How tall is the pyramid? The thousand-year-old mystery of the Cheops pyramid has been revealed

22.02.2022

The pyramid is called "Akhet-Khufu" - "Horizon of Khufu"(or more precisely " Relating to the firmament - (this is) Khufu"). Consists of blocks of limestone, basalt and granite. It was built on a natural hill. Even though the pyramid Cheops- the tallest and most voluminous of all Egyptian pyramids, but still Pharaoh Snofru built the pyramids in Meidum and Dakhshut (Broken Pyramid and Pink Pyramid), the total mass of which is estimated at 8.4 million tons. This means that 2.15 million tons were used to build these pyramids. or 25.6% more material than was required for the Cheops pyramid.

The pyramid was originally lined with white limestone, which was harder than the main blocks. The top of the pyramid was crowned with a gilded stone - the pyramidion. The cladding shone in the Sun with a peach color, like “ a shining miracle to which the sun god Ra himself seemed to give all his rays" In 1168 AD. e. The Arabs sacked and burned Cairo. Residents of Cairo removed the cladding from the pyramid in order to build new houses.

Pyramid structure

Strabo Caliph Abu Ja'far al-Ma'mun. He hoped to find the pharaoh's countless treasures there, but found there only a layer of dust half a cubit thick.

Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers, located one above the other.

Rice. 2. Cross section of the Cheops pyramid: 1. Main entrance, 2. The entrance made by Al-Mamun, 3. Crossroads, “traffic jam” and the Al-Mamun tunnel made “bypassing” the traffic jam, 4. Descending corridor, 5. Unfinished underground chamber – ( Funeral « pit "), 6. Ascending corridor, 7. " Queen's chamber» with outgoing « air ducts ", 8. Horizontal tunnel, 9. Large gallery, 10. Pharaoh's chamber With " air ducts ", 11. Antechamber, 12. Grotto.

The entrance to the pyramid is at an altitude of 15.63 meters on the north side. The entrance is formed by stone slabs laid in the form of an arch. This entrance to the pyramid was sealed with a granite plug. A description of this stopper can be found in Strabo. Today tourists get inside the pyramid through a 17 m gap, which was made in 820 by Caliph Abu Jafar al-Ma'mun. He hoped to find the pharaoh's countless treasures there, but found only a layer of dust half a cubit thick there.. Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers . They are located one below the other - “ King's Chamber(Pharaoh)", " Queen's Chamber», Unfinished underground chamber – (Funeral « pit »).

Grotto, Great Gallery and Chambers (Chamber) of the Pharaoh with sarcophagus

Rice. 3. View King's Chambers ( Rice. 2. – point 10) with an empty sarcophagus. The precisely fitted flat granite blocks from which the walls, floor and ceiling of this room are made are clearly visible. The empty granite sarcophagus is located asymmetrically in relation to the dimensions of the room.

Rice. 4. Big slant Gallery(Fig. 2. – point 9), leading to “ Chamber of the King (Pharaoh)"(Fig. 2. - item 11 and item 10). The walls of the gallery are inclined, tapering upward and have symmetrical protruding ledges. On the right and left sides of the passage, rectangular grooves located at equal distances from each other are also clearly visible on the rectangular ledges. There are 28 pairs of these grooves in total. Since there are grooves, it means that something was definitely inserted there and, probably, was removed. However, the grooves could also perform another function, about which, unfortunately, nothing is known yet.

Another branch from the lower part of the Great Gallery is a narrow, almost vertical shaft about 60 m high, leading to the lower part of the descending passage. There is an assumption that it was intended to evacuate workers or priests who were completing “ sealing " main passage to " King's Chamber" Approximately in the middle there is a small, most likely natural expansion - “ Grotto» ( Grotto) of irregular shape, in which several people could fit at most. Grotto– (Fig. 2 - (12)) located on “ junction» stone masonry pyramid and a small, about 9 meters high, hill on a limestone plateau lying at the base of the Great Pyramid. The walls of the Grotto are partially reinforced by ancient masonry, and since some of its stones are too large, there is an assumption that the Grotto existed on the Giza plateau as an independent structure long before the construction of the pyramids, and the evacuation shaft itself was built taking into account the location of the Grotto. However, taking into account the fact that the shaft was hollowed out in the already laid masonry, and not laid out, as evidenced by its irregular circular cross-section, the question arises of how the builders managed to accurately reach the Grotto.

Big Gallery

Rice. 5. Black and white shot of the beginning Great gallery ( Rice. 2. - item 9) with a high step at which the fellah stands. On the right and left, rectangular grooves are clearly visible along the lower part of the side walls of the gallery. 1910

The large gallery continues the ascending passage. Its height is 8.53 m, it is a rectangular cross-section, with walls slightly tapering upward (the so-called “false vault”), a high inclined tunnel 46.6 m long. In the middle Great gallery along almost the entire length, there is a square recess with a regular cross-section measuring 1 meter wide and 60 cm deep, and on both side protrusions there are 27 pairs of indentations of unknown purpose. The recess ends with the so-called. " Big step" - a high horizontal ledge, a platform of 1x2 meters, at the end of the Great Gallery, immediately in front of the hole in " hallway » - Prechamber ( Tsar) (Fig. 2 – item 11). The platform has a pair of ramp recesses, similar to the recesses, in the corners near the wall ( 28th and last pair of recesses BG.). Through the “hallway” a hole leads into the burial “Tsar’s Chamber” lined with black granite, where an empty granite sarcophagus is located.

Above the “Tsar’s Chamber” are discovered in the 19th century. five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m, between which lie monolithic slabs about 2 m thick, and above there is a gable ceiling. Their purpose is to distribute the weight of the overlying layers of the pyramid (about a million tons) in order to protect the “King’s Chamber” from pressure. In these voids, graffiti was discovered, probably left by workers.

Rice. 6. Isometric plan with sections Tsar's chambers. On the left you can see the upper end of the inclined Galleries with grooves on the sides, a rectangular step in front of the entrance and a hole into the King's chamber. Bottom right King's chamber granite sarcophagus on the right side of the chamber Tsar. To the right there is a rectangular shaft above the sarcophagus, which ends with a unloading gable " roof "made of granite blocks - "Above the "Tsar's Chamber" are discovered in the 19th century. five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m, between which lie monolithic slabs about 2 m thick, and above there is a gable ceiling.”

Rice. 7. Black and white photo " entrance and manhole"from inside the King's chamber. 1910

Ascending Corridor and Queen's Chambers

From the first third of the descending passage (18 m from the main entrance), an ascending passage goes up at the same angle of 26.5° to the south (Fig. 2. - p. 6 ) about 40 m long, ending at the bottom of the Great Gallery (Fig. 2. - p. 9 ).

Rice. 8. At its beginning, the ascending passage contains 3 large cubic granite “plugs”, which from the outside, from the descending passage, were masked by a block of limestone that fell out accidentally during the work of Al-Mamun - (Fig. 2 - item 3) Thus, the previous ones are approximately For 3 thousand years it was believed that there were no other rooms in the Great Pyramid except the descending passage and the underground chamber. Al-Ma'mun was unable to break through these plugs and simply carved out a bypass to the right of them in the softer limestone. This passage is still in use today. There are two main theories about traffic jams, one of them is based on the fact that the ascending passage has traffic jams installed at the beginning of construction and, therefore, this passage was sealed by them from the very beginning. The second claims that the current narrowing of the walls was caused by an earthquake, and the plugs were previously located within the Great Gallery and were used to seal the passage only after the funeral of the pharaoh. An important mystery of this section of the ascending passage is that in the place where the plugs are now located, in the full-size, albeit shortened model of the pyramid passages - the so-called. test corridors north of the Great Pyramid - there is a junction of not two, but three corridors at once, the third of which is a vertical tunnel. Since no one has yet been able to move the plugs, the question of whether there is a vertical hole above them remains open. In the middle of the ascending passage, the design of the walls has a peculiarity: in three places the so-called “frame stones” are installed - that is, the passage, square along its entire length, pierces through three monoliths. The purpose of these stones is unknown.

A horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high leads to the second burial chamber from the lower part of the Great Gallery in a southerly direction. The second chamber is traditionally called« Queen's chamber“, although according to the ritual the wives of the pharaohs were buried in separate small pyramids. " Queen's chamber", lined with limestone, measures 5.74 meters from east to west and 5.23 meters from north to south; her maximum height 6.22 meters. There is a high niche in the eastern wall of the chamber.

Rice. 9. Isometric plan with sections Queen's chambers(Fig. 2 - item 7). Shown on the left stepped niche in the cell wall. On the right is the horizontal entrance to the Queen's chamber. Above the walls of the Queen's chamber there are stone blocks in the form of a gable roof to relieve pressure on the chamber. The “air ducts” coming out of the chamber are shown schematically.

Rice. 10. Login type into a stepped niche from Queen's chambers(Fig. 2 - item 7).

Rice. 11. Black and white image of the entrance to the Queen’s chamber from the inclined Gallery (Fig. 2 - item 8). 1910

Ventilation ducts

From " King's Chambers"(Fig. 2 - item 10) and " Queen's Chambers"(Fig. 2 - point 7) the so-called " ventilation » the channels are 20-25 cm wide in diameter. At the same time, the channels « King's Chambers», known since the 17th century, end-to-end, they are open both below and above (on the edges of the pyramid), while the lower ends of the channels " Queen's Chambers» separates about 13 cm from the surface of the wall; they were discovered by tapping in 1872. The upper ends of these channels do not reach the surface of the side faces of the Cheops pyramid. The end of the southern channel is closed with stone " doors", discovered in 1993 using the remote-controlled robot Upout II. In 2002, with the help new modification robot " door" was drilled, but behind it a small cavity and another " door». What's next is still unknown. Currently, versions are being expressed that the purpose of “ ventilation » channels is of a religious nature and is associated with Egyptian ideas about the afterlife journey of the soul.

Funeral "pit"

A descending corridor 105 m long, going at an inclination of 26° 26'46, leads to a horizontal corridor (Fig. 2. - point 4) 8.9 m long, leading to the chamber (Fig. 2. - point 5), which was named Funeral "pit". Situated below ground level, in a rocky limestone bedrock, it remained unfinished. The dimensions of the chamber are 14x8.1 m, it extends from east to west. The height of the chamber reaches 3.5 m. At the southern wall of the chamber there is a well about 3 m deep, from which a narrow manhole (0.7 × 0.7 m in cross-section) stretches southward for 16 m, ending in a dead end. Engineers John Shae Perring and Howard Vyse in the early 19th century dismantled the floor of the cell and dug a deep well 11.6 m deep, in which they hoped to discover hidden burial room. They were based on the testimony of Herodotus, who claimed that the body of Cheops was on an island surrounded by a canal in a hidden underground chamber. Their excavations came to nothing. Later research showed that the camera was abandoned unfinished, and burial chambers it was decided to arrange it in the center of the pyramid itself.

Rice. 12. Black and white image of the interior " underground» cameras. 1910. On the left you can see half the body of a fellah leaning out of the passage into the cell.”

A COMMENT:

Now we can show on the plan the Pyramid of Cheops in the matrix of the Universe the position “ Libra in h ale Judgment Maat over the hearts of Ab (Ab)Living creatures" Figure 13 shows a cross-section of the Cheops pyramid according to Weiss. It is more accurate than the one shown in Figure 2 from the free encyclopedia Wikipedia.

Rice. 13. Section of a pyramid Cheops (Khufu, Khufu) in Giza. According to Weiss.

Rice. 14. The figure shows the result of combining a section of the Cheops pyramid (according to Weiss) in Giza with “ energy matrix of the universe "or simply the matrix of the Universe. This drawing is similar to Figure 8 from our work - Amun-Ra discovered the secret of the original floor plan in the Cheops pyramid. All the main elements of the section of the Cheops pyramid are located in the Lower World of the matrix of the Universe. The top of the vault above The King's Chamber" aligned with the third position from the left on the 7th level, base " King's Chambers"with a sarcophagus combined with the 10th level. Base " Queen's Chambers» – with the 12th level, the base of the pyramid – with the 14th level. Passage to the gallery - from level 13, passage to " Lower horizon"in the rocky base of the pyramid - with the 14th level, and the " Lower horizon"combined with the 17th level of the Lower World of the matrix. The remaining elements of combining the cross-sectional plan of the pyramid with the matrix of the Universe are clearly visible in the figure. Angles of inclination of the side of the pyramid Khufu and the matrix pyramids are clearly different. Right side of the pyramid section Khufu is directed to the north, and the left side is directed to the south.

Now the Egyptian pattern of weighing the heart is compatible with the matrix of the Universe Ab from our work - The Mystery of the Tombstone of the Italian sculptor Antonio Canova together with a plan of the section of the pyramid Khufu, which is shown in the previous Figure 14.

In the well-known Egyptian The myth of Osiris « Council of the Gods"in the retinue of Osiris ( Asar) was called – “ Pout – Paut" Their total number was - 42. « Council of the Gods“helped Osiris analyze and evaluate the affairs of a deceased person during his life. The number 42 exactly corresponds to the sum of the “positions” of levels 13, 14 and 15 – 13+14+15 = 42 – The lower world of the matrix of the Universe. In the same area of the matrix of the Universe was located “ Double Hall » Maati (goddess of truth and truth), where “ heart » – Ab – Ab – (aspects of a creature's soul). On one pan of the scales there was placed Maati feather, and on the other side of the scale was placed “ heart » Ab. If " heart » Ab it turned out to be harder" feather Maati ", or Maat herself with open hands on the scales, ( the creature sinned a lot), then this is the heart " ate " creature Ammit with the head and half of the body of a crocodile, and the back half the body of a hippopotamus.

Rice. 15. Ancient Egyptian scene painting " weighing the heart » « Ab" On the left is the goddess of truth and righteousness - Maat. On the right is the god of wisdom Thoth. Below is Ammit.

Rice. 16. The figure shows the result of joint combination of the pyramid plan in the matrix of the Universe Khufu and Egyptian scene drawing " weighing the heart » « Ab" It is clearly visible that the vertical axis of the scales is aligned with the vertical axis of the matrix pyramid and the section of the Khufu pyramid, and the transverse crossbar of the scales is aligned with the 14th level of the Lower World of the matrix of the Universe, which is also the base of the Khufu pyramid on the rocky plateau. The remaining alignment details are visible in the figure.

Now let’s write the word on top of this picture in Egyptian hieroglyphs Paut, which will show us the location area in the matrix of the 42 gods - advisors to Osiris.

