Description: While the Pyramid of Khafre is only a few meters lower than the Great Pyramid it is as good as the latter one. Despite the fact that the Pyramid of Khafre is located in the middle of the Giza Plateau it has not been well researched yet. We know that inside the Great Pyramid a few rooms and passages have been discovered, however, all rooms inside the Pyramid of Khafre are located below its base level. All the attempts to find any chambers in the pyramid’s masonry have ended in failure. But could it be possible, that this huge monument is just a "pile of stones"? The Pyramid of Khafre, together with the Great Sphinx of Giza, and the standing structures of the temples could give us the full understanding of the ancient pyramid complex. Alternative names: Second Pyramid,Pyramid of Chephren (Khefren) Lepsius No: 8 Type: True Pyramid Location: Giza Plateau Country: Egypt
Translation: 'Chephren is great', 'The Great (Pyramid) of Chephren'.
Translation: 'Great is Khafre'.
Translation: 'Khafre is Great'.
Translation: 'Chephren is great'.
Additional Data
Khafra is considered by most historians to be the builder of the Second Pyramid, but until recently there was no conclusive evidence for this. However, about three years ago, a large causeway was opened from the lower to the upper temple at the Second Pyramid, and statues of Khafra were found. Petrie discovered other evidence of Khafra's connection with the upper temple during excavations of the temple itself. From the pile of rubble, he pulled out a piece of white magnesite, hard as steel, with part of the finely carved cartouche and standard of Khafra, and a piece of alabaster with one cartouche. In addition, the base of the diorite statue he found at this location is exactly the same size as part of the base and leg of a small diorite statue he had previously found at Saqqara, with the inscription ".... nofer nuter, neb khaui... ." - and this almost certainly refers to Khafre. The discovery of these cartouche fragments provides the clearest evidence that the Second Pyramid belonged to Khafra.
Chephren, according to the king's lists and as it is now commonly believed, was the successor of Zedefrá. It is believed that he was the brother or nephew of the latter. In any case, it seems certain that Chephren was the son of Cheops and probably belonged to the Egyptian branch of this family. He is credited with a reign lasting from 25 to 29 years.
Chephren placed his Pyramid about 394 ft (120 m) southwest of the Pyramid of Cheops and named it 'Uiru' (Great). According to the 'Westcar Papyrus', Chephren was the son of Cheops.
The upper temple, like the lower one, had a gentle slope, probably to the courtyard above the roof. A large number of fragments of destroyed polished diorite statues, alabaster vases and inscribed ornaments were found, mixed together in the rubbish.
It is highly probable that initially all the outer walls of the upper temple were cased with granite, as well as in the case of the lower temple. The fact that the upper temple stands on a slope allows rainwater that enters the complex to flow down two small natural and partially artificial valleys. According to Uvo Hölscher, the axis of the temple had an azimuth of 90° 05' to magnetic north on March 1, 1910. Therefore, the temple extends exactly from east to west. This azimuth was not the azimuth of the lower temple, and the difference between them was 2°. The axis of the upper temple differs by only 35 cm from the east-west axis of the Pyramid. The outer sides of the temple had a slope of 1/7 (about 81° 50'), which is confirmed by the preserved granite facing blocks. From beveled granite blocks found nearby, it could be proved that there were several narrow horizontal windows high up under the ceiling for ventilation and lighting of the premises. Two blocks with a small channel cut into them probably formed part of a drainage system to drain rainwater that fell on the roof of the temple. Of great importance was the square base of the proposed altar in the center of the courtyard. To drain rainwater, the paving was 5 cm lower than the surrounding rooms and walkways. A convenient slope allowed water to flow to the center of the south side of the courtyard, from where an underground conduit began, which extended beyond the outer wall. The outlet of the conduit was found under the top layer of the base. Numerous groups of regularly spaced holes were found in the rock under the courtyard floor, between one passage and another. Most of them were closed with stone plugs or plaster. These were, obviously, the seats of the vertical pillars of the scaffolding.
The mortuary temple, unlike the later pyramid complexes, was separated from the Pyramid by a court.
The upper temple has a rectangular layout and for the first time includes five main elements of the temples, which we see already completed in the mortuary temple of the Pyramid of Sahure in Abusir: an entrance hall, an open courtyard, five chapels for statues, magazines and a hall for offerings. In the courtyard, a drain indicates that there was an altar here, and the courtyard itself was paved with alabaster blocks.
