Art by Allan Davey

CCSS

R.1, R.3, R.4, R.6, R.7, R.8, W.1, SL.1, SL.2, L.4, L.6

The Curse of King Tut

Could a 3,300-year-old mummy really unleash doom on all who come near?

May 2022

by Spencer Kayden

Before You Read: Click here for a handy audio guide. You’ll hear how some of the names and places in this play are pronounced.

CHARACTERS

*Starred characters have larger speaking parts.

*Narrators 1, 2, & 3 (N1, N2, N3)
*Ahmed Gerigar, an Egyptian worker
*Howard Carter, an English archaeologist
*Tarik Moussa, an Egyptian worker
Lord Carnarvon, a rich Englishman who is paying for Carter’s archaeology project
Alan Gardiner, a hieroglyphics expert
*Lady Evelyn, Lord Carnarvon’s daughter
Doctor
Georges Bénédite, an Egypt expert from a French museum
Tony, a truck driver
Angela, a truck driver

About This Play
It’s a dramatization of true events. That means we’ve invented some characters and dialogue to help tell the story.

PROLOGUE

N1: Thousands of years ago in Egypt, there lived a young pharaoh.

N2: His name was Tutankhamen—or King Tut for short.

N3: Tut became pharaoh around 1333 b.c., at 9 years old.

N1: Ten years later, he died. Mysteriously.

N2: Tut was buried in a secret tomb. People said it held exquisite treasures.

N3: But some believed the tomb was cursed.

N1: They said opening it would release evil.

N2: Still, for thousands of years, men searched for the tomb.

N3: It was never found—until now.

SCENE 1

Luxor, Egypt, November 1922

N1: A team of archaeologists and workers is gathered in the Valley of the Kings.

N2: The men sweat in the heat.

N3: Two workers talk to Howard Carter.

Gerigar: You have been searching for Tut’s tomb in this valley for years, Mr. Carter. What makes you think this spot will be different?

Carter: This is the one place I have not yet looked.

Gerigar: Fair enough. Gentlemen, let’s get digging!

N1: Before long, Gerigar finds two large, smooth stones under the sand.

Gerigar: I may have something here!

N2: The crew helps him dig.

Moussa: Look! What is that?

Gerigar: I think it’s a staircase.

Carter (excited): Keep going! Keep digging!

Gerigar: The stairs lead to a door with royal symbols!

Moussa: Mr. Carter, what do you make of this?

Carter: I must send for Lord Carnarvon in England. He and I should make this discovery together!

SCENE 2

Carter’s tent, later that day

N3: Carter walks into his tent. Moussa is waiting for him.

Carter: You look as if you have seen a ghost!

Moussa: I just came from your house. A cobra crawled in and killed your pet canary.

Carter: Oh my. I am quite sad to hear that.

Moussa: Cobras are said to protect pharaohs. Don’t you see, Mr. Carter? This is a warning.

Carter: About what?

Moussa: Not to disturb the pharaoh’s tomb.

Carter: My good man, that is nonsense.

Moussa: But sir . . .

Carter: If we find Tut’s tomb, we can show the world a piece of ancient Egypt. And we’ll be famous for doing it!

SCENE 3

The dig site, a few weeks later

Life on white/Alamy Stock Photo

Build Background
Cobras are poisonous snakes found in Asia and Africa. They can be up to 8 feet long!

N1: Lord Carnarvon has arrived from England.

N2: He stands next to Carter as the crew finishes digging out the staircase.

N3: At the bottom is a door.

Carnarvon: It’s the moment we’ve been waiting for!

N1: Carter leads the team through the door and into a dark stone hallway.

N2: The men’s faces are full of wonder.

N3: At the end of the hallway, they come to another door.

Carnarvon: This door has hieroglyphs on it.

N1: Alan Gardiner leans in to read what it says.

Gardiner: Tut . . . an . . . khamen!

Carnarvon: We’ve found it!

N2: The men slip through the door into a room of glittering treasures.

N3: Gardiner picks up a wooden cobra covered in gold.

Gardiner: Carter, I can’t help but wonder if these snakes have real power. People have warned me that we’ll be cursed if we enter this tomb.

Carter (whispering): Keep your crazy ideas to yourself. The curse is hogwash!