Rice. 17. The figure shows the recording of the word WEB – PAUT Egyptian hieroglyphs into the Lower World of the matrix of the Universe, which “ will determine Osiris (Asar). The lower hieroglyph is in the form of a “circle with a square inside” “ defines "in the matrix of the Universe, the area where the 42 gods - advisors are located Osiris (Asar). Hieroglyph T(t) combined with the Queen's camera. Hieroglyph U(U) practically occupied the entire space from the base of the King's chamber to the sharp top of the rectangular shaft above the sarcophagus in the King's chamber. The mine ends with an unloading gable " roof "made of granite blocks - "Above the "Tsar's Chamber" are discovered in the 19th century. five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m, between which lie monolithic slabs about 2 m thick, and above there is a gable ceiling.” The position of the remaining hieroglyphs is clearly visible in the figure. If we assume that the word Pout (Paut) was for the priests of Egypt one of the " prayer words » inside the Cheops pyramid, for example, when they were indoors Tsar's chambers in front of the sarcophagus, which could simply be open, then such a ritual can be called an appeal to advice 42 gods - assistants of Osiris (Asar). Wherein Pyramid of Khufu, How " resonant device "in its likeness translated the words of the prayer into the matrix of the Universe. If we add the Egyptian word to the words of the prayer appeal of the priests Paauta, meaning like " creature male" and " creature woman"(Fig. 13) from our work - Who are you Russians, and we know who they are! , then you get the following meaningful prayer appeal, for example, “ We pray to Osiris and his council of gods (Pout) about sending forgiveness and blessing to the soul of the King - Pharaoh and/or to his close associates for future incarnation into a human being - (Paauta)". Wherein Khufu's pyramid again, How " resonant device "in its likeness translated the words of the prayer into the matrix of the Universe. Although our assumption seems fantastic, it may correspond to the true state of affairs, and determine the real purpose of construction pyramids of Khufu. Probably other Egyptian pyramids too. This is indicated by the surprisingly accurate results of combining the plan of the Khufu pyramid, Egyptian drawings and Egyptian words written in hieroglyphs in the matrix of the Universe. Additional " resonant devices ", which could be installed in the grooves of the inclined Gallery, strengthened " Effect "such a connection. Thus, all Pyramid of Khufu and its specific interior spaces constituted a single resonant device " to contact " subtle worlds of the Universe "and their inhabitants. Priests ancient egypt were wise scientists, possessed sacred knowledge, and probably knew how to work with it even “ hermetically sealed » « resonant device " Today subject to availability large quantity « destruction - changes in the parameters of the resonant device "its quality may be " impaired or deteriorated ».

Figure 18 shows the result of writing the word Paauta - “male being” in Egyptian hieroglyphs into the matrix of the Universe and comparing it with the writing in Sanskrit of the word Jiva Loka - “ Jiv space - Shower"in the matrix of the Universe.

Rice. 18. This is how the Egyptian priests understood what “ Creature Man" The picture on the right shows an ancient hieroglyphic inscription Paut – Paauta – Paauta – « Creature Man" It was enough to change the last hieroglyph to the image of a woman and the hieroglyphic entry would read: “ Creature Woman", and it would sound the same - Paut – Paauta – Paauta. On the left in the figure is the word written in Sanskrit - Jeeva Loka- space Shower – Jeev in the matrix of the Universe. Comparing the hieroglyphic notation on the right and the Sanskrit notation on the left, we see that the upper hieroglyph Pa (Pa) in the form of a bird with open wings means opportunity Souls - Jivas rise above the previous space and rush further into the Upper World of the matrix of the Universe. Egyptian priests knew about this possibility for Souls - Jivas, which the Lord gave her, and reflected it in hieroglyphic text.

Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu) - the largest of the Egyptian pyramids, the only one of the “Seven Wonders of the World” that has survived to this day. It is assumed that construction, which lasted twenty years, began around 2560 BC. e. Dozens of Egyptian pyramids are known. On the Giza plateau, the largest of them are the pyramids of Cheops (Khufu), Khafre (Khafre) and Mikerin (Menkaure). Architect Great Pyramid Hemiun, vizier and nephew of Cheops, is considered. He also bore the title "Manager of all Pharaoh's construction projects." More three thousand years (before construction cathedral in Lincoln, England, around 1300), the pyramid was the tallest building on Earth.

Seyyid Abdel-Aziz, governor of the Giza province, proposed setting an official date for the start of construction of the Cheops Pyramid to create a national Egyptian holiday. Based on a number of mathematical and astronomical studies, the date was named August 23, 2470 BC. e. Now this day will become the national day of Giza, and the image of the pyramid will adorn the coat of arms of this province. However, this date should not be considered true. historical event, since there is no serious evidence, and the sources are so scarce that Egyptologists cannot even agree on exactly what year construction began.

Statistical data

Height (today): ≈ 138.75 m
Angle: 51° 50"
Side length (original): 230.33 m (calculated) or about 440 Royal cubits
Side length (currently): about 225 m
The length of the sides of the base of the pyramid: south - 230.454 m; north - 230.253 m; west - 230.357 m; east - 230.394 m.
Foundation area (initially): ≈ 53,000 m² (5.3 ha)
Area of the pyramid: (initially) ≈ 85,500 m²
Perimeter: 922 m.
Total volume of the pyramid without deducting the cavities inside the pyramid (initially): ≈ 2.58 million m³
Total volume of the pyramid, after subtracting all known cavities (initially): 2.50 million m³
Average size of observed stone blocks: 1.0 m in width, height and depth (but most are rectangular in shape.)
Average weight of stone blocks: 2.5 tons
Heaviest stone block: 15 t
Number of blocks: about 2.5 million.
According to estimates, the total weight of the pyramid: about 6.25 million tons
The base of the pyramid rests on a natural rocky elevation in the center about 9 m high.

Data

Location Giza
Customer Cheops (Χέωψ or Σοῦφις)
Construction time IV Dynasty (~2560 to ~2540 BC)
Type Pyramid
Construction material Limestone
Base size 230 m
Height (originally) 146.60 m
Height (today) 138.75 m
Tilt 51° 50"
Cult pyramid no

About the pyramid

The pyramid is called "Akhet-Khufu" - "Horizon of Khufu" (or more accurately "Related to the sky - (it is) Khufu"). Consists of blocks of limestone, basalt and granite. It was built on a natural hill. Despite the fact that the Cheops pyramid is the tallest and most voluminous of all the Egyptian pyramids, yet Pharaoh Snofru built the pyramids in Meidum and Dakhshut (Broken Pyramid and Pink pyramid), the total mass of which is estimated at 8.4 million tons. This means that 2.15 million tons were used to build these pyramids. or 25.6% more material than was required for the Cheops pyramid.

Initially, the pyramid was lined with white limestone, which was harder than the main blocks. The top of the pyramid was crowned with a gilded stone - the pyramidion. The facing shone in the Sun with a peach color, like “a shining miracle to which the Sun God Ra himself seemed to give all his rays.” In 1168 AD. e. The Arabs sacked and burned Cairo. Residents of Cairo removed the cladding from the pyramid in order to build new houses.

Pyramid structure

The entrance to the pyramid is at an altitude of 15.63 meters on the north side. The entrance is formed by stone slabs laid in the form of an arch. This entrance to the pyramid was sealed with a granite plug. A description of this plug can be found in Strabo. Today, tourists get inside the pyramid through a 17 m gap, which was made by Caliph Abu Jafar al-Ma'mun in 820. He hoped to find the pharaoh's countless treasures there, but found there only a layer of dust half a cubit thick.
Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers, located one above the other.