In the upper temple of Khafre, for the first time, five structural elements are found that will become an integral part in all the upper temples of the Old Kingdom, namely: the vestibule at the end of the causeway; entrance hall with 24 monolithic columns; an open courtyard surrounded by a portico lined with alabaster slabs and 12 colossal statues of Khafre (only pedestals remained of them); a row of 5 chapels opening onto the east side of the courtyard, each containing a statue of a king. Access to the fifth and last element was through a long corridor that opened at the southwest corner of the courtyard, leading to the hall of offerings and to a large stela (false door).
On the east side of the Pyramid, Belzoni discovered the lower part of a large temple with a portico, located 50 ft (15.24 m) from the base of the Pyramid. The outer walls of the temple were formed from huge limestone blocks. Some blocks in the portico are up to 24 ft (7.3 m) high. The interior of the temple was built of limestone blocks of various sizes, many of which were carefully hewn at the corners. The inner part of the temple is most likely much older than the outer part, which looks to be the same age as the Pyramid.
The upper temple of the Khafre Pyramid for the first time includes all five elements that were to become standard for later mortuary temples: 1. an entrance hall; 2. a broad columned court; 3. five niches for king statues; 4. five storage chambers; 5. an inner sanctuary. The five niches may refer to the completed fivefold titulary of the king. The Abusir Papyri indicate that in the 5th dynasty there were statues of the king in three niches, as the ruler of Upper and Lower Egypt, and as the god Osiris. The temple consists of a front part, which forms the entrance to the main courtyard, and a back part. The causeway enters the temple near the southern end of the facade. Immediately to the left were two granite chambers, and at the other end of the corridor running along the facade of the temple, there were four more chambers cased with alabaster. In front of the temple, the entrance hall consisted of two sections, one was transverse with recessed compartments, and the other was rectangular. The roofs of both were supported by granite columns. A long, narrow, slit-like chamber radiated from each end of the first hall. The antechamber was followed by an open courtyard, whose granite cased columns formed pillars around the courtyard. In front of them were 12 granite statues, standing in special recesses in the white alabaster floor. At the very back of the temple, opposite the Pyramid, was an inner sanctuary, probably with a false door. A ramp-stair in the northeast corner led up to the roof of the temple, while from the northwest corner of the columned courtyard, a corridor led to a paved enclosure around the Pyramid.
The facade of the lower temple faces east. At the entrance was a canal running from north to south. The southern end of the canal passes under a tunnel built of massive limestone blocks and apparently passed under the later temple of Osiris, which is mentioned in stela and graffiti in the temple of Isis near the Great Pyramid. The channel has never been excavated, and its northern end disappears under a pile of sand northeast of the Sphinx temple itself. The lower temple is built around a core of massive local limestone blocks cased with polished red granite. Nearly all of the corner blocks were carved into an L-shape. Therefore, vertical joints were not needed at the inner corners of the temple, which provided the temple with greater strength. Most of the granite casing on the outside of the building was removed, but the casing on the inside remained almost intact. Alabaster was used for the floor of the building, as well as for the walls of some smaller rooms. Initially, the temple could be entered through two doorways in the eastern facade. Uvo Hölscher believed that the long recesses in the floor slabs on the sides of these doors served for the plinths of the sphinxes, which stood in pairs in front of each entrance. Both doors open onto a long, narrow vestibule. It was in this entrance passage that A. Mariette found the diorite statues of Khafre. A door in the center of the western wall opened into a T-shaped hall. Its roof was originally supported by 16 square red granite columns. Around this hall stood 23 statues of the king, the places for which are still visible on the floor. This hall, now open to the sky, was originally illuminated by small windows under the ceiling, arranged in such a way that a stream of light poured from each onto one of the statues. From the southwest corner of the hall, a small corridor led to six storerooms. They are built on two floors: the bottom three are made of red granite, the top three are made of alabaster. From the northwest corner of the hall, a narrow passage led up to the exit from the temple, where the causeway begins. About halfway to the right (from the north) a ramp leads up to the flat roof of the temple. Opposite it, in the south wall of the passage, there is a small room cased and paved with alabaster. Remains of pools and holes for pillars of baldachine were found both in front of the temple and on the roof. It is assumed that the washing of the dead body of the king, as well as mummification and the ritual of 'opening the mouth', took place in this temple.
