More than a century after archaeologist Howard Carter uncovered the tomb of King Tutankhamun, a new study suggests that a set of overlooked objects in the burial site may have played a key role in a forgotten ancient Egyptian ritual.
Discovered in 1922 in Egypt’s Valley of the Kings, the tomb of the boy pharaoh quickly became one of the most famous archaeological finds of the 20th century.
Behind a sealed doorway marked with ancient symbols, Carter and his team unearthed more than 5,000 objects, including statues, jewelry, chariots, and Tutankhamun’s iconic golden funerary mask.
In February 1923, the team entered the burial chamber, where they found a stone sarcophagus containing the mummified remains of the young ruler, who died at just 18 or 19 years old.
Among the lavish treasures were several simple items – clay trays and wooden staffs – that drew little attention at the time.
Now, new research by Dr. Nicholas Brown of Yale University argues that these plain objects may have played a key role in a ceremonial practice known as the “Awakening of Osiris.”
In his study, published in the Journal of Egyptian Archaeology, Brown proposes that the clay trays, made from Nile mud, were used in ritual offerings involving water poured to honor Osiris, the ancient Egyptian god of the underworld.
The mystery of the statue of Osiris made in Egypt around “1800 BC”. and found in 1933
in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, which rotates 180 degrees on its own.pic.twitter.com/i8BnAQAq4t
— Bronze Giant (@RjNol) March 3, 2025
The water, believed to be pure and life-giving, may have symbolized rebirth for the deceased king. The wooden staffs, placed near the head of the sarcophagus, may have been used to represent a symbolic awakening, echoing myths where Osiris is revived with staffs held behind him.
“I’m pretty convinced that what we’re seeing within Tutankhamun’s burial chamber is probably the earliest iteration of this ritual that we can see in the archaeological record,” Brown said, noting that the ceremony is otherwise only seen in artwork from the 19th Dynasty, which came later than Tutankhamun’s reign in the 14th century B.C.
Tutankhamun came to the throne as a child following the rule of Akhenaten, a pharaoh who had upended Egyptian religion by focusing worship on the sun god Aten.
Brown believes that Tutankhamun and his advisors may have intentionally revived older beliefs centered around Osiris as part of a return to traditional practices. Not all scholars are convinced.
Detail of the splendid throne of King Tutankhamun (r.1332-1323 BC) that was found in his tomb (KV62) at the Valley of the Kings.#archaeohistories pic.twitter.com/AlHo0Kk58y
— Archaeo – Histories (@archeohistories) December 21, 2021
Jacobus van Dijk, an Egyptologist at the University of Groningen, agrees that the clay trays in the tomb of Tutankhamun had ritual use but offers a different interpretation.
He connects them to the “spell of the four torches,” a ceremony in which torchbearers surrounded the coffin, guiding the soul through the underworld before extinguishing their flames in the trays.
Though opinions differ, Brown’s study highlights how even the simplest objects in Tutankhamun’s tomb may still hold untold stories. After more than 100 years, the boy king’s burial site continues to reveal secrets about life, death, and belief in ancient Egypt.
