Google Doodle Celebrates Howard Carter Birth Anniversary

Google has created a new doodle to celebrate the 138th birthday of the British archaeologist and Egyptologist Howard Carter, who discovered the tomb of Tutankhamun in 1922.

The discovery was the first of its kind, of the final resting place of the pharaohs by any modern-day archaeologist and Carter is credited as the first human to enter the 33 centuries old tomb.

Google's latest doodle is a colourful graphic depicting Carter, who is considered as the primary discoverer of the tomb of Tutankhamun admiring a set of Egyptian treasures.

He was born on 9 May,1874 in London as the son of Samuel Carter and Martha Joyce Carter. Originally trained as an artist, he was sent to assist the excavators in Egypt at the age of 17.

Later, Carter became the first chief inspector of the Egyptian Antiquities Service (EAS) in 1899 and had supervised several excavations at Thebes which is now known as Luxor. In 1904, he was transferred to the Inspectorate of Lower Egypt.

In 1907, he joined Lord Carnarvon to supervise his Egyptian excavations and was under tremendous pressure for any breakthrough discoveries.

On 4 November,1922, Carter and his team of excavators found the steps leading to the Tutankhamun's tomb, the most intact pharaonic tomb ever found in the Valley of the Kings.

Carter was able to see the treasures inside the tomb through a tiny breach he made on the top left hand corner of the doorway.

It is said that he had made the breach with the chisel which is presented to him by his grandmother on his 17th birthday.

"Discovered tomb under tomb of Ramsses VI investigated same & found seals intact," he wrote in his pocket diary following the discovery.

To a query by Carnarvon: "Can you see anything?", Carter replied "Yes, wonderful things," the words which became famous later.

Carter spent years studying documenting thousands of artefacts and treasures from the tomb.

Among the objects documented included a variety of artefacts from the Pharaoh era such as weapons, chariots, musical instruments, clothes, cosmetics and a treasured lock of royal grandmother's hair.

A total of 5,398 objects were found from the tomb and the documentation continued until 1932.

Carter died in 1939, at the age of 64. He was suffering from Lymphoma, a type of cancer and his death came before he could publish his findings.

However, his complete excavation records are now part of the Griffith Institute Archive at the University of Oxford.