1. Main entrance
2. The entrance made by Al-Mamun
3. Crossroads, "traffic jam" and the Al-Mamun tunnel made "bypass"
4. Descending corridor
5. Unfinished underground chamber
6. Ascending corridor 7. “Queen’s chamber” with outgoing “air ducts”
8. Horizontal tunnel
9. Large gallery
10. Pharaoh's chamber with "air ducts"
11. Prechamber
12. Grotto

Burial pit

A 105 m long descending corridor running at an inclination of 26° 26'46 leads to an 8.9 m long horizontal corridor leading to chamber 5. Situated below ground level, in a limestone bedrock, it was left unfinished. The dimensions of the chamber are 14x8.1 m, it extends from east to west. The height reaches 3.5 m. At the southern wall of the chamber there is a well about 3 m deep, from which a narrow manhole (0.7 × 0.7 m in cross-section) stretches in a southern direction for 16 m, ending in a dead end. Engineers John Shae Perring and Howard Vyse at the beginning of the 19th century dismantled the floor of the chamber and dug a deep well 11.6 m deep, in which they hoped to discover a hidden burial chamber. They were based on the testimony of Herodotus, who claimed that the body of Cheops was on an island surrounded by a canal in a hidden underground chamber. Their excavations came to nothing. Later studies showed that the chamber was abandoned unfinished, and it was decided to build the burial chambers in the center of the pyramid itself.

Ascending Corridor and Queen's Chambers

From the first third of the descending passage (18 m from the main entrance), an ascending passage (6) about 40 m long goes up at the same angle of 26.5° to the south, ending at the bottom of the Great Gallery.

At its beginning, the ascending passage contains 3 large cubic granite stone “plugs”, which from the outside, from the descending passage, were disguised by a block of limestone that fell out accidentally during the work of Al-Mamun. Thus, for the previous approximately 3 thousand years, it was believed that there were no other rooms in the Great Pyramid other than the descending passage and the underground chamber. Al-Ma'mun was unable to break through these plugs and simply carved out a bypass to the right of them in the softer limestone. This passage is still in use today. There are two main theories about traffic jams, one of them is based on the fact that the ascending passage has traffic jams installed at the beginning of construction and, therefore, this passage was sealed by them from the very beginning. The second claims that the current narrowing of the walls was caused by an earthquake, and the plugs were previously located within the Great Gallery and were used to seal the passage only after the funeral of the pharaoh.

An important mystery of this section of the ascending passage is that in the place where the plugs are now located, in the full-size, albeit shortened model of the pyramid passages - the so-called. test corridors north of the Great Pyramid - there is a junction of not two, but three corridors at once, the third of which is a vertical tunnel. Since no one has yet been able to move the plugs, the question of whether there is a vertical hole above them remains open.

In the middle of the ascending passage, the design of the walls has a peculiarity: in three places the so-called “frame stones” are installed - that is, the passage, square along its entire length, pierces through three monoliths. The purpose of these stones is unknown.

A horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high leads to the second burial chamber from the lower part of the Great Gallery in a southerly direction. The second chamber is traditionally called the “Queen’s Chamber,” although according to the ritual the wives of the pharaohs were buried in separate small pyramids. The Queen's Chamber, lined with limestone, measures 5.74 meters from east to west and 5.23 meters from north to south; its maximum height is 6.22 meters. There is a high niche in the eastern wall of the chamber.

Drawing of the chamber Drawing of the grotto Ventilation Granite Niche in the wall

channel in the chamber chamber plug

Grotto, Grand Gallery and Pharaoh's Chambers

Another branch from the lower part of the Great Gallery is a narrow, almost vertical shaft, about 60 m high, leading to the lower part of the descending passage. There is an assumption that it was intended to evacuate workers or priests who were completing the “sealing” of the main passage to the “King’s Chamber.” Approximately in the middle of it there is a small, most likely natural extension - the “Grotto” (Grotto) of irregular shape, in which several people could fit at most. The grotto is located at the “junction” of the masonry of the pyramid and a small, about 9 meters high, hill on the limestone plateau lying at the base of the Great Pyramid. The walls of the Grotto are partially reinforced by ancient masonry, and since some of its stones are too large, there is an assumption that the Grotto existed on the Giza plateau as an independent structure long before the construction of the pyramids, and the evacuation shaft itself was built taking into account the location of the Grotto. However, taking into account the fact that the shaft was hollowed out in the already laid masonry, and not laid out, as evidenced by its irregular circular cross-section, the question arises of how the builders managed to accurately reach the Grotto.

Above the “Tsar’s Chamber” are discovered in the 19th century. five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m, between which lie monolithic slabs about 2 m thick, and above there is a gable ceiling. Their purpose is to distribute the weight of the overlying layers of the pyramid (about a million tons) to protect the “King’s Chamber” from pressure. In these voids, graffiti was found, probably left by workers.

Large gallery Pharaoh's Chamber

Ventilation ducts

Tilt angle

It is not possible to accurately determine the initial parameters of the pyramid, since its edges and surfaces are currently for the most part dismantled and destroyed. This makes it difficult to calculate the exact angle of inclination. In addition, its symmetry itself is not ideal, so deviations in the numbers are observed with different measurements. In the literature on Egyptology, Peter Jánosi, Mark Lehner, Miroslav Verner, Zahi Hawass and Alberto Siliotti came to the same results in measurements. They believed that the length of the sides could be from 230.33 to 230.37 m. Knowing the length of the side and the angle at the base, they calculated the height of the pyramid - from 146.59 to 146.60 m. The slope of the pyramid is 51° 50", which corresponds to A sekedu of 5 1/2 palms, an ancient Egyptian unit of measurement of slope, which is defined as the ratio of half the base to the height. Considering that there are 7 palms in one cubit (cubit), it turns out that with this chosen sekeda the ratio of the base to the height is equal to 22/ 7, a well-known approximation of the number Pi since ancient times, which, apparently, happened by chance, since other pyramids had different values for the second.

Geometric study of ventilation tunnels

A study of the geometry of the Great Pyramid does not provide a clear answer to the question of the original proportions of this structure. It is assumed that the Egyptians had an idea of the “Golden Section” (“nombre d’or”) and the number π (“Pi”), which were reflected in the proportions of the pyramid: for example, the ratio of the height to half the perimeter of the base is 14/11 (height = 280 cubits, and base = 2x220 cubits; 280/220 = 14/11). For the first time in history, these values were used in the construction of the pyramid at Meidum. However, for pyramids of later eras, these proportions were not used anywhere else, as, for example, some have height-to-base ratios, such as 6/5 (Pink Pyramid), 4/3 (Pyramid of Khafre) or 7/5 (Broken Pyramid).

Some theories consider the pyramid to be an astronomical observatory. It is argued that the corridors of the pyramid accurately point towards the “polar star” of that time - Thuban, the ventilation corridors on the south side - to the star Sirius, and on the north side - to the star Alnitak..

Pyramid of Cheops (Khufu)

The Cheops Pyramid is part of the complex of the largest Egyptian pyramids located on the Giza Plateau. This grandiose structure, together with the pyramids of Khafre and Mikerin, as well as the majestic Sphinx, makes up the so-called pyramid complex at Giza. As many scientists believe, the location of the pyramids and the Sphinx inside this complex is by no means accidental, and is due not only to the desire of the ancient builders to create a holistic composition from these grandiose structures.