The lower temple has an almost square layout and is located next to the Great Sphinx and its associated temple. The temple faces east with a large terrace paved with limestone slabs. Inside the temple, 16 red granite columns supported the granite blocks of the architrave and ceilings. In the courtyard stood statues of the king made of anorthosite, schist and calcite alabaster. The famous statue "Khafre with the falcon", which is exhibited in the Cairo Museum, is petrologically an anorthosite gneiss. This type of stone comes from the remote area of Gebel el-Asr, about 30 km west of Toshka and about 250 km south of Aswan.
The lower temple has an almost square layout. Inside the temple there is a T-shaped hall, in which 16 granite columns held architraves. Drains throughout the temple on the upper level collected rainwater and brought it to the reservoir through a whole drainage system. It is assumed that mummification was also carried out in this temple.
The lower temple of Khafre is surprisingly well preserved, unlike the upper temple. The temple was built from megalithic blocks cased with red granite. The entrances to the temple were closed with huge single doors, probably made of cedar. The walls of the temple are made of red granite (originally the blocks were polished to a shine), and the floor is paved with white alabaster. Between the two entrances is the vestibule. The door then led into a T-shaped hall, the roof of which was supported by 16 monolithic granite columns, many of which still stand. The corridor on the right is a continuation of the causeway to the temple. The doorway led into a corridor, from which a staircase climbed clockwise up through the ceiling of the corridor and out onto the roof of the temple. On the south side of the roof was a small courtyard. Symbolic canals lined with alabaster, a material especially identified with purification, run from the temple courtyard down into deep, dark rooms. A. Mariette discovered a diorite statue of Khafre in the hallway of the temple. On the statue, the wings of the falcon of Horus are folded around the royal headdress in a gesture of protection. It was one of 23 statues that were originally installed in the T-shaped hall. In front of the temple, the port was discovered by drilling at a depth of about 16 m (52 ft). It probably continued a little to the east, from where the slopes lead to the two doors of the temple - perhaps symbolizing Upper and Lower Egypt. In 1995, Zahi Hawass cleared the area, finding that the ramps were crossing tunnels cased with brick walls that formed a narrow north-south corridor or channel. In front of the Sphinx temple, the canal flows into a drain leading to the northeast, probably to the embankment, under the modern tourist square. Both entrances were flanked by a pair of lions or, more likely, 8 m (26 ft) long sphinxes. All that's left are the recesses for the bases of the statues.
The core of the lower temple was built on a rock foundation of megalithic limestone blocks, each weighing over a hundred tons. The walls of the temple were cased with massive blocks of granite or alabaster. Behind the temple from the northeast, there is a fence made of raw brick and stone. The size of the temple is approximately 140 ft (42.67 m) in each direction and 40 ft (12.19) in height. The azimuth of the temple is +16' or -12' from true north as observed on two different days. In the eastern part of the temple, on the north and south sides, doorways lead to a tall and long room. The room is oriented north-south, about 60 ft (18.29 m) long, 12 ft (3.66 m) wide and 30 ft (9.14 m) or more high. At each end of the room, large recesses for the statue are visible in the wall. The large T-shaped room consists of two parts. The eastern part of the room, 81 ft (24.69 m) long, 22 ft (6.71 m) wide and 19 ft (5.79 m) high, is oriented north-south, and its ceiling was supported by 6 massive columns. The western part of the room, 55 ft (16.76 m) long, 33 ft (10.06 m) wide and 18.5 ft (5.64 m) high, is oriented east to west, the ceiling of which was supported by 10 monolithic columns. The columns and walls of the room are made of dark red granite. The columns support beams made of granite, 6 of which are missing. The weight of each column is approximately 13 tons. In the southwest corner of the room is a room with 6 loculi, 19 ft (5.79 m) long. They are formed in three deep recesses, each of which is divided in two by a granite shelf. On the south side of the short passage leading to these loculi, a stone has been removed from the wall, and, climbing inside of it, one can get into a strange uneven room, apparently never intended for prying eyes. It is said that several common mummies were found in this chamber, possibly of a later date. In the northwest corner of the T-shaped room, a long corridor leads to the causeway. To the west of the corridor is one roofed room built of alabaster and granite. Opposite it, in the northern wall of the corridor, there is a doorway leading to an inclined ramp leading to the former roof of the temple. This passage is made of alabaster, and the upper doorway is made of granite. The upper walls are lined with fine limestone blocks. Openings for ventilation and illumination of the temple with daylight are formed by inclined cuts along the upper edge of the walls along the entire western part of the upper hall. Each corner block of granite casing inside the temple has a turned corner, indicating that the blocks were leveled after they were laid. All doorways are equipped with double doors. Clearly visible are the central holes cut in the granite lintel by a drill with precious stones. There is no hole in the floor, but there is a piece of black basalt polished to a shine, completely flat and without scratches.
