image source, EPA
Interior of the corridor as captured by the endoscopy camera
A covered secret corridor-like area inside Egypt’s Giza Great Pyramid structure, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was discovered a few years ago above its main entrance, and the scene inside has now been captured on film for the first time.
After all these years, the officials of the archeological department of the country have found out how it is inside.
An endoscopy video captures the inside of the corridor. Corridor is 30 feet long and 7 feet wide.
Officials say the corridor may have been constructed as a construction technique to spread the weight of the pyramid around one of the two entrances, or another as-yet-undiscovered corridor, to prevent it from falling too far.
The existence of such a secret corridor was discovered for the first time in 2016 with the help of an intrusive imaging technology called muvography.
A team of scientists from the Scan Pyramids research project conducted a research experiment by injecting muons, atomic particles, and analyzing the data obtained. These muons are a byproduct of cosmic rays. When this is applied the stones will partially absorb these. It found known density variations in that data.
This penetrating technique revealed an empty space behind the north face of the Great Pyramid structure. It was found 7 meters above the main entrance. A chevron structure in the shape of an English letter V is located here.
Are they approaching the tomb of King Khufu Pharaoh?
image source, EPA
Following this discovery, after conducting investigations using radar and ultrasound technologies, they passed a thin 0.24-inch endoscope tube through a thin gap in the junction of the Chevron structure to image the internal structure.
Images taken inside the corridor by this endoscope camera were released at a press conference on Thursday. The video revealed an empty corridor-like structure inside, with a roof made of curved stones and side walls made of interlaced rough stones.
“We’ll continue this scanning and see what we can do to find out if there’s something underneath or if it’s just this corridor,” said Mustafa Wasiri, head of Egypt’s Supreme Council of Antiquities.
The Great Pyramid is built on the Giza Plateau. Its height is 146 meters. From approximately 2609 BC to BC. It was built during the reign of the Cheops or Khufu pharaohs who ruled from 2584 AD.
Scholars differ on how this, one of the oldest and largest monuments on earth, could have been built. The Great Pyramid is the largest of the three pyramids at Giza.
Egyptian archeologist Zahi Hawass said, “This is a great discovery that goes into every household in the world,” meaning that it is a discovery so big that people around the world are discussing it.
He added that the discovery could help determine whether the burial pit of King Khufu is still inside the pyramid.
He suspects that there may be ‘something important’ under that corridor.
“A few months from now, we’ll see if I’m right or not,” he said.
A second similar, larger void was discovered in 2017 using muvography.
This void, 30 meters long and several meters high, is located directly above the area known as the Grand Gallery.
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