We were chagrined to learn that we missed King Tut Day last month. Evidently, it’s on November 4, the date archeologist, Howard Carter, found the entrance to the perfectly preserved tomb of King Tutankhamen in 1922. His discovery set off a wave of “Egypt mania” across the world that positively pulsated with each time a fascinating new treasure was shared with the public. Before we go on, a little something below to get you in the mood:

The Pharaoh Hound isn’t genetically linked to native Egyptian dogs, the breed actually coming from Malta, but the dogs looked enough like the Tesem (the ancient Egyptian name for “hunting dog”) to get it swept up in the popularity of all things Egyptian. It was during the height of this fervor, the 1920s, that the first pair of Pharaoh Hounds was imported to Great Britain. British had taken control of Malta in 1814, an island they dominated in one way or another until 1964. The breed, however, didn’t get established in Britain until the early 1960’s. It was then that the head of British troops station on the island, General Adam Block, and his wife Pauline got smitten with the breed and began importing dogs back to England.  The Pharaoh Hounds they brought home formed the foundation of the breed outside of Malta.