One of the earliest hypotheses considered the Egyptian (and other) pyramids as tombs, hence the names: the king's (pharaoh's) chamber and the queen's chamber. However, according to many modern Egyptologists, The Cheops pyramid was never used as a tomb, but had a completely different purpose.

Some Egyptologists believe that the pyramid is a repository of the standards of ancient weights and measures, as well as a model of the known linear and time measurements that are characteristic of the Earth and are based on the principle of rotation of the polar axis. It is considered confirmed that the one (or those) who supervised the construction of the pyramid had absolutely accurate knowledge of such things that were discovered by mankind much later. These include: the circumference of the globe, the longitude of the year, the average value of the Earth's orbit as it rotates around the Sun, the specific density of the globe, the acceleration of gravity, the speed of light and much more. And all this knowledge, one way or another, is supposedly contained in the pyramid.

It is believed that the pyramid is a kind of calendar. It has almost been proven that it serves as both a theodolite and a compass, and with such accuracy that the most modern compasses can be checked with it.

Another hypothesis believes that not only the parameters of the pyramid itself, but also its individual structures contain many important mathematical quantities and ratios, for example, the number “pi”, and the parameters of the king’s chamber combine “sacred” triangles with sides 3-4-5 . It is believed that the angles and angular coefficients of the pyramid reflect the most modern ideas about trigonometric values, and the contours of the pyramid include the proportions of the “golden section” with practical accuracy.

There is a hypothesis that considers the Cheops pyramid as an astronomical observatory, and according to another hypothesis, the Great Pyramid was used for initiation into the highest levels of secret knowledge, as well as for storing this knowledge. At the same time, the person initiated into secret knowledge, was located in a sarcophagus.

The official theory says that the architect of the Great Pyramid is Hemiun, the vizier and nephew of Cheops. He also bore the title "Manager of all Pharaoh's construction projects." Construction under his leadership lasted twenty years and ended around 2540 BC. e. In Egypt, the date for the start of construction of the Cheops Pyramid is officially established and celebrated - August 23, 2470 BC. e.

However, there are other assumptions. Thus, the Arab historian Ibrahim bin ibn Wassuff Shah believed that the pyramids of Giza were built by an antediluvian king named Saurid. Abu Zeid el Bahi writes about an inscription which states that the Great Pyramid of Cheops was built about 73,000 years ago. Ibn Batuta claimed (and not only he) that the pyramids were built by Hermes Trismegistus, etc. A very interesting hypothesis is that of the Russian scientist Sergei Proskuryakov, who believes that the pyramids were built by Aliens from Sirius and that the architect Hemiun himself was from Sirius. Vladimir Babanin also believes that the pyramids were built by Aliens from Sirius, and possibly from Dessa in the Cygnus constellation in ancient times, but during the time of Cheops the pyramids were restored.

The version that seems logical is that, in any case, the Pyramids were erected after the pole shift occurred on Earth, otherwise it would have been impossible to orient the Pyramids with such incredible accuracy with which they are located today.

Initially, the height of the Cheops pyramid was 146.6 meters. But time mercilessly dissolved 7 meters and 85 centimeters of this majestic structure. Simple calculations will show that the pyramid now has a height of 138 meters and 75 centimeters.

The perimeter of the pyramid is 922 meters, the base area is 53,000 square meters (comparable to the area of 10 football fields). Scientists calculated the total weight of the pyramid, which was more than 5 million tons.

The pyramid is made up of more than 2.2 million large stone blocks of limestone, granite and basalt, each weighing approximately 2.5 tons on average. There are a total of 210 rows of blocks in the pyramid. The heaviest block weighs about 15 tons. The base is a rocky elevation, the height of which is 9 meters. Initially, the surface of the pyramid was a smooth surface, because was covered with a special material.

Today, tourists get inside the pyramid through a 17m gap, which was made in 820 by Caliph Abu Jafar al-Ma'mun. He hoped to find the pharaoh's countless treasures there, but found there only a layer of dust half a cubit thick.

Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers, located one above the other.

When the sun moves around the pyramid, you can notice the unevenness of the walls - the concavity of the central part of the walls. This may be due to erosion or damage from falling stone cladding. It is also possible that this was specially done during construction.

31-03-2017, 22:01 |

The Pyramid of Cheops is the only one of the seven wonders of the world that has survived to this day. Weight 5 million tons, height 146 meters, age 4500 years. The construction of the Cheops pyramid is still shrouded in great mystery. Many scientists and Egyptologists make a number of assumptions about how it was possible to build such a massive structure at that time.

With the help of modern technology, one of the French architects managed to reproduce a fairly accurate picture. In general, the pyramids are a beautiful and mysterious sight. Massive pyramid structures - they were built without special techniques, only by the hands of the ancient Egyptians. This is very strange, and that is why it arouses such interest.

Construction of the ancient pyramids of Egypt

To clarify the whole picture, let's go back to the construction of the pyramids. this is a manifestation. They became the gates for all pharaohs from the world of the living to the eternal world of the dead. The most impressive of the pyramids were built by the Egyptians within one century. Initially, step pyramids were built, for example, the Djoser pyramid in Sakara.

But the first pyramid with smooth edges was built by the pharaoh from the IV dynasty Snofrom. He was the father of Cheops. The special cladding of the pyramids made them the earthly embodiment of the sun. Over time, however, the cladding was borrowed from us by the construction of temples and mosques. We can find such cladding only at the base of the Cheops pyramid and at the top of the Khafre pyramid.

The Pyramid of Khafre was the last great pyramid in Egyptian history. Then, after a century of grandiose construction, the whole country entered a difficult time for itself. A time of strife, climate change also occurred, and droughts began to occur very often. This led to the fact that during the troubled times of civil strife, the secrets of building the pyramid were lost.

Recently, archaeologists found a village; in their opinion, this is where the builders of the pyramid lived. This led to many discoveries. It became clear to Egyptologists how it happened - they lived quite well, had good housing and plenty of food, ate meat, bread, and drank beer. As it turned out, the builders did not show up. Previously, this was the dominant point of view.

Interestingly, the Cheops pyramid was the tallest in the world until the endXIX century Let us remember that its height was 146 meters. The burial chamber of the pyramid is lined with granite blocks, the weight of which is over 60 tons. This is all very strange and mysterious. How did they build the pyramids? The amazing height and granite blocks inside the Cheops pyramid are two big mysteries.

Pyramid of Cheops point of view on construction

Many have tried to uncover the secret of the construction of this. Herodotus in the 5th century BC. The idea of using wooden levers was put forward. Another idea is that there are mounds up to the top of the pyramid, or ramps on the outside in a spiral pattern. These hypotheses are very common in history classes. However, none of them contains a clear evidence base. There are no arguments that would allow us to say with 100% probability that this or that hypothesis is correct.

One French archaeologist came up with the idea that the construction of the pyramids took place from the inside using a spiral tunnel. Before this, he conducted a series of studies of all hypotheses and examined the drawings. Soon he made his guess about how they built it. First, he should have done a technical analysis of his assumption. That is, to develop a theory about how such construction was implemented in practice.

In order to prove this hypothesis, everything had to be calculated. It can be said with absolute certainty that the Egyptians did not build ring-shaped tunnels. But they definitely knew how to build structures at right angles. This is how the idea of building a ramp inside at an angle of 90 degrees came into development. If such a ramp existed, then it became possible to raise the blocks so high, even 146 meters.

