Tutankhamun DNA breakthrough as 'unexpected' results shed fresh light on Boy King

While he may be the most famous Pharaoh of Ancient Egypt, remarkably little is known about Tutankhamun, the Boy King how died aged just 18 after less than 10 years on the throne. Tutankhamun took the throne around 1332 BCE, likely at the age of eight or nine, during a time of major social and religious upheaval.

Yet, the cause of his demise has remained a mystery for over 3,000 years. His fame owes much to the spectacular discovery of his tomb in 1922 by British archaeologist Howard Carter, which revealed more than 5,000 artifacts - including his iconic gold mask - almost entirely untouched by tomb robbers, unlike many other uncovered tombs. The find provided an unprecedented window into royal burial practices and the wealth of Egypt’s 18th Dynasty. Another major enigma is about his family origins, but Egyptologists may finally have found an answer.

A significant breakthrough came as the BBC documentary 'Tutankhamun: The Truth Uncovered' presented results from an extensive genetic analysis of royal mummies conducted by Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities. This research was originally published in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) in 2010.

Narrator Dallas Campbell explained in the documentary that scientists had been able to use DNA to identify several members of Tutankhamun’s immediate family. But the analysis revealed something unexpected.

“The DNA results identified the members of Tut’s family,” said Mr Campbell, “but they also uncovered something completely unexpected when they compared the DNA of Tut’s father, Akhenaten, with the DNA of Tut’s mother.”

The researchers discovered that Tutankhamun’s parents were full siblings. Geneticist Dr Yehia Gad, one of the key researchers, explained: “They turned out that they’re brother and sister, which was a big surprise for us. A lot of incest happened [...] they didn’t like to let royal and non-royal blood mix, so they tried to keep it within the royal family.”

Inbreeding would not have been considered unusual among Egyptian royalty at the time. This was to ensure that a pure royal bloodline was maintained and to prevent outsiders from inheriting the throne. In fact, Tutankhamun's consort, Ankhesenamun, is understood to have been his half-sister or cousin. Two infant mummies found in Tutankhamun's tomb are presumed to have been the daughters of Ankhesenamun.

However, this will also have contributed to the Boy King's frail health, experts have suggested. CT scans and further analysis of his remains revealed that he had a clubfoot, a cleft palate, necrosis in his left foot and may have needed a walking stick, several of which were found in his tomb. In addition, DNA testing indicated he had contracted malaria multiple times, which, when combined with his other conditions, may have contributed to his early death.