THE FURY OF AMUN: The Cursed Play in the Valley of the Queens
In January 1909 a play was due to be staged in the Valley of the Queens in front of a virtual Who’s Who of famous Egyptologists. The author was Antiquities Inspector, Arthur Weigall; the stage manager was American artist, Joseph Lindon Smith; and the subject, the rehabilitation of Akhenaten into the realm of the Gods after thousands of years in limbo. The play never got further than the rehearsal, however, as an uncanny series of events culminated with the wives of both men being mysteriously struck down by severe ailments. Was it the curse of the god Amun?