King Tut: Technology in the service of history

For 3,000 years it was unknown—and that is what kept it safe. But so many people have visited the tomb of Tutankhamun, since Howard Carter, a British archaeologist, unearthed the steps leading down to the royal burial-chamber in November 1922 that it is now in critical condition. Shifting temperatures and humidity are affecting the delicate painted surfaces and conservation of the plasterwork has led to a build-up of salts under the plaster, pushing it off the walls.

Ninety years after Carter’s discovery, an exact facsimile of the royal tomb has been unveiled in Cairo.

The Economist

Ahram Online: Tutankhamun's replica tomb unveiled