Half the height of the western facade of the lower temple is made of limestone bedrock, up to 3.90 m high. This rock served as the foundation for the entire temple. In front of the eastern facade there is a terrace, the width of which is 8.50 m, paved with limestone 1 cubit thick. There are also two inclined (1-3°) ramps on the east side. On the sides there are several shallow trenches, 2 m wide and 8 m long. The azimuth of the axis of the lower temple is 94° relative to magnetic north. The first row of casing is made up of large granite blocks. In the eastern facade there are two doorways, on which, on the sides, on each side, two columns of hieroglyphs with the names and titles of the king were carved. The goddess Bastet is mentioned on the northern portal, Hathor on the southern one. The openings were closed with wooden doors, 2.80 m wide, about 6 m high. Quartz amphibolite inserts were inserted into the holes for the lower hinges of the doors. In the western facade there are two outlets of two gutters. The doors of the eastern facade lead to two small rooms, 9.40 m high, with a slightly sloping floor. This is followed by a large, long room, oriented from north to south and about 12 cubits high. In the floor of the room there is a pit 2.20 x 1.15 m. The T-shaped room with columns, located to the west of the long room, consists of two halls of different heights. The columns are deeply embedded in the floor and rock foundation. To connect the architraves, clamps were used, inserted into a special cutout ('dovetail') from above and below. The upper clamps were regular, while the bottom ones had a cylindrical peg. The staples were made of copper and weighed 20-25 kg each. In the alabaster floor along the walls of the T-shaped room at a distance of 10 cm from the walls there are 23 sockets for statues. The size of the places is approximately 1.10 x 0.60 m. The standing statues in these places were made of alabaster, diorite and greenish metamorphic schist. In the southern part of the western wall of the room there are small rooms - magazines. Inserts of quartz amphibolite were inserted into the upper and lower hinges of the magazines door. The magazines themselves consist of six rooms on two floors. The side walls of the rooms are made of granite, except for the last row of masonry above, they are made of alabaster. In the northern part of the T-shaped room, a long, sloping corridor leads to the causeway. The slope of the corridor is 1/6. The original height of the corridor was approximately 4.10 m (east end) to 3.30 m (west end). In the south wall of the corridor is a doorway with a double door leading to a rectangular room. The plinth of the wall is made of granite blocks, and two rows of alabaster. In the northern wall of the corridor there is an opening leading along three ramps to the roof of the temple. The walls are lined with alabaster and the ceiling with granite. The roof of the temple probably had 5-6 levels: 1. the highest (2 small entrance rooms from the north and south); 2. above the hallway; 3. and 4. above the T-shaped room; 5. over magazines and a small room; 6. a level intermediate between levels 4 and 5. Lighting and ventilation of the temple premises was carried out through windows in the ceiling and walls (the difference in level between the terraces was used).
The entire pavement of the causeway was dismantled, and only a few blocks remained in their places.
In relation to the axis of the upper temple and the Pyramid, the causeway runs along the slope of the rocky ridge, starting from the temple and descending to the southeast. As measured by Uvo Hölscher, the azimuth of the causeway was 106° 20' east of magnetic north on March 1, 1910. The causeway leads from the upper temple in a southeasterly direction, at an angle of 16° 20' to the axis of the temple. The length of the causeway was originally 494.6 m with a vertical drop of -45.8 m. According to Hölscher, the slope of the causeway is about 5° 17'. The difference in level between the threshold of the entrance to the upper temple and the level of the floor of the columned hall of the lower temple is 49.6 m. The causeway ends at the western facade of the lower temple, to the north of the axis of this building. Above the causeway was erected a covered corridor with side walls of white limestone. They were vertical on the inside and slightly inclined (about 86°) on the outside. The internal casing of the walls, 3 cubits high, consisted of rather thin limestone slabs, laid along the edges and held at the top and bottom by grooves made in rows of blocks. No decorations or bas-reliefs were found. The remains of the side walls and paving of the causeway can be seen today in the vicinity of the lower temple. Two roads stretched along the covered corridor - paved or with a flat stone surface. In the east, the northern road ended at the lower temple. The southern road, at its eastern end, turned south, skirting the rear facade of the lower temple. In a certain place under the causeway, a rather wide underground passage was made in the rock. It is possible that the causeway was originally a road for transporting blocks for the Pyramid's construction.
