Tutankhamun’s iron dagger is of meteorite origin. It closely correlates with meteoric composition, including homogeneity. The dagger is currently displayed at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. No Egyptian archaeological evidence exists of iron smelting until the 6th century BC.
About Tutankhamun’s meteoric iron dagger in brief
Tutankhamun’s iron dagger is of meteorite origin. It closely correlates with meteoric composition, including homogeneity. Since the 1960s, the high nickel content in the blade has been accepted as indicative of meteoric origin. A more recent study published in June 2016 derived from x-ray fluorescence spectrometer analysis show that the blade’s composition is mostly iron and 11% nickel and 0. 6% cobalt. The dagger is currently displayed at the Egyptian Museum in Cairo. Iron objects were used for only artistic, ornamental, ritual, gift giving, and ceremonial purposes as well as for pigmentation.
No Egyptian archaeological evidence exists of iron smelting until the 6th century BC. The earliest known example of the use of metallic iron in Egypt dates to approximately 3400 BC. In 2013, a single bead from the Manchester Museum was photographed, subjected to a scanning electron microscope to reveal the bead’s micro-structure and chemistry. The results indicated the beads’ micro-structures and composition were consistent with that of an iron meteorite that had been worked into a small tube-shaped tube.
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