Uncover the Mystery of the Pyramids
A scavenger hunt in Go Inside the Great Pyramid of Giza
Made by member-47f4aa
The Robbers' Tunnel Threshold
Your hunt begins high on the northern face of the Great Pyramid of Khufu, looking out over the sunlit limestone blocks of the Giza Plateau. Directly behind you lies the rough-hewn tunnel chiseled by workers in the ninth century to bypass the sealed original doorway. The first of twelve ancient relics waits just inside that shaded entrance.
Al-Ma'mun's Chiseled Bend
Deep inside the forced tunnel, the rough walls show the marks of chisels and fire used to break through solid core masonry. Ahead, a heavy stone pier divides the cavern where the tunnel turns sharply to meet the pyramid's internal corridors. A sacred beetle hides along the lower rock shelf near your feet.
The Granite Plug Junction
Worn stone steps climb past the junction where the forced tunnel breaks into the pyramid's original passage system. Above these steps sit three massive blocks of red Aswan granite slid down in antiquity to seal the way to the upper chambers. Look closely at the carved limestone wall beside the wooden ramp for a protective symbol.
The Upper Descending Passage
This straight, narrow corridor plunges into the pyramid at a precise twenty-six-degree angle toward the bedrock below. Looking down the wooden ramp, you can see how true the ancient masons kept the walls over more than a hundred meters. An earthen vessel rests higher up the slope toward the original entrance.
Into the Living Bedrock
Further down the Descending Passage, the laid limestone blocks of the pyramid's superstructure give way to natural bedrock carved directly out of the Giza plateau. The air grows stiller as the corridor bores deep underground. A ceremonial blade is tucked into the rough-cut stone wall near this middle stretch.
The Bottom of the Slope
Near the base of the long descent, the rough ceiling presses low above the wooden walkway before leveling out into a horizontal corridor. Bright floor lamps mark the transition at the bottom of the slope. A bowl of fragrant offerings sits along the lower walkway just a step up the ramp.
The Subterranean Cavern
Thirty meters beneath the desert surface lies the largest and most mysterious room in the pyramid, the unfinished Subterranean Chamber. Its ceiling is carved smooth while its floor remains a rugged landscape of tiered bedrock shelves and a deep vertical shaft. A guardian cat statue watches from the high stone boss beside the fenced pit.
The Southern Blind Passage
At the far south wall of the Subterranean Chamber, a low, rough-hewn tunnel bores sixteen meters straight into the rock and stops abruptly at a blank wall. Looking back out toward the main cavern shows just how cramped this cul-de-sac is. A bronze brazier hides at the dead end behind you.
The Ascending Girdle Stones
Back above ground level, the Ascending Passage climbs steeply toward the heart of the monument. At regular intervals, the builders cut the passage right through single mammoth blocks known as girdle stones to lock the corridor into the surrounding masonry. A rolled papyrus scroll floats within one of the carved stone arches behind you.
The Grand Gallery Junction
At the top of the Ascending Passage, the cramped ceiling suddenly opens into the soaring crossroads of the pyramid. One path leads horizontally toward the Queen's Chamber while the main ramp continues upward into the Grand Gallery. Climb into the gallery ahead to spot a tall sealed jar resting on a side box ledge.
The Corbelled Grand Gallery
Rising nearly nine meters high and forty-six meters long, the Grand Gallery is a masterpiece of Old Kingdom corbelled vaulting. Seven courses of polished limestone step inward on each side until the ceiling narrows to the width of the floor ramp. Near the top of the gallery, a golden mask hides in one of the carved wall slots.
The Granite Portcullis Chamber
Beyond the Great Step at the top of the gallery, you crouch through a low passage into the Antechamber, where vertical grooves in red granite once guided three heavy portcullis slabs. Just past the final low lintel lies the King's Chamber itself. Step inside that great granite room to find the twelfth relic resting on Khufu's sarcophagus.
The Queen's Chamber Awakening
With all twelve relics gathered, you stand in the quiet Horizontal Passage that leads to the Queen's Chamber at the exact east-west axis of the pyramid. Right now you are looking back down the low limestone corridor toward the Grand Gallery. Turn around toward the bright doorway of the Queen's Chamber, where a stone sarcophagus holds the thirteenth and final secret.
You found all twelve ancient relics hidden across the Great Pyramid and awakened the cute mummy in the Queen's Chamber, who creaked open her sarcophagus lid to give you a royal kiss.
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