The inner enclosure wall was located at the base of the Pyramid. The thickness of the wall was about 6 cubits (3.14 m). If we take into account that the slope of the walls was 1/7, then the height of the wall itself should have been about 8 m. The wall was made of rough limestone, and cased with fine limestone. At the top of the wall, the casing blocks ended with a rounding.
Around the Pyramid there was a platform about 10 m wide paved with limestone blocks of various shapes, after which there was an inner enclosure wall.
From the northern, western and southern sides of the Pyramid, an outer enclosure wall was located.
The perimeter of the Pyramid was surrounded by an inner stone wall enclosing an open courtyard. The courtyard was paved with irregularly shaped limestone slabs.
The base area of the satellite pyramid was 20.1 m². The descent into the pyramid is so narrow that it is difficult for an adult of average build to get there.
The angle of slope of the sides of the satellite pyramid was 53° 8', the length of its base was 20.1 m. The core of the pyramid was built from local limestone blocks, some of which were of considerable size. There are very few of them left, so it is impossible to accurately determine the structure of the nucleus itself. The casing of the pyramid was made of fine limestone. The entrance to the pyramid is located on its northern side. Not a single fragment of the stone sarcophagus has been found. Inside the room were found pieces of wood, bull bones, two necklaces of carnelian beads and fragments of corks from vases or jugs, one of which mentions the son of the king. These discoveries made inside the pyramid supported the hypothesis that the pyramid was the burial site of a queen and not a cult pyramid.
Pyramid GII-a, Khafre's satellite pyramid, was almost completely destroyed by stone robbers. To date, only the outline of the base and several blocks located along the central axis of the Khafre Pyramid have been preserved. The pyramid has two descending passages, one from the north and one from the west. The western passage starts outside the base of the pyramid and leads along its central axis under its base, where it ends with a dead end and a small niche. In this niche, a wooden box was found containing fragments of cedar wood that had once been a piece of furniture. Ahmed Youssef reassembled the fragments and it turned out that the wooden object was a framework in the form of a "sah netjer" or "divine booth" which had been deliberately (ritually) cut into regular-sized pieces. It is believed that the satellite pyramids come from the southern tomb of Djoser and may have been intended for the burial of statues dedicated to Ka - the double and life force of the king. The satellite pyramid of Khafre provided evidence to support this.
The satellite pyramid is commonly referred to as GII-a. The pyramid had its own enclosure wall. Unfortunately, the pyramid is badly destroyed, the length of the sides of its base was originally 20.9 m, and the angle of slope of the faces was 53°-54°. The satellite pyramid is considered the cult pyramid of Khafre. The pyramid has a descending corridor and a T-shaped chamber, inside which fragments of wood, bones and beads were found.
Outside the upper temple, five narrow pits were found, in the form of boats, carved into bedrock, and intended for boats. Two pits are located on the north and three on the south side of the temple. Perhaps a sixth pit was also planned. Two of the five pits still have blocks of their overlap.
Near the upper temple, 5 pits for boats carved into the bedrock were discovered. A narrow trench in the rock to the northeast of the temple suggests that originally there should have been 6. Two pairs are located parallel to the northern and southern walls of the temple, their axes are oriented from east to west, and they lie nose to nose. The slabs that originally covered them have been preserved in the western pits. The walls inside the pit are covered with carvings depicting the structure of a wooden boat. A north-south oriented pit was also found south of the temple. The unfinished pit on the northeast side of the temple was oriented in the same way.
To the north of the upper temple, 2 boat pits were found, parallel to the axis of the temple. The western pit has a length of 25.4 m and is located at a distance of 17.69 m from the temple, and 29.3 m from the eastern face of the Pyramid. The eastern pit has a length of 22.6 m. To the south of the temple, 3 boat pits were found, 2 parallel to the axis of the temple and 1 parallel to the Pyramid. The southern pit, parallel to the eastern face of the Pyramid, has a length of 36.7 m and is located at a distance of 25 m from the temple, and 31 m from the eastern face of the Pyramid. The southwestern pit, parallel to the axis of the temple, has a length of 27.1 m, and is located at a distance of 16.7 m from the temple, and 31 m from the eastern face of the Pyramid. At the bottom of the pit, ribbings are visible, and on the side walls there are various holes, some of which are drilled directly into the rock in a quarter or semicircle. The entire covering of the pit has been preserved and consists of two layers of large limestone slabs 30-40 cm thick, laid flat. The southeastern pit, parallel to the axis of the temple, is 24.4 m long.
