Egypt is known for its rich history and ancient artifacts that have fascinated people for centuries. Among the numerous artifacts that have been discovered in Egypt, there are several that have been associated with curses and mysterious occurrences. These cursed artifacts have often been the subject of paranormal incidents and stories of misfortune and tragedy. One of the most famous cursed artifacts is the cursed statue of the Egyptian god Anubis. Legend has it that anyone who possesses the statue will experience a series of unfortunate events, including illness, accidents, and even death. Perhaps the most infamous cursed artifact is the infamous Pharaoh's Curse, which is said to have afflicted the people who were involved in the excavation and removal of King Tutankhamun's tomb.
Even today, some people like to link archaeological discoveries and contemporary events with curses. When a massive 2,000-year-old sarcophagus was found in Alexandria, Egypt, in 2018, some people feared that opening it would unleash a curse. Similarly, when a ship blocked the Suez Canal in 2021, some people tried to place the blame on mummies, noting that the mummies of several ancient Egyptian pharaohs were set to be transported to a museum in Fustat.
My first published newspaper interview consisted of a few descriptive paragraphs about the exhibition that carried this headline Beware the beat of the bandaged feet, as the ancient Egyptian saying goes. 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.
Perhaps the most infamous cursed artifact is the infamous Pharaoh's Curse, which is said to have afflicted the people who were involved in the excavation and removal of King Tutankhamun's tomb. The curse of the pharaohs, as it is commonly referred to, caused several deaths and tragic accidents, leading many to believe that the artifacts in the tomb were cursed. These cursed artifacts have captured the imagination of people from all over the world, and their stories continue to fascinate and intrigue.
Ancient Egyptian tomb warnings, curses and ghosts
Detail of a stone inscribed in black ink (hieratic) with a tomb warning, Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Egypt, c.1295-1069 BC.
With The Tomb: Ancient Egyptian Burial exhibition currently on display at the National Museum of Scotland, I wanted to take the opportunity to discuss the popular misconception that ancient Egyptian tombs all contain curses. This idea became widespread due to the sensationalist journalism that followed the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922. The death of Lord Carnarvon in the months after the opening of the tomb fit well with the idea of a long dead Pharaoh wishing for retribution and of course produced great headlines.
The famous Edinburgh-born writer Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the creator of Sherlock Holmes, amplified this further by suggesting that an “evil elemental” from the tomb was to blame for Carnarvon’s death, rather than blood poisoning and pneumonia. In 1892 Doyle had published a short story called “Lot no. 249”, which utilised the bandaged menace of a reanimated mummy as the protagonist, a representation which profoundly influenced horror films throughout the 20th century. While this superstition has endured, the reality of how the ancient Egyptians viewed their tombs and the afterlife is actually very different.
Panorama of the necropolis of Sheikh Abd el-Qurna. Egypt. © Margaret Maitland
Building a tomb was a massive investment in time, wealth and effort. Those who could afford to plan for their death began to put those plans into action as soon as possible. The Egyptians saw the afterlife as a chance to live again, in a place called the “Field of Reeds”, a paradise styled on Egypt (think Egypt 2.0, where the crops grow tall and the sun always shines). The Egyptians saw the individual as a number of parts, their life force (ka) would reside in the tomb after death and needed to receive offerings to survive. Another part of the person, the ba (represented as a human-headed bird) was thought to fly about during the day, but also needed to return to the tomb for the night.
Painted wooden statuette of a ba-bird, with the body in the form of a falcon and the head in the form of a human, Egypt, c.747-525 BC
The tomb chapel, which was a public area separate from the burial chambers, provided a focus for the family of the deceased, who visited during festivals to provide offerings for their relatives, similar way to the way in which we might visit a cemetery on the anniversary of a loved one’s death. Being remembered was as important to the Egyptians as it is to us today. Bearing these considerations in mind, you can see why the Egyptians saw the preservation of their tombs as important and the modern concept of curses reflects the amount of effort put into the preparation for death.