SCENE 4

Cairo, Egypt, April 1923

N1: In a dark room, Lady Evelyn sits by her father’s bed.

N2: Lord Carnarvon looks thin and weak.

Evelyn: Father, I’m worried about that red mark on your cheek. It looks like it’s on fire!

Carnarvon: It is nothing. Just a bug bite.

Evelyn: Are you sure? You seem to be having trouble breathing.

N3: Lord Carnarvon begins to cough. A doctor arrives.

Evelyn (quietly): Doctor, can you help him?

Doctor: I don’t know. This is a very mysterious illness.

Evelyn: He must get well. Haven’t you heard?

Doctor: Ah yes, his team discovered Tut’s tomb.

Evelyn: The treasures inside have been hidden for more than 3,000 years!

Doctor: Forgive me, but perhaps they should remain hidden?

Evelyn: What do you mean?

Doctor: A pharaoh’s tomb is sacred. Many people say that those who enter will be cursed.

N1: Lord Carnarvon’s body shakes. He gasps for breath.

Evelyn: Father?

N2: The doctor checks Carnarvon’s pulse.

Doctor (to himself): The curse has claimed its first victim.

Evelyn: Is he . . . ?

Doctor: I am so sorry, my lady.

N3: A cobra slithers out from under Carnarvon’s bed and disappears into the shadows.

SCENE 5

Near King Tut’s tomb, March 1926

Lordprice Collection/Alamy

Lord Carnarvon was obsessed with ancient Egypt. He paid for Carter’s search for Tut’s tomb.

N1: Carter and his crew are making a list of everything in Tut’s tomb.

Gerigar: Mr. Carter, the man from the French museum is here to see you.

N2: Carter follows Gerigar out of the tomb.

Carter: Good afternoon! How may I help you?

Bénédite: What are the chances we can bring some of these treasures to France?

Carter: I want to share them with the world. But they do not belong to me.

Bénédite: Would it really matter if one or two artifacts were missing?

Carter: Yes, they must stay in Egypt. Say, are you quite all right? You look pale.

N3: Bénédite falls down. Gerigar takes his pulse.

Gerigar: He is dead!

SCENE 6

A market in Cairo, the next day

N1: Gerigar sees Moussa in the market.

Gerigar: Mr. Moussa, why haven’t you been to work?

Moussa: I won’t go back!

Gerigar: Why not?

Moussa: The man from the French museum is dead. Lord Carnarvon is too. It’s the curse!

Gerigar: Mr. Carter works in the tomb every day. He is perfectly healthy.

Moussa: Others are paying for his greed. Entering the tomb was bad enough. But Mr. Carter is removing every one of its 5,000 artifacts.

Gerigar: He is taking them to the museum in Cairo. Is that so wrong?

Moussa: They should stay where they are!

Gerigar: Our ancestors believed that their souls stayed alive when their names were remembered. In a museum, King Tut’s soul will live forever.

The Curse . . . Explained?
Experts have found a few possible explanations for the so-called curse. One is that Tut’s tomb had toxic mold—which could be deadly for people with health problems.

SCENE 7

California, 2022

N2: A man and a woman drive down a dark, empty highway in a tractor trailer.

Tony: Thanks for the ride. What are you hauling tonight?

Angela: Ancient treasure. It’s from the tomb of that mummy, King Tut. I’m bringing it to a museum in Los Angeles.

Tony: Are you kidding me?

Angela: Nope.

Tony: Wow.

Angela: You know, people say there’s a curse. They think that what’s in this truck should still be in his tomb.

Tony: What do you think?

Angela: I think it’s time to stop for coffee.

N3: Angela steers the truck onto the exit ramp.

N1: Just then, the truck’s headlights show something stretched across the road.

Tony: Watch out!

N2: Angela hits the brakes.

Angela and Tony: Aaahh!!!

N3: The truck stops.

Angela: What was that?

N1: They look out the window.

N2: A giant cobra slithers across the road.

Pronunciation Guide

ACTIVITY:
Inference

You've just read “The Curse of King Tut.” Now it’s time to try this activity.

Tip: An inference is something that is not stated but can be figured out from clues in the text.

What to do: Imagine that you are Tarik Moussa. You’ve just learned about the death of Georges Bénédite, and you’re writing in your journal. Make inferences to complete each sentence below on a separate sheet of paper. For clues, go back and look at the play.