Additional Information about the Pyramid Complex
To the west of the western enclosure wall are ruined parallel walls built of rough stones. They are subdivided into 110 small rooms, which Petrie believed were workers' barracks.
Only coarse-grained porphyric granite typer were used for the construction of the buildings of the Khafre complex. Other types of granitoids that were mined in Aswan were not used. The enclosure wall could extend around the entire Khafre Pyramid complex, including even the Great Sphinx.
The upper temple of Khafre, the causeway and the lower temple are the best preserved of the three complexes on the Giza Plateau. Khafre also added to his complex the Great Sphinx and the temple in front of it.
West of the Pyramid in the 1880s F. Petrie discovered the ruins, as he suggested, of the settlements of the builders of the Pyramid, where 4000-5000 workers could live. However, M. Lehner and Z. Hawass believe that there were storage facilities here. A large number of shells were found at this place, which indicates that during the 4th dynasty there was not a desert here, but a very lively savannah.
108 pits and trenches were found around the Pyramid. Behind the western enclosure wall were large workers' barracks. Petrie found a total of 91 galleries, over a mile and a half (2400 m) long, 9.5 ft (2.9 m) high and 7 ft (2.1 m) wide. The upper and lower temples are very similar in character. The location of the structures themselves clearly indicates the following order of designing the entire complex of Khafre: 1. the construction of the Pyramid of Khafre; 2. construction of the upper temple on the eastern side of the Pyramid; 3. construction of the causeway leading along an oblique line from the upper temple down the rocky ridge to the lower temple; 4. the last stage, the construction of the Granite (lower) temple at the foot of the causeway.
The pavement of the courtyard around the Pyramid consisted of uneven slabs of white limestone of various sizes and shapes. The slabs had a thickness of 30-45 cm and were tightly laid directly on the bedrock, in which special recesses were prepared for each of the slabs. Unnecessary voids and cracks in the rock were filled with rough masonry or rubble, and in the smallest cases with sand. Rough rectangular and round holes, about 40 cm in diameter, were cut into the rock along the four sides of the Pyramid, at a distance of about 9.50 m from its base. The holes are spaced equally apart (about 5 m) and were filled with mortar and stones specially cut out before the paving was laid. The courtyards had a slight slope to drain the rainwater that collected there as it ran off the surface of the Pyramid. Under the foundations of the north wall of the enclosure, about 7 m from the northeast corner and in the immediate vicinity of the northwest corner, two depressions in the rock for water drainage were found.
Under the lowest course of casing blocks, a strip of the stepped bedrock foundation of the Pyramid is visible. The rest of the Pyramid is built of very rough, irregular, loose stones. The irregular masonry seems to continue to some depth in the core of the Pyramid. The discontinuity may indicate different "styles" of construction, perhaps even a break, after which construction resumed.
The base of the Pyramid of Khafre is cut into an outcrop of limestone on a bedrock slope that forms the highest point of the surrounding hilly landscape. The surface of the bedrock to the northwest is cut down by about 10 m, and the southeast corner is built up with huge limestone blocks. The rock hill on which the Pyramid was erected increased the stability of its core and reduced the amount of building material.
The base of the core of the Pyramid along the entire perimeter is carved in the bedrock. The bedrock foundation is higher on the western side and lower on the eastern side. Above the base are two or three courses of masonry, consisting of huge blocks from the quarry at Giza. The height of the rock ledge in the northwest corner is 4.32 m (170 in), in the southwest it is 3.62 m (142.5 in), in the southeast corner it is 1.99 m (78.5 in), in the northeast corner is 1.89 m (74.5 in). It is worth noting that the courses of masonry most often vary in thickness, however the 10th course is located at a height of 20 cubits (416 in) around the perimeter, as well as the 5th row at a height of 10 cubits (207.5 in) on the southwestern side. The entire foundation of the Pyramid is artificially leveled, carved into the sloping bedrock on the hillside, deeper on the western side and gradually narrowing towards the east. The large ledge, thus carved into the hillside to hold the Pyramid, has approximately vertical sides along the western and northern sides. The upper edge of the western side is 28.07 m (1.105 in) from the northwest and 27.51 m (1.083 in) from the southwest corner of the Pyramid. The north side is 57.28 m (2.255 in) from the northwest corner and 58.72 m (2.312 in) from the middle of the side of the Pyramid. The directions are not parallel to the Pyramid, the west side deviates -8' from the azimuth of the Pyramid, and the north side -56'. Not far from the northwest corner of the Pyramid are a series of straight and transverse grooves cut into the rock, which form squares. These are the remains of the trenches with which the workers cut out all this space.
