A previously undiscovered champber has been discovered in the Great Pyramid of Giza, adding another layer of mystery to the enigma.
Japanese and French scientists announced the discovery after studying the pyramid for two years, hoping to learn more about how the tomb was built.
“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,” Mehdi Tayoubi from the HIP Institute in Paris told the BBC. “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.”
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The gap is approximately 100ft long and 230ft tall and is directly above the Grand Gallery, which is an access route that cuts through the pyramid, The Daily Telegraph reports.
Scientists discovered it using a scanning process known as “muography” that picks up small cosmic particles known as “muons”. If large numbers of muons are detected it means a hole must exist.
American archaeologist Mark Lehner, who reviewed the ScanPyramids team’s work, told the BBC the void could have been a space builders left “to protect the very narrow roof of the grand gallery from the weight of the pyramid”.
The pyramid, built for Khufu, the second pharaoh of the fourth dynasty, has been the subject of countless conspiracy theories since its construction between 2509 and 2483 BC. Standing 460ft tall and 755ft wide, it is the largest pyramid ever built and one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.
Scientists still haven’t come to a consensus about how ancient Egyptians built the pyramid or moved the large stones into place.
Dr Kate Spence, a University of Cambridge lecturer, said she believes the void could have been an inclined ramp made to help with construction.
“Although that might not sound as exciting as a secret burial chamber, in fact, this would be the first evidence of an internal ramp, which gives us a really important insight into how those huge bricks were put into position and how pyramids were constructed,” she said.
However, no firm conclusions can be drawn until the void is seen from the inside - and that poses a big problem.
“We can no longer go blasting our way through the pyramid with gunpowder as Egyptologist Howard Vyse did in the early 1800s,” American archaeologist Mark Lehner told the BBC.
One academic, Jean-Baptiste Mouret, from the French National Institute for Computer Science and Applied Mathematics, has suggested building a flying robot and, with the permission of the Egyptian authorities, drilling a one-inch hole through which it can be sent into the void.
