Archaeologists Have Found Mysterious Structures Next To The Great Pyramid Of Giza

Even though Egypt's Great Pyramid of Giza is one of the world's most famous structures, there are still a ton of unsolved mysteries hidden beneath the surrounding sand. Now, next to the historic monument, archaeologists have discovered an enigmatic L-shaped building that they believe was constructed simultaneously, some 4,500 years ago.

The most remarkable thing is perhaps that there is another "anomaly" beneath this L-shaped feature, which may have been a chamber that led to the space below. By using ground-penetrating technology to examine the surface of Giza's Western Cemetery, a multinational team of researchers with bases in Egypt and Japan found the enigmatic structures.

High-ranking officials and members of King Khufu's royal family, for whom the Great Pyramid was constructed, were buried in aboveground tombs with flat roofs called "mastabas." Nonetheless, there is a section of the cemetery that appears oddly deserted and is encircled by these mastabas.

This led the researchers to look deeper below the surface using a method known as electrical resistivity tomography (ERT) in conjunction with ground penetrating radar (GPR). While GPR shoots radar into the ground and uses the bounce-back to map the underlying structures, ERT uses electrical currents to assess resistance and hence indicate the presence of underlying features.

Between 2021 and 2023, a thorough investigation of the region revealed the first abnormality about two meters (6.5 feet) below the surface.

The original survey area's approximate position is indicated by this red rectangle

Higashi Nippon International University

According to the team's investigation, which was published in the journal Archaeological Prospection, it looked to be an L-shaped building that was at least 10 meters (33 feet) long. The scientists concluded that it "seems to have been filled with sand" based on their measurements, indicating that it was filled in after it was constructed.

They described the deeper structure as a "highly resistive anomaly," which might be an air void or a mixture of gravel and sand. Additionally, the researchers observed that: “The structure causing the anomalies could be vertical walls of limestone or shafts leading to a tomb structure.”

The mysterious anomaly is being shown by the GPR scans

Higashi Nippon International University

“A more detailed survey would be required in order to confirm this possibility,” they conceded.

“We believe that the continuity of the shallow structure and the deep large structure is important,” they went further to add.

The study's first author, Motoyuki Sato of Tohoku University in Japan, told Live Science that excavations are currently underway to identify the precise nature of the L-shaped structure. According to Sato, he is certain that the structure is not a result of nature because "the shape is too sharp."

The Great Pyramid of Giza

Wikipedia

Harvard University Egyptology professor Peter Der Manuelian, who was not involved in the study, gave an explanation for why the potentially ground-breaking discovery has taken so long. This seemingly empty portion of the Western Cemetery "has avoided exploration due to the absence of superstructures," he told Live Science, despite being a "interesting area."

Der Manuelian further noted that although we are already aware of Giza's L-shaped buildings, which are chapels, these are usually located above ground. He said, "I'm not sure just what this anomaly represents yet."

He went furtherto add that it is definitely worth investigating further.