Egypt's
Ministry of Antiquities said on Thursday that researchers in the ScanPyramids
mission were mistaken in publicly announcing that they "discovered a new
void space" inside the Great Pyramid of Giza before first discussing their
findings with senior Egyptian and international Egyptologists, who have been
commissioned by the ministry to study the issue. Written By/ Nevine El-Aref.
In
an article published in the journal Nature on Thursday, an international team
of researchers said they have found a hidden chamber in Khufu, the Great
Pyramid of Giza.
The
team said “the 30-meter (yard) void deep [they identified] within the pyramid
is situated above the structure's Grand Gallery, and has a similar
cross-section.The purpose of the chamber is unclear, and it's not yet known
whether it was built with a function in mind.”
The
researchers explained that they “made the discovery using cosmic-ray imaging,
recording the behavior of subatomic particles called muons that penetrate the
rock similar to X-rays, only much deeper.”
Mostafa
Waziri, the secretary general of the Ministry of Antiquities, told Ahram Online
that publishing the findings in an ongoing research by ScanPyramids project in
a scientific journal such as Nature
Journal before discussing these findings with leading Egyptologists was a
mistake.
“The
findings of the ScanPyramids research project have to be first discussed
scientifically among scientists and Egyptologists and then reviewed by the
scientific committee, which was tasked by Egypt's ministry of antiquities to
supervise research on the matter. This committee is led by renowned Egyptian
Egyptologist Zahi Hawass with the participation of the well-known American
Egyptologist Mark Lehner and Czech Egyptologist
Murslav Barta,” Waziri added.
“These
experts have previously said that the existence of void spaces inside the
pyramids is not a new thing and this is a well known fact among
Egyptologists," Waziri said. “It
was too early at this stage in their study to publish that there was a new
discovery,” Waziri added.
An
official Egyptian archaeologist, who requested anonymity, told Ahram Online
that he believes the mission broke the Egyptian antiquities laws and
regulations by announcing findings to
the media through video conference, and, therefore, might be barred by Egyptian
authorities from continuing their research.
More News About Pyramid Scan Project
More News About Pyramid Scan Project
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