Archaeology & History

Mysterious void found inside Great Pyramid

By T.K. Randall
November 2, 2017

Image: Pyramids of Giza
Credit: KennyOMG / CC BY-SA 4.0 (adapted) The tantalizing find was revealed following a two-year study involving the use of muography - a scanning technique capable of sensing density changes in rock structures - to look for evidence of secret rooms inside the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt.

The empty space that the researchers have discovered appears to be around 30 meters long and is situated above the Grand Gallery - the most striking of all the pyramid's internal passageways.

"We don't know whether this big void is horizontal or inclined; we don't know if this void is made by one structure or several successive structures," said Mehdi Tayoubi from the Paris HIP Institute.

"What we are sure about is that this big void is there; that it is impressive; and that it was not expected as far as I know by any sort of theory."

Exactly what could lie within this mysterious space remains, for the moment at least, unclear."It could be a kind of space that the builders left to protect the very narrow roof of the grand gallery from the weight of the pyramid," said archaeologist Mark Lehner.

There is also a chance however that it could be a whole new chamber filled with ancient treasures.

"What we are doing is trying to understand the internal structure of the pyramids and how this pyramid has been built," said Cairo University's Hany Helal.

Ultimately the plan is to try drilling a tiny hole in the adjoining wall so that a small robot can be sent through in to the hidden area to find out what might lie inside.

Permission from the Egyptian authorities will need to be given however before this can go ahead.


Source: BBC News

Tags: Pyramid, Egypt, Giza