There's no curse. It seems there should be, according to all the logic of storytelling. Perhaps that's why rumors of a curse associated with the mummy of King Tutankhamen have flourished since the tomb was discovered in 1922. But the facts are at odds with the myth. Rumors of a curse began when Lord Carnarvon, who financed the Tut excavation, died five months after archaeologist Howard Carter opened the tomb. While shaving, Carnarvon cut open an infected insect bite, which lead to blood poisoning and then pneumonia.

He died May 6, 1923, and supposedly his dog in England howled inconsolably. It was also said the lights went out in Cairo, but they actually just went out in the city's hospital, which was not uncommon at the time.

Newspapers began reporting the tomb bore an inscription that read: "They who enter this sacred tomb shall swift be visited by the wings of death."

It made a great story. Unfortunately, it wasn't true. Although the ancient Egyptians did use curses, including prohibitions against trespassing, the door to Tutankhamen's tomb bore only the royal seal and his name.

After 10 years, only eight people out of 54 connected with the excavation had died. Carter, the head of the team, died of natural causes at 64, 17 years after discovering the tomb.

Sources: The Theban Mapping Project, www.wikipedia.org, www.touregypt.net