Now here is something about king Tut that you probably weren’t aware of. When he died, king Tut was mummified with an erect wiener at 90 degrees. This unusual method of embalming has left experts baffled for decades, but a recent research paper attempts to shed new light on why king Tut was mummified with an erection.
Very little is known about the life of the boy king Tut.ankh.Amun. He ascended the throne at the age of 9 in 1333 B.C. and ruled until his death between the age of 17 and 19. He was a pharaoh of the 18th dynasty, which some claim was the greatest Egyptian royal family. But it’s not only his life that has been a mystery, even his mummy has baffled some of the brightest in the field due to the unique way in which he was mummified.
When king Tut was mummified, not only did his embalmers mummify him with an erection, but they also employed other unusual methods. Apart from Tut being mummified with an erect wiener at 90 degrees, he was also covered in a layer of thick black liquid that may have caused his body to actually catch fire. He was also buried without his heart. So why was his burial so unique?
The hypothesis why king Tut was mummified with an erect wiener
It has recently been suggested that his unique mummification was an attempt to realign Egyptian religion. A religious revolution started by pharaoh Akhenaten, who many believe to be his father, who sought to centralise Egyptian religion around Atken, the sun disc, while simultaneously destroying images of the traditional gods. It is believed that the embalmers attempted to make Tut appear as Osiris to undo the religious revolution started by Akhenaten. When Tut died they mummified him with an erection because it evoked Osiris’ regenerative powers. The black liquid made his skin resemble that of Osiris. Lastly, the removal of his heart evoked the story of Osiris being cut to pieces by his brother Seth and burying his heart.
Whether or not this is the true reason King Tut was mummified with an erect wiener is irrelevant for most people today. It is however, extremely interesting nonetheless.