Construction in detail of the pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops

So, the idea of internal ramps. The slope of the ramps should not exceed 7%, otherwise it is simply impossible to raise the blocks high. Special open areas were created at the turns. They made it possible to rotate the blocks in the desired direction and at the same time ventilate the tunnels. The ramp theory was good, but required proof.

To verify all calculations, it was necessary to enlist the support of prominent historians. The French architect began to look for interested Egyptologists. However, it was not possible to find anyone in France who would pay attention to his large-scale project. But one of the American Egyptologists responded to his proposal. Having met, the American was amazed by this theory.

Scientists go to the city to find proof of their theory. It is worth noting that the Cheops pyramid is a stunning sight. Tourists are allowed inside through a predatory passage. Exploring the pyramid from the inside, scientists tried to find at least some hints of an internal ramp. The joints between the blocks are amazing, they are simply perfect, there are no gaps.

If you move through the narrow passage under the ceiling of the gallery, it will lead to 5 layers of granite blocks. They form unloading strips above the king's chamber, which relieves the load from the ceiling of the lower chambers. If it were not for this system, the Pharaoh's chamber would have collapsed.

In addition, there is a special construction passage to the very top of the pyramid. It was there that scientists at the beginning of the 19th century. discovered the cartouche of Pharaoh Cheops. This is the main evidence that this is the pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops.

By the way, if you are a tourist and want to get acquainted with the treasures of the pharaohs, then you should go to the Cairo Museum. There are a million exhibits there that will tell you about ancient civilization Egypt. But only two exhibits are related to the pyramid of Cheops specifically - the ivory figurine of Cheops and the cedar sled. The Lebanese cedar sled allows us to understand how the pyramid was built.

Stages of pyramid construction

During the reign of Cheops, not a single Egyptian had any idea what a wheel was. Stone blocks were transported on cedar sleds. But, nevertheless, the Egyptians have achieved great success in terms of technology. The genius of the pyramid builders still amazes Egyptologists.

According to the theory of the French architect, there were two ramps. The first straight line goes from the base of the pyramid to the outside. It allows you to build the base of the pyramid and even more than half of the structure itself, while also building the pharaoh’s gallery. Then a second ramp was built, which was located inside the pyramid. According to the theory, after the construction of the 43-meter pyramid, blocks for the king’s chamber were raised onto its surface. Then the outer ramp was dismantled and a second inner ramp was built from these materials.

To prove this theory, you need to find the remains of a ramp inside. The Temple of the Sun was built not far from Cheops; it was built 100 years later. Interestingly, there is a passage inside, similar to an internal ramp. The temple itself would have been destroyed at the end of the 19th century, but there is a drawing of it. This is direct evidence that the Egyptians knew how to build such moves. Thus, there is a high probability that the same ramp was built in the Cheops pyramid.

Pyramid of Cheops and construction features

In order for the shape to be ideal, according to the scientist, the outer blocks were laid first. Accordingly, the internal blocks were laid later. This sequence made it possible to visually control the surface and slope angle of the building under construction. There is a broken pyramid in Dashur, its facing has been preserved. The thickness of the external cladding blocks is much greater than that of the internal blocks. This also speaks in favor of the fact that the external polished blocks were installed first, and then the internal ones.

So, the outer sanded blocks were laid, then another layer of blocks was laid horizontally, and the rest of the space was filled with rough blocks as filler. With this order of construction, it really could have been built within 20 years. This date is indicated in the texts of the ancient Egyptians.

On the Cheops pyramid, whitish lines are visible from the outside, one can assume that this is a ramp. Their latitude and slope correspond exactly to the figures in this theory. For accurate data, the pyramid needs to be scanned and if there are fluctuations in density, this will be the main evidence of the existence of the ramp. After the study, fluctuations were discovered. The vibrations formed a spiral shape. These results were obtained by a microgrammimetric study.

According to microgrammimetric study, the voids in the density of the pyramids formed a spiral shape. According to the data obtained, the voids occupied 15% of the total density of the Cheops pyramid. There is a notch on the northeastern edge of the pyramid; according to calculations, it runs right in the area of the ramp. Perhaps there was a construction site where the Egyptians unrolled the blocks. But it is difficult to explore this area, since after accidents it is forbidden to climb the pyramid.

The Pyramid of Cheops

But the authorities agreed to the meeting, and the Egyptologist and his assistant climbed up to take a closer look at the notch. However, it was not possible to detect any hint of a ramp. But research has definitely proven that there is a spiral cavity inside. Only here is another mystery - this is how the blocks for the king’s chamber were raised. After all, only small blocks can be lifted along the internal ramp, but how were the rest delivered... This is also a mystery question for now. If you build a pyramid, then the external ramp will not help deliver a 60-ton block to the top. This requires 600 people who would work synchronously. And this is practically impossible.

Thus, the assumption of an internal ramp in the form of a spiral is viable; moreover, this version is more suitable than others for the construction of pyramids. But there are some nuances that are still difficult to explain. Perhaps this will remain a mystery for many years to come.

Construction of the Cheops pyramid video

Base size 230 Height (original) 146,60 Height (today) 138,75 Incline 51° 50" Pyramids of Queens 3 Pyramid of Cheops at Wikimedia Commons

Age of the pyramid

The architect of the Great Pyramid is considered to be Hemiun, the vizier and nephew of Cheops. He also bore the title "Manager of all Pharaoh's construction projects." It is assumed that the construction, which lasted twenty years (during the reign of Cheops), ended around 2540 BC. e. .

Existing methods for dating the start of construction of the pyramid are divided into historical, astronomical and radiocarbon. In Egypt, the date for the start of construction of the Cheops Pyramid was officially established (2009) and celebrated - August 23, 2560 BC. e. This date was obtained using the astronomical method of Kate Spence (University of Cambridge). However, this method and the dates obtained with it have been criticized by many Egyptologists. Dates according to other dating methods: 2720 BC. e. (Stephen Hack, University of Nebraska), 2577 BC. e. (Juan Antonio Belmonte, University of Astrophysics in Canaris) and 2708 BC. e. (Pollux, Bauman University). Radiocarbon dating gives a range from 2680 BC. e. to 2850 BC e. Therefore, there is no serious confirmation of the established “birthday” of the pyramid, since Egyptologists cannot agree on exactly what year construction began.

First mention of the pyramid

The complete absence of mention of the pyramid in Egyptian papyri remains a mystery. The first descriptions are found in the Greek historian Herodotus (5th century BC) and in ancient Arab legends [ ] . Herodotus reported (at least 2 millennia after the appearance of the Great Pyramid) that it was built under a despot pharaoh named Cheops (Greek: Cheops). Koufou), who ruled for 50 years, that 100 thousand people were employed in construction. for twenty years, and that the pyramid is in honor of Cheops, but not his grave. The real grave is a burial near the pyramid. Herodotus gave erroneous information about the size of the pyramid, and also mentioned about the middle pyramid of the Giza plateau that it was built by the daughter of Cheops, who sold herself, and that each building stone corresponded to the man to whom she was given. According to Herodotus, if “to lift the stone, a long winding path to the grave was revealed,” without specifying which pyramid he was talking about; however, the pyramids of the Giza plateau did not have “winding” paths to the tomb at the time Herodotus visited them; on the contrary, the Descending Passage of BP Cheops is distinguished by careful straightforwardness. At that time, no other premises were known in the BP.

