In a recent interview with the BBC, senior antiquities official, Zahi Hawass, suggested that it was time for scientists to use some of the recently developed technology such as the DNA analysis to establish the cause of death of King Tutankhamun.

While the widest consensus held is that the young king was assassinated, many scientists today are advancing other theories.

The director of the Tutankamun Wardrobe Project at Leiden university in Holland has noted that the clothing found in the tomb would indicate that the circumference holding Tutankamun's hips was about 30 cm larger than that of his chest, suggesting fatty deposits on his hips that might be sign of disease.

Other scientists have proposed that the young king may have been killed by a blow to the head, which might be indicative of a power struggle. Zahi Hawas pointed out that the skeleton was imperfectly preserved and the question would be better answered through testing.