The plateau below the Pyramid of Khafre initially rose steeply from east to west and more gently from south to north. Before construction, the rock was leveled outside the perimeter of the Pyramid's base to the north, west, and south. Inside the area with the base, the rock was shaped into steps, on which the blocks of the core were laid. In the southwestern and northwestern corners, the rock base reaches a height of 4-5 rows, in some places up to 9-10 m. Stone was mined in the northwestern corner of the terrace, as evidenced by a network of trenches. The width of the trenches is about a cubit, and the area of one square between the trenches is about 5 square cubits (an average of 2.80 m). To the north and northeast, the terracing was made from huge blocks of local limestone. In the northern part of the eastern side of the Pyramid, the blocks of the lower part of the core are over 2 m high. The casing of the first row of granite was below the surface of the surrounding pavement on almost all sides. Two separate foundations were cut into the bedrock, one for the granite casing blocks and the other, lower and wider, for the limestone pavement slabs. The southwestern corner of the Pyramid rests on a foundation of local limestone blocks. The outer part of each row of the core is made of regular square blocks, while the inner part of very roughly hewn blocks with large joints devoid of mortar. No corner sockets for keystones. The backing stones of the first course of casing are still in situ, and are made of very fine white limestone. Sometimes granite casing blocks were laid as control blocks, and they reached the core of the Pyramid without backing blocks. The gaps between them were filled with debris mixed with mortar. Limestone casing, 40-45 m in size, has been preserved at the top of the Pyramid. Fine limestone from the Mokattam quarries was used for casing. Between the casing blocks, a cement mortar of limestone, gypsum and sand was used. The casing was laid in horizontal courses, with vertical joints. The height of the casing courses gradually decreases from the base to the top (1.05-0.53 m) of the Pyramid with rare deviations. The deviation of the average length of the sides of the Pyramid is no more than ±8 cm. The sides are parallel or located at right angles to each other, with errors of no more than 1' 15". According to Petrie, the azimuth of the sides of the Pyramid averages -5' 26". The design of the Pyramid is twisted clockwise by an average of 1' 40". The central axis of the Pyramid is 35 cm south of the axis of the upper temple located on its eastern side.
For the construction of the Pyramid, huge stones were cut from the rocks right around it.
The plateau where the Pyramid was erected generally slopes from 3° to 6°, with it tilting more to the east than to the south. Since the beginning of the twentieth century, the construction of the Pyramid of Khafre raised questions regarding the change in the layout of the location and size of the base of the Pyramid, and various theories were put forward. Until now, no consensus has been formed on this matter. Three previous versions: Version 1. Initially, a much smaller pyramid was planned, which was supposed to be located slightly north of the actually realized structure. The chamber in the bedrock, already carved according to this plan, would be located under the pyramid apex and would become its burial chamber, in which the sarcophagus was already placed. The calculation of the model shows that such a pyramid was planned 22 m to the north, and was supposed to have a base length of 105.02 m. Later, the sarcophagus was transferred to the burial chamber of the already expanded pyramid. The disadvantage of this version is that, according to J. Becker's calculations, the design of the access to the chamber carved in the bedrock does not allow the sarcophagus to be transported into the chamber itself. Version 2. According to I.E.S. Edwards, the pyramid with its current dimensions should have been built so much north of its actual position that the chamber in the bedrock would be located just below the pyramid apex. In this case, the descending corridor with the entrance to the pyramid would be at a height, in the masonry of its northern face. Model calculations show that such a pyramid should have been located 77.05 m north of its actual northern edge. The entrance to the pyramid would be approximately 20.60 m above its base. The disadvantage of this version is the same as in the first version. Version 3. According to V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi - according to the original plan, the northwestern and southeastern corners of the pyramid would extend 31.51 m north and east of the actual pyramid. Thus, according to the plan, the original pyramid was supposed to have a base length of 246.80 m, and 164.53 m in height. The disadvantage of this version is that the entrance to such a pyramid would be 3.30 m west of its central axis, which is not typical for pyramids of the 4th dynasty. In addition, the width of the northern trench is 59 m, of which approximately 20 m dates from the time of the reign of Ramses II, which the authors of the version did not know, so such a large pyramid simply would not fit in this place. The fourth version is offered by J. Becker, a specialist in mining and archaeological research in Egypt and Sudan. According to the plan, the pyramid was supposed to have a base length of 240.5 m and a height of 160.33 m. This is possible with an equal increase in the pyramid by 25.20 m in the northern and eastern directions. In this case, the lower entrance will be located exactly along the central north-south axis of the pyramid, and is located at a height of 4.90. Such a layout of the pyramid and complex would not have crossed the territory of a later quarry during the reign of Ramses II. Also, such a plan basically corresponds to the rules for the location of the entrance, internal premises and corridors with the central axes of other pyramids of the 4th dynasty.