Appearance

Surviving fragments of the pyramid's cladding and the remains of the pavement surrounding the building

The pyramid is called "Akhet-Khufu" - "Horizon of Khufu" (or more accurately "Related to the firmament - (it is) Khufu"). Consists of limestone and granite blocks. It was built on a natural limestone hill. After the pyramid has lost several layers of cladding, this hill is partially visible on the eastern, northern and southern sides of the pyramid. Despite the fact that the Cheops pyramid is the tallest and most voluminous of all the Egyptian pyramids, Pharaoh Sneferu built the pyramids in Meidum and Dahshur (Broken Pyramid and Pink Pyramid), the total mass of which is estimated at 8.4 million tons.

Initially, the pyramid was lined with white limestone, which was harder than the main blocks. The top of the pyramid was crowned with a gilded stone - pyramidion (ancient Egyptian - “Benben”). The cladding shone in the sun with a peach color, like “a shining miracle to which the sun god Ra himself seemed to give all his rays.” In 1168, the Arabs sacked and burned Cairo. Residents of Cairo removed the cladding from the pyramid in order to build new houses.

Statistical data

Pyramid of Cheops in the 19th century

Map of the necropolis near the Cheops pyramid

Height (today): ≈ 136.5 m
Side angle (current): 51° 50"
Side rib length (original): 230.33 m (calculated) or about 440 royal cubits
Side fin length (current): approx. 225 m
The length of the sides of the base of the pyramid: south - 230.454 m; north - 230.253 m; west - 230.357 m; east - 230.394 m
Foundation area (initially): ≈ 53,000 m2 (5.3 ha)
Lateral surface area of the pyramid (initially): ≈ 85,500 m2
Base perimeter: 922 m
Total volume of the pyramid without deducting the cavities inside the pyramid (initially): ≈ 2.58 million m3
Total volume of the pyramid minus all known cavities (initially): 2.50 million m 3
Average volume of stone blocks: 1,147 m3
Average weight of stone blocks: 2.5 tons
The heaviest stone block: about 35 tons - is located above the entrance to the “King’s Chamber”.
The number of blocks of average volume does not exceed 1.65 million (2.50 million m³ - 0.6 million m³ of rock base inside the pyramid = 1.9 million m 3 /1.147 m 3 = 1.65 million blocks of the specified volume can physically fit in the pyramid , without taking into account the volume of mortar in interblock joints); referring to a 20-year construction period * 300 working days per year * 10 working hours per day * 60 minutes per hour leads to a speed of laying (and delivery to the construction site) of about a block of two minutes.
According to estimates, the total weight of the pyramid is about 4 million tons (1.65 million blocks x 2.5 tons)
The base of the pyramid rests on a natural rocky elevation about 12-14 m high in the center and, according to the latest data, occupies at least 23% of the original volume of the pyramid
The number of layers (tiers) of stone blocks is 210 (at the time of construction). Now there are 203 layers.

Concavity of the sides

Concavity of the sides of the Cheops pyramid

When the sun moves around the pyramid, you can notice an unevenness - a concavity in the central part of the walls. This may be due to erosion or damage from falling stone cladding. It is also possible that this was specially done during construction. As Vito Maragioglio and Celeste Rinaldi note, the pyramid of Mycerinus no longer has such concave sides. I.E.S. Edwards explains this feature by saying that the central part of each side was simply pressed inward over time by the large mass of stone blocks. [ ]

As in the 18th century, when this phenomenon was discovered, today there is still no satisfactory explanation for this architectural feature.

Observation of the concavity of the sides at the end of the 19th century, Description of Egypt

Tilt angle

It is not possible to accurately determine the original parameters of the pyramid, since its edges and surfaces are currently mostly dismantled and destroyed. This makes it difficult to calculate the exact angle of inclination. In addition, its symmetry itself is not ideal, so deviations in the numbers are observed with different measurements.

Geometric study of ventilation tunnels

A study of the geometry of the Great Pyramid does not provide a clear answer to the question of the original proportions of this structure. It is assumed that the Egyptians had an idea about the “Golden ratio" and the number pi, which were reflected in the proportions of the pyramid: thus, the ratio of height to base is 14/22 (height = 280 cubits, and base = 440 cubits, 280/440 = 14/ 22). For the first time in world history, these quantities were used in the construction of the pyramid at Meidum. However, for pyramids of later eras, these proportions were not used anywhere else, as, for example, some have height-to-base ratios, such as 6/5 (Pink Pyramid), 4/3 (Pyramid of Khafre) or 7/5 (Broken Pyramid).

Some of the theories consider the pyramid to be an astronomical observatory. It is argued that the corridors of the pyramid accurately point towards the “pole star” of that time - Thuban, the ventilation corridors on the south side point to the star Sirius, and on the north side to the star Alnitak.

Internal structure

Cross section of the Cheops pyramid:

The entrance to the pyramid is at an altitude of 15.63 meters on the north side. The entrance is formed by stone slabs laid in the form of an arch, but this is the structure that was inside the pyramid - the true entrance has not been preserved. The true entrance to the pyramid was most likely closed with a stone plug. A description of such a plug can be found in Strabo, and its appearance can also be imagined based on the preserved slab that covered the upper entrance to Bent pyramid Snefru, father of Cheops. Today, tourists get inside the pyramid through a 17-meter gap, which was made 10 meters lower by the Baghdad caliph Abdullah al-Mamun in 820. He hoped to find the pharaoh's countless treasures there, but found there only a layer of dust half a cubit thick.

Inside the Cheops pyramid there are three burial chambers, located one above the other.

Funeral "pit"

Underground Chamber Maps

A 105 m long descending corridor running at an inclination of 26° 26'46 leads to an 8.9 m long horizontal corridor leading to the chamber 5 . Situated below ground level in a limestone bedrock, it remained unfinished. The dimensions of the chamber are 14x8.1 m, it extends from east to west. The height reaches 3.5 m, the ceiling has a large crack. At the southern wall of the chamber there is a well about 3 m deep, from which a narrow manhole (0.7 × 0.7 m in cross-section) stretches in a southern direction for 16 m, ending in a dead end. At the beginning of the 19th century, engineers John Shae Perring and Richard William Howard Vyse cleared the floor of the chamber and dug a well 11.6 m deep, in which they hoped to discover a hidden burial chamber. They were based on the testimony of Herodotus, who claimed that the body of Cheops was on an island surrounded by a canal in a hidden underground chamber. Their excavations came to nothing. Later studies showed that the chamber was abandoned unfinished, and it was decided to build the burial chambers in the center of the pyramid itself.

Ascending Corridor and Queen's Chambers

From the first third of the descending passage (18 m from the main entrance), an ascending passage goes south at the same angle of 26.5° ( 6 ) about 40 m long, ending at the bottom of the Great Gallery ( 9 ).

At its beginning, the ascending passage contains 3 large cubic granite “plugs”, which from the outside, from the descending passage, were masked by a block of limestone that fell out during the work of al-Mamun. Thus, for the first 3000 years from the construction of the pyramid (including during the era of its active visits in Antiquity), it was believed that there were no other rooms in the Great Pyramid other than the descending passage and the underground chamber. Al-Mamun was unable to break through these plugs and simply hollowed out a bypass to the right of them in the softer limestone. This passage is still in use today. There are two main theories about the traffic jams, one of them is based on the fact that the ascending passage has traffic jams installed at the beginning of construction and thus this passage was sealed by them from the very beginning. The second argues that the current narrowing of the walls was caused by an earthquake, and the plugs were previously located within the Great Gallery and were used to seal the passage only after the funeral of the pharaoh.

