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Pyramids of Egypt
The discovery of two cavities measuring more than 1 meter in the Pyramid of Menkaurenos could be a sign that there is a secret entrance on the east side.
A team of Egyptian and German researchers discovered two mysterious cavities on the eastern side of the Pyramid of Menkaure, the smallest of the three famous pyramids on the Giza Plateau in Egypt. The discovery suggests the possibility of a second entrance to the 4,000-year-old monument, according to what was published in the October edition of NDT & E International magazine.
Built during the reign of pharaoh Miccherinos (circa 2490–2472 BC), the pyramid was originally around 65 meters high and is the most recent of the Giza trio. Its main known entrance is on the north face, as is the case with almost all Old Kingdom pyramids. However, the eastern side of the Pyramid of Micherinus has long intrigued archaeologists due to a limestone block section highly polished.
“The stones are remarkably polished in an area about four meters high by six meters wide,” the research team noted in a . “Such smooth stones can only be found at what is currently the only entrance to the pyramid.” This unusual feature led some to suspect that another entry could be hidden beneath the surface.
In 2019, independent investigator Stijn van den Hoven proposed that a hidden entrance could be located beneath the polished stones. To test this theory, scientists from Cairo University and the Technical University of Munich, working under the long-running Scan Pyramids project, carried out a series of non-invasive surveys over three yearsincluding electrical resistivity, ground penetrating radar and ultrasonic testing.
By combining these methods, the team identified two adjacent cavities just behind the east face: one about 1.4 meters deep and the other about 1.13 meters. Although the exact nature of these cavities remains uncertain, they support van den Hoven’s hypothesis and may be a sign of a previously unknown passage or chamber.