As Egypt’s fortunes rose and fell, tombs would be forgotten and buried or reused and repurposed. Through archaeological excavations we are able to understand some of these processes which are explored in The Tomb. A number of texts also help us to explore ancient Egyptian attitudes towards tomb building and reuse. One famous example is known amongst Egyptologists simply as “A Ghost Story”. In the story a High Priest called Khonsuemhab meets an unhappy spirit called Niutbusemekh, who complains that despite his illustrious life serving the King, his tomb has been destroyed, and he asks that Khonsuemhab help him to build a new one. The High Priest agrees and sets out to find a site; sadly the end of the story is not preserved so we don’t get to hear whether Niutbusemekh was provided with a new home for eternity or not.
Actual written examples of tomb curses from ancient Egypt are quite rare. Those that survive generally follow an almost legal structure; that if you do something negative you will be punished. I would be more inclined to call them warnings – you wouldn’t call a modern “No Trespassing” sign a curse. One particularly fun example of a warning from the tomb of Penniut at Aniba warns that any negative behaviour will result in the individuals simply being “miserable”, others suggest that the transgressor will not achieve their desired afterlife, or simply warn that one bad turn results in another. This type of warning can be found throughout Egyptian legal texts, whereby a negative behaviour is equalled with a punitive measure, for example as an oath: “If I dispute this matter again, I will receive 100 lashes”; or in a will: “the children who have given me nothing, I will not give them any of my property”.
A stone inscribed in black ink with a tomb warning , Sheikh Abd el-Qurna, Egypt, c.1295-1069 BC
Within the collections of National Museums Scotland there is an inscription on a piece of limestone which provides another insight into the ancient Egyptian desire for the tomb to survive intact. The stone, which is around the size of a few bricks, was covered with a light wash to provide a clean surface for the inscription. Dated to between approximately 1295-1069 BC, the fifteen lines of the inscription implore visitors to the tomb in which it was placed to behave correctly, in a similar way to traditional inscriptions which ask for visitors to give offerings. The inscription is written in a script called hieratic, which was a shorthand form of Egyptian writing. To share this with you I have translated it below.
“It is to you that I speak; all people who will find this tomb passage!”
The visitors are then warned:
“Watch out not to take (even) a pebble from within it outside. If you find this stone you shall transgress against it.”
They are also reminded of the power of the deceased, who are referred to as gods:
“Indeed, the gods since (the time of) Pre, those who rest in [the midst] of the mountains gain strength every day (even though) their pebbles are dragged away.”
The reader is encouraged to find their own space to build their tomb and not encroach upon others’:
“Look for a place worthy of yourselves and rest in it, and do not constrict gods in their own houses, as every man is happy in his place and every man is glad in his house.”
The inscription ends with a final warning on behalf of the deified dead, written emphatically:
“As for he who will be sound, beware of forcefully removing this stone from its place.
As for he who covers it in its place, great lords of the west will reproach him very very very very very very very very much”
There are no threats of death or of spiritual vengeance; instead we see a well-written appeal towards good behaviour which would help protect the tomb and honour the memory of the deceased. Though perhaps the “Mummy’s Gentle Reproach” isn’t quite as snappy or headline grabbing.
Some further reading:
Luckhurst, R. (2012), The Mummy’s Curse: The True History of a Dark Fantasy, Oxford.
The Tomb: Ancient Egyptian Burial is at the National Museum of Scotland until 3 September 2017.
Sponsored by Shepherd and Wedderburn
- Posted 23rd June 2017
During the last hundred years or so, the phrase “curse of the pharaohs” has been used to describe the cause of a large assortment of ills. These range from natural disasters to a mild stomach disorder that often plagues tourists to Egypt (also known as “pharaoh’s revenge,” or “gippy tummy”—derived from “Egyptian tummy”). I became personally involved with this curse (I mean that supposedly written by or for the pharaohs), when I became Project Egyptologist for the Treasures of Tutankhamun Exhibit that traveled across the United States from 1976 to 1979.
Although the idea of curses may seem far-fetched, the belief in their power and influence is still prevalent in many cultures. While some may dismiss these artifacts as mere superstitions and folklore, others remain cautious and believe in the dark powers that these cursed artifacts possess. Regardless of one's beliefs, the cursed artifacts of Egypt serve as a reminder of the enigmatic and mysterious nature of ancient civilizations and their artifacts..
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