Mystery ‘L-shape’ structure found hidden beneath royal Giza cemetery near pyramids – and scientists say it’s not natural
ARCHEOLOGISTS are investigating a large, angular space discovered underground in an unexplored area of Egypt's most famous pyramids.
The Giza pyramid complex is the largest in the world, consisting of several ancient structures including the Great Pyramid, the Pyramid of Khafre, the Pyramid of Menkaure, and several smaller sites.
Dating back to at least 4,500 years ago, scientists believe that the Giza pyramids were built as a tribute to the gods of the time and mostly used for ceremonial purposes.
As an archeological haven for experts on ancient Egyptian life, several artifacts, tombs, burial chambers and cemeteries have been excavated in the area over the last two centuries.
But new and amazing discoveries still occur regularly at the site.
A collaborative team of Japanese and Egyptian scientists recently used new imaging technology to search for underground structures in Giza's western cemetery — and were stunned by what they found.
Using a technique called electrical resistivity tomography (ERT), the scientists were able to get a 3D image of the zone in question and identify an L-shaped "anomaly" measuring at least 33 feet long, according to a paper published May 5 in the journal .
The structure "seems to have been filled with sand, which means it was backfilled after it was constructed," the team wrote in the study.
"This anomaly extends to 3.5–10 m in depth and over a horizontal area of 10 m by 10 m," they explained.
Understanding the composition and dimensions of the anomaly is important for predicting whether it is man-made or just a naturally occurring phenomenon.
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"We believe that the continuity of the shallow structure and the deep large structure is important," scientists said.
"From the survey results, we cannot determine the material causing the anomaly, but it may be a large subsurface archaeological structure."
MORE INVESTIGATION NEEDED
The remote sensing work used in this study was carried out between 2021 and 2023 by a joint team of scientists from Higashi Nippon International and Tohoku Universities in Japan, and Egypt's National Research Institute of Astronomy and Geophysics.
Determining the origin or any further details about the L-shaped structure requires greater investigation, first author Motoyuki Sato of the Center for Northeast Asian Studies at Tohoku University told .
And more studies of the area are already underway, he said.
As to the question of whether the anomaly is natural or not, Sato had little doubt.
"The shape is too sharp" for it to be an environmental occurrence, he said.
NEW HORIZONS IN RESEARCH
Egyptologists were fascinated by the find too.
The newly found underground passage stands out from other studies because there is no evidence of a standing structure above ground.
Typically, most underground chambers in the Giza complex have been found underneath other ruins, Peter Der Manuelian, a professor of Egyptology at Harvard University who was not involved in the study, told Live Science.
"It's an interesting area, one that has avoided exploration due to the absence of superstructures," he said.
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He said there are other L-shaped structures at Giza, now known to be offering chapels, but they are usually aboveground.
"I'm not sure just what this anomaly represents yet, but it is certainly worthy of further exploration," he added.
A brief history of Ancient Egypt
Here's everything you need to know...
- The Ancient Egyptians were an advanced civilization who at one point owned a huge portion of the globe
- The civilization began about 5,000 years ago when ancient humans began building villages along the River Nile
- It lasted for about 3,000 years and saw the building of complex cities centuries ahead of their time – as well as the famous Great Pyramids
- The Ancient Egyptians were experts at farming and construction
- They invented a solar calendar, and one of the world’s earliest writing systems: The hieroglyph
- The Egyptians were ruled by kings and queens called pharaohs
- Religion and the afterlife were a huge part of Ancient Egyptian culture. They had over 2,000 gods
- Pharaohs built huge elaborate tombs to be buried in, some of which were pyramids – at the time among the largest buildings in the world
- The Egyptians believed in life after death, and important people’s corpses were mummified to preserve their bodies for the afterlife
- The Ancient Egyptian empire fell due to a mix of factors, including wars with other empires and a 100-year period of drought and starvation