An important mystery of this section of the ascending passage is that in the place where the traffic jams are now located, in the full-size, albeit shortened model of the pyramid passages - the so-called test corridors north of the Great Pyramid - there is a junction of not two, but three corridors at once, the third of which is a vertical tunnel. Since no one has yet been able to move the plugs, the question of whether there is a vertical hole above them remains open.

A horizontal corridor 35 m long and 1.75 m high leads to the second burial chamber from the lower part of the Great Gallery in a southerly direction. The walls of this horizontal corridor are made of very large limestone blocks, on which false “seams” are applied, imitating masonry from smaller blocks . Behind the western wall of the passage there are cavities filled with sand. The second chamber is traditionally called the “Queen’s Chamber,” although according to the ritual, the wives of the pharaohs were buried in separate small pyramids. The Queen's Chamber, lined with limestone, measures 5.74 meters from east to west and 5.23 meters from north to south; its maximum height is 6.22 meters. There is a high niche in the eastern wall of the chamber.

Drawing of the Queen's Chamber ( 7 )

Niche in the wall of the Queen's Chamber

Corridor at the entrance to the queen's hall (1910)

Entrance to the Queen's Chamber (1910)

Niche in the Queen's Chamber (1910)

Ventilation duct in the queen's chamber (1910)

Corridor to the ascending tunnel ( 12 )

Granite plug (1910)

Corridor to the ascending tunnel (on the left are closing blocks)

Grotto, Grand Gallery and Pharaoh's Chambers

Another branch from the lower part of the Great Gallery is a narrow, almost vertical shaft about 60 m high, leading to the lower part of the descending passage. There is an assumption that it was intended to evacuate workers or priests who were completing the “sealing” of the main passage to the “King’s Chamber.” Approximately in the middle of it there is a small, most likely natural extension - the “Grotto” (Grotto) of irregular shape, in which several people could fit at most. Grotto ( 12 ) is located at the “junction” of the masonry of the pyramid and a small, about 9 meters high, hill on the limestone plateau lying at the base of the Great Pyramid. The walls of the Grotto are partially reinforced by ancient masonry, and since some of its stones are too large, there is an assumption that the Grotto existed on the Giza plateau as an independent structure long before the construction of the pyramids, and the evacuation shaft itself was built taking into account the location of the Grotto. However, taking into account the fact that the shaft was hollowed out in the already laid masonry, and not laid out, as evidenced by its irregular circular cross-section, the question arises of how the builders managed to accurately reach the Grotto.

The large gallery continues the ascending passage. Its height is 8.53 m, it is rectangular in cross-section, with walls slightly tapering upward (the so-called “false vault”), a high inclined tunnel 46.6 m long. In the middle of the Great Gallery along almost the entire length there is a square recess with a regular cross-section measuring 1 meter wide and 60 cm deep, and on both side protrusions there are 27 pairs of recesses of unknown purpose. The recess ends with the so-called. “Big step” - a high horizontal ledge, a 1x2 meter platform at the end of the Great Gallery, immediately before the hole into the “hallway” - the Antechamber. The platform has a pair of ramp recesses similar to those in the corners near the wall (the 28th and last pair of BG recesses). Through the “hallway” a hole leads into the funeral “Tsar’s Chamber” lined with black granite, where an empty granite sarcophagus is located. The sarcophagus lid is missing. Ventilation shafts have mouths in the “King’s Chamber” on the southern and northern walls at a height of about a meter from the floor level. The mouth of the southern ventilation shaft is severely damaged, the northern one appears intact. The floor, ceiling, and walls of the chamber do not have any decorations or holes or fastening elements of anything dating back to the construction of the pyramid. The ceiling slabs have all burst along the southern wall and are not falling into the room only due to the pressure from the weight of the overlying blocks.

Above the “Tsar’s Chamber” there are five unloading cavities with a total height of 17 m discovered in the 19th century, between which lie monolithic granite slabs about 2 m thick, and above there is a gable roof made of limestone. It is believed that their purpose is to distribute the weight of the overlying layers of the pyramid (about a million tons) to protect the “King's Chamber” from pressure. In these voids, graffiti was discovered, probably left by workers.

Interior of the Grotto (1910)

Drawing of a Grotto (1910)

Drawing of the connection of the Grotto with the Great Gallery (1910)

Entrance to the Tunnel (1910)

View of the Great Gallery from the entrance to the room

Large gallery

Grand Gallery (1910)

Drawing of the Pharaoh's Chamber

Pharaoh's chamber

Pharaoh's Chamber (1910)

Interior of the vestibule in front of the Tsar's chamber (1910)

"Ventilation" channel at the southern wall of the king's room (1910)

Ventilation ducts

So-called “ventilation” channels 20-25 cm wide extend from the “Tsar’s Chamber” and “Queen’s Chamber” in the northern and southern directions (first horizontally, then obliquely upward). At the same time, the channels of the “Tsar’s Chamber,” known since the 17th century, through, they are open both below and above (on the edges of the pyramid), while the lower ends of the channels of the “Queen’s Chamber” are separated from the surface of the wall by about 13 cm; they were discovered by tapping in 1872. The upper ends of the Queen's Chamber shafts do not reach the surface by about 12 meters, and are closed by stone Gantenbrink Doors, each with two copper handles. The copper handles were sealed with plaster seals (not preserved, but traces remain). In the southern ventilation shaft, the “door” was discovered in 1993 with the help of the remote-controlled robot “Upout II”; the bend of the northern shaft did not allow Then detect the same “door” in it by this robot. In 2002, using a new modification of the robot, a hole was drilled in the southern “door,” but behind it a small cavity 18 centimeters long and another stone “door” were discovered. What lies next is still unknown. This robot confirmed the presence of a similar “door” at the end of the northern channel, but they did not drill it. In 2010, a new robot was able to insert a serpentine television camera into a drilled hole in the southern “door” and discovered that the copper “handles” on that side of the “door” were designed in the form of neat hinges, and individual red ocher icons were painted on the floor of the “ventilation” shaft. Currently, the most common version is that the purpose of the “ventilation” ducts was of a religious nature and is associated with the Egyptian ideas about the afterlife journey of the soul. And the “door” at the end of the channel is nothing more than a door to the afterlife. That is why it does not reach the surface of the pyramid. At the same time, the shafts of the upper burial chamber have through exits to the outside and inside the room; it is unclear whether this is due to some change in ritual; Since the outer few meters of the pyramid's lining have been destroyed, it is unclear whether there were "Gantenbrink Doors" in the upper shafts. (could have been in a place where the mine was not preserved). In the southern upper shaft there is a so-called “Cheops niches” are strange extensions and grooves that may have contained a “door”. There are no “niches” at all in the northern upper one.

How tall is the pyramid? The thousand-year-old mystery of the Cheops pyramid has been revealed

Construction of the ancient pyramids of Egypt

Pyramid of Cheops point of view on construction

Construction in detail of the pyramid of Pharaoh Cheops

Stages of pyramid construction

Pyramid of Cheops and construction features

The Pyramid of Cheops

Construction of the Cheops pyramid video

Age of the pyramid

First mention of the pyramid

Appearance

Statistical data

Concavity of the sides

Tilt angle

Internal structure

Funeral "pit"

Ascending Corridor and Queen's Chambers

Grotto, Grand Gallery and Pharaoh's Chambers

Ventilation ducts

History of research