詛咒]of King Tut.

1.“法老的詛咒”純屬子虛烏有。

When Carter first entered King Tuts tomb in November 1922， his financial backer[支持者] George Herbert—a wealthy aristocrat[貴族] with a passion for Egyptology—was at his side. Four months later， Herbert died of apparent[顯然的] blood poisoning from a mosquito[蚊子] bite. Newspapers speculated[推測] that the Englishman had fallen victim[受害人] to a “mummys curse.” Rumors[流言] flew anew after the sudden deaths of others who had visited the Valley of the Kings. It turns out， however， that frenzied[狂熱的] journalists made up the story. In 2002， scientists examined the survival[生存] rates of 44 Westerners who had been in Egypt during Carters excavation[挖掘]， concluding that they were not at elevated[提升] risk of dying early.

1922年11月，當(dāng)卡特首次進(jìn)入圖坦卡蒙的陵墓時(shí)，資助其考古活動(dòng)的喬治·赫伯特（一位熱衷于埃及古物學(xué)的有錢貴族）就在他身旁。四個(gè)月后，赫伯特死于由蚊叮引發(fā)的敗血癥，癥狀明顯。報(bào)紙紛紛推斷這位英國人是“木乃伊詛咒”下的受害者。在其他到過帝王谷的人突然死亡之后，謠言再次滿天飛。然而，原來只是狂熱的記者捏造了這個(gè)故事。2002年，科學(xué)家們檢查了44名在卡特發(fā)掘陵墓期間到訪埃及的西方人士的生存率，結(jié)論是他們的早卒率沒有高于正常范圍。

2. King Tuts death was probably accidental.

2. 圖坦卡蒙可能死于意外。

For years， it was speculated that King Tuts death at age 19 was caused by a blow to the head， inflicted[造成]， perhaps， by a rival[競爭者]. More recently， however， experts have determined that the damage to his mummys skull occurred after death， either during the embalming[用防腐劑來處理（尸體）] process[過程] or at the hands of Carters crew. So how did the boy king die？ In 2005， a study showed that he broke his leg and developed an infection in the wound shortly before death. According to one theory， the pharaoh sustained[遭受] the injury by falling from his chariot[戰(zhàn)車] during a hunt. Meanwhile， DNA testing in 2010 suggested that Tutankhamen had malaria[瘧疾]， which might have exacerbated[惡化] a leg infection or caused him to fall in the first place. However， other theories about King Tuts death still abound[充滿].

多年來，人們猜測19歲的圖坦卡蒙是因?yàn)轭^部受到打擊致死，而這個(gè)重?fù)艨赡苁歉偁帉?duì)手謀劃的。然而到了近期，專家認(rèn)定木乃伊頭骨的破損是在圖坦卡蒙死后造成的——可能是對(duì)尸體進(jìn)行防腐處理的過程中產(chǎn)生的，或是卡特的隨同人員造成的。那么，這位年輕的法老因何而死？2005年，一項(xiàng)研究顯示他在死前不久曾斷過腿，傷口受到感染。根據(jù)其中一種理論，這位法老在一次打獵中從戰(zhàn)車上摔了下來，因此受傷。另外，2010年的DNA測試結(jié)果顯示圖坦卡蒙患有瘧疾，這個(gè)病可能使他的腿傷惡化，或者就是導(dǎo)致他摔倒的原因。然而，關(guān)于圖坦卡蒙之死的其他理論依然比比皆是。

3. Tutankhamen was likely the product of incest[近親交配].

3. 圖坦卡蒙很可能是近親通婚的產(chǎn)物。

In 2010， researchers， performing DNA analyses on the remains[遺體] of King Tut and his relatives， made a shocking announcement. The boy king， they believed， was the product of incest between the pharaoh Akhenaten注 and one of his sisters. Inbreeding[近親交配] was rampant[猖獗的] among ancient Egyptian royals， who saw themselves as descendants[后裔] of the gods and hoped to maintain pure bloodlines. Experts think this trend contributed to higher incidences[發(fā)生（率）] of congenital defects[先天性缺陷]—such as King Tuts cleft palate[顎裂] and club foot[畸形足]—among rulers.

2010年，研究人員對(duì)圖坦卡蒙及其親屬的遺骸進(jìn)行了DNA分析，結(jié)果很驚人。他們相信，這位年輕的國王是法老阿肯那頓和他的一個(gè)妹妹所生。近親生育在古埃及王室十分盛行。王室成員認(rèn)為自己是神的后代，所以希望保持血統(tǒng)的純正。專家認(rèn)為這種潮流造成統(tǒng)治者患有先天性缺陷的幾率較高，如圖坦卡蒙就有腭裂和畸形足。

4. King Tut wasnt buried alone. 4. 圖坦卡蒙并非單獨(dú)下葬。

As Carter explored further into Tutankhamens tomb， he discovered a treasury room filled with priceless funerary[埋葬的] objects， including gold figurines[小雕像]， ritual[儀式的] jewelry， small boats representing[象征] the journey to the netherworld[陰間] and a shrine[圣骨匣] for the pharaohs organs[器官]. The chamber also held two smaller coffins[棺材] that contained two fetuses[胎兒]. Recent DNA tests suggest that one of the mummies is that of Tutankhamens stillborn[死胎的] daughter and that the other was likely his child as well.

隨著卡特進(jìn)一步深入圖坦卡蒙的陵墓，他發(fā)現(xiàn)了一個(gè)寶庫，里面布滿陪葬的無價(jià)之寶，包括金雕像、用于祭祀的珠寶、代表通向陰間之旅的小船，以及用來裝法老器官的小匣子。墓室里還有兩個(gè)小一些的棺木，里面裝的是兩個(gè)胎兒（的遺體）。近期的DNA測試顯示，其中一具木乃伊為圖坦卡蒙胎死腹中的女兒，另一具很可能也是他的孩子。

5. Three millennia[一千年] after his death， the once-obscure[不引人注意的] Tutankhamen became all the rage[風(fēng)行一時(shí)的事物].

5. 在死后三千年，圖坦卡蒙這位當(dāng)時(shí)名不見經(jīng)傳的法老風(fēng)靡世界。

For several years following Carters discovery， no ruler was more popular than Egypts boy king. Formerly a minor footnote in the tome of Egyptian history， Tutankhamen took the world by storm. Women donned[穿上] snake bracelets[手鐲] and gold dresses inspired by his iconic mask； mummies haunted[時(shí)常出現(xiàn)] the silver screen. “Tutmania，” as it was known， once again swept[席卷] the United States when a collection of objects from the pharaohs tomb toured the country from 1977 to 1979. The craze reached such a fever pitch[高度，極點(diǎn)] that comedian Steve Martin mocked[嘲笑] it in his 1978 song “King Tut.”

卡特發(fā)現(xiàn)圖坦卡蒙陵墓之后的數(shù)年里，沒有哪個(gè)統(tǒng)治者比這位埃及小國王更受歡迎。圖坦卡蒙以前只是埃及歷史里的一個(gè)小小注腳，自那時(shí)起卻在世界范圍內(nèi)掀起一陣熱潮。女人們穿戴起由圖坦卡蒙標(biāo)志性面具啟發(fā)而設(shè)計(jì)出的蛇形手鐲和金衣衫；大銀幕上的木乃伊此起彼伏。1977年至1979年，當(dāng)一組法老陵墓的物件在美國巡回展出時(shí)，人稱“圖坦卡蒙熱”的現(xiàn)象卷土重來。這股狂熱持續(xù)不退，喜劇演員史蒂夫·馬丁在1978年甚至寫了《圖坦卡蒙》一曲嘲笑這一現(xiàn)象。