Tutankhamun’s golden 100th Anniversary on DStv
Discover a glittering horde of shows about Tutankhamun and ancient Egypt this November.
The day was Thursday, 24 November 1922, and archaeologist Howard Carter was taking his first look inside the glittering tomb of king of ancient Egypt, Tutankhamun.
What he found sparked a global Egyptomania craze, and that moment has been the stuff of dreams for would-be archaeologists the world over, ever since. “As my eyes grew accustomed to the light, details of the room within emerged slowly from the mist, strange animals, statues, and gold – everywhere the glint of gold,” wrote Howard in his diary.
November 2022 marks the 100th anniversary of the expedition’s discovery, and this month, DStv commemorates King Tut, with special shows and features on National Geographic (DStv Channel 181) and Discovery Channel (DStv Channel 121).
Don’t miss fresh perspectives on the expedition, the treasures and the tomb, and the most recent discoveries from modern Egyptology – including the unearthing of the remains of an ancient jewellery workshop.
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Treasures to discover…
Discovery will be celebrating Egypt and archaeology on Sundays from 6 November, while National Geographic is making Friday nights Egyptology adventure time throughout the month.
King Tut In Color
Photographic experts have colourised the newsreel footage and photographs from around the time of the discovery of King Tutankhamun's tomb to give us a better idea of what it really looked like back in the day. Egyptologist, Elizabeth Frood will discuss the discovery itself, and point out fascinating details in the images, while experts weigh in on how the discovery impacted the identity of modern Egypt.
Watch King Tut In Color on Friday, 4 November at 19:00 on National Geographic (DStv Channel 181).
Tut’s Lost City Revealed
In 2021, modern Egypt’s most prominent archaeologist Dr Zahi Hawass announced that – while searching for the funerary temple used for Tutankhamun’s rites – he and his crew had uncovered the remains of a new city area in Luxor, between the Temple of Ramses III in Medinet Habu, and the Temple of Amenhotep III in Memnon. Nicknamed The Golden City, this finding dates back 3 000 years to the reign of King Amenhotep III, and Tutankhamun himself. The city sector is beautifully preserved, and Dr Hawass will reveal what it can tell us about ordinary life at the time of King Tutankhamun – including in an ancient jewellery studio that made the kind of goods fit for the afterlife.
Watch Tut’s Lost City Revealed on Sunday, 6 November at 19:00 on Discovery Channel (DStv Channel 120).
King Tut’s 100th Year Anniversary Special
Adventurer, Josh Gates narrates this special (also known as King Tut: A Century Of Secrets). The documentary is about archaeologists like Dr Zahi Hawass who are on a mission to solve the great mysteries still surrounding the tomb of King Tutankhamun, and to dig into what was left off the records during Howard Carter's history-making discovery of the tomb.
Watch King Tut’s 100th Year Anniversary Special on Sunday, 6 November at 20:00 on Discovery Channel (DStv Channel 120).
Tut’s Treasures: Hidden Secrets
This three-part docuseries shows us objects we’ve never seen before and reveals details we never knew about in the more familiar artefacts. Multidisciplinary scientists are on site to examine everything from the King’s leather armour to the famous royal death mask, which might have been a hand-me-down, and the two tiny coffins belonging to Tutankhamun’s baby daughters.
Watch Tut’s Treasures: Hidden Secrets Season 1 on Friday, 11 November at 19:00 on National Geographic (DStv Channel 181).
Tut’s Toxic Tomb
Paleoanthropologist, Ella Al-Shamahi, explores the science behind the so-called Mummy’s Curse that was said to have struck prominent members of Howard Carter’s expedition after they opened the tomb of King Tutankhamun. Find out who first spread the idea of a curse, what really killed each of the expedition members – sometimes many years after the tomb opening – and what science says about the possibility of the tomb or its artefacts giving off toxic fumes.
Watch Tut’s Toxic Tomb Season 1 from Friday, 18 November at 21:00 on National Geographic (DStv Channel 181).
Look out for these special episodes on Discovery on Sundays from 19:00:
- Valley of the Kings: The Lost Tombs: Egypt’s Valley of the Kings is the burial ground for Tutankhamun, Ramses II, Hatshepsut, Amenhotep III and more. Archaeologists led by Dr Zahi Hawass are searching the Western Valley to build a new chapter in Ancient Egypt's history.
- Expedition Unknown – Egypt Live: Explorer and adventurer Josh Gates takes us inside an underground tomb complex, where Dr Hawass has uncovered an exciting sealed sarcophagus.
- Expedition Unknown Season 4, episodes 10 & 11: Josh Gates explores the lives of Egypt’s most famous Queens: Hatshepsut, Nefertiti, and Cleopatra.
- Expedition Unknown Season 7, episode 17: Dr Hawass takes Josh Gates into the tomb of an ancient high priest, where he’s hoping to find a mummy.
- Blowing Up History – Seven Wonders of Egypt: See inside ancient Egyptian buildings, cities, pyramids and tombs and learn how they were constructed according to archaeologists’ latest research, aided by CGI animation, X-Ray and LiDar scanning.
Discovery Channel (DStv Channel 121) is available on DStv Premium. And National Geographic (DStv Channel 181) is available on DStv Premium, Compact Plus, Compact, and Family. To upgrade your existing package, click here. Or if you'd like to Get DStv, find a service that suits your needs here.
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