Buried with the Egyptian king Tutankhamen during the 14th century B.C., it’s thought that this iron dagger would have been worth more than gold at the time. The reasoning being that during this age iron smelting was incredibly rare, which means this dagger is a one of a kind. What makes it even rarer is that analysis shows the dagger was created from a fallen meteorite.
The dagger was not located until 1925, three years after the discovery of Tutankhamen’s tomb in the Valley of the Kings. An English archaeologist by the name of Howard Carter found two daggers that were expertly hidden in the mummified body. In the king’s right thigh there was an iron blade with a gold handle. It was encased in a golden sheath that had many patterns of lilies, feathers, and even the head of the jackal. Of course, these were all symbols of strength during Ancient Egyptian times. The other dagger was found in Tut’s abdomen, it was entirely made out of gold.
Now you may think the golden dagger was more valuable. However, during the bronze age iron was nearly never smelted, it was even considered more valuable than gold. Ancient Egypt was valuable in numerous mineral resources which gave way to its rise in power, such as gold, bronze, and copper. However, there is not much reference to iron smelting until much later in their history. Historians pretty much agree with archaeologists that the handful of iron objects found in the old kingdom must have fallen from the sky. Essentially, they were made from meteoric metal. During the era of King Tut, it was referred to as the Iron From The Sky.
Researchers from the University of Pisa in Italy were able to confirm that the dagger was indeed from a meteor. However, not much is known about why it was created or what role it played in history. Even a century after the discovery of Tutankhamen’s tomb we remain completely fascinated by the study of the 3,300-year-old tomb. More recently radar scans showed there was possibly a second tomb behind it. Various researchers believe it could be the long lost tomb of Queen Nefertiti. She was the chief wife of Akhenaten, which was the king before Tutankhamen, potentially his father.
