A secret doorway inside an ancient Egyptian pyramid is believed to have been discovered by a scientist, over 4,500 years on from when it was originally built.
The Pyramid of Menkaure, the smallest of the three main pyramids of the Giza pyramid complex and estimated to have been built around 2510 BC, was at the centre of this research conducted by a team from Cairo University and the Technical University of Munich as part of the ScanPyramids research project.
They were able to make the discovery thanks to the use of an advanced non-invasive scanning tool, which is how they were able to detect the existence of two air-filled voids located behind a polished section of granite, underneath the pyramid's eastern facade, which supported their hypothesis of a possible second entrance point.
(The main entrance of the Pyramid of Menkaure that we know about is located on the northern side.)
Researchers were able to investigate the area without damaging any of the ancient stonework due to their use of radar, ultrasound, and electrical resistivity tomography.
“Following the significant validation of a hidden corridor in the Pyramid of Cheops in 2023, ScanPyramids has once again succeeded in making an important finding in Giza. The testing methodology we developed allows very precise conclusions to be drawn about the nature of the pyramid's interior without damaging the valuable structure. The hypothesis of another entrance is very plausible, and our results take us a big step closer to confirming it,” explained Christian Grosse, Professor of Non-destructive Testing at TUM.
This latest research appears to confirm researcher Stijn van den Hoven's suspicions, as he first hypothesised a possible additional entrance back in 2019.
Standing at around 200 feet tall, the Pyramid of Menkaure is believed to house the tomb of the Fourth Dynasty King Menkaure; however, the whereabouts of his sarcophagus is unknown after it was lost at sea in 1838 while being transported to the British Museum on the English merchant ship Beatrice.
Elsewhere from Indy100, Never-before-seen photos of 'Egypt's Area 51' uncovered, and 4,500-year-old mystery solved after hydraulics found in ancient pyramid.
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