The bedrock foundation of the Pyramid is located at an altitude of about 68 m above sea level. Studies show that the 4th Dynasty sites on the Giza Plateau are built on sedimentary rocks of the Maadi and Mokattam formations, which were formed between the middle and late Eocene. In the northwest corner of the Khafre Pyramid, it can be seen that the lower 6 courses of masonry do not have joints, since this is a bedrock, identical to what is visible around the Pyramid. External morphological studies of the bedrock foundation show the following: on the eastern side of the Pyramid, the height of the bedrock ledge is from 0.6 m (southeast corner) to 2 m (northeast corner), on the western side the bedrock ledge is much higher, between 8 m and 12 m. Using these data, a calculation was made according to which the bedrock ledge on which the Pyramid of Khafre was built makes up 11.5% of the total mass of the Pyramid itself.
To increase the stability of the Pyramid, the bedrock was used as a foundation. The southwest corner of the Pyramid is good evidence that the base of the Pyramid and several courses are actually a bedrock foundation. Limestone for construction was taken from the area around the Pyramid. Good evidence of block mining can be seen on the north side in front of the Pyramid. The Pyramid of Khafre was not built as well as the Pyramid of Cheops. Wide gaps between the blocks are visible, and the courses of masonry are not always horizontal. In places, the remains of the preserved mortar are visible.
The Pyramid was built on a natural rocky hill that rises in a westerly direction. Initially, the bedrock was shaped into steps, after which the blocks of the core of the Pyramid were already laid. The height of the bedrock ledge above the base in the southwest corner of the Pyramid is 3.61 m (11 ft 10 in), in the northwest corner it is 4.34 m (14 ft 3 in). Around the Pyramid was a pavement paved with blocks. According to Perring, the internal construction of the Pyramid was like massive square bays filled with large blocks of stone and mortar. But after the casing was removed, rainwater, sand, wind penetrated into this irregular masonry, and the structure was broken, which made it possible for Belzoni and, possibly, before him, the caliphs, to discover the entrance to the Pyramid. The blocks from the top of the Pyramid were thrown off, and today the platform at its top has an area of 2.7 m² (9 square ft).
Pyramid Base
44515.42 m2
46323.95 m2
Volume
2211096.0 m3
2029468.0 m3
2221542.0 m3
Weight
5309000.0 ton
3887698.0 ton
Main Building Material
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Limestone
Casing Material
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Fine limestone
Rose granite
Fine limestone
Additional Data
Around the Pyramid there was a pavement 10.1 m wide.
The site chosen for the construction of the Pyramid had a steep slope from east to west. The rock was hewn from the northern and western sides, and the huge blocks of stone taken out during these works were used to build the Pyramid on its southern and eastern sides.
To determine the estimated size of the base of the Pyramid, Petrie fixed twelve points around it. In this case, the actual corners of the square were taken as the most accurately made points to determine the planned base. As measured, the average length of the sides is 8474.9 in (215.26 m), with a deviation from the average value of 1.5 in (0.038 m). The azimuth of the sides averages -5' 26", and the deviation of the azimuth from the average value is 33". Petrie also determined the average deviation from the accepted square to be 0.2286 m (9 in). Around the edge of the Pyramid are rough rectangular holes, starting at the base of the pavement and descending deeper into a raised square, where they end vertically. The average hole size is 10 in (0.254 m) along the edge of the cliff, the distance between one hole and another 12 in (0.30 m). In his calculations, Petrie described the "theory of the length of the base and angle of slope of the Pyramid", according to which 8492.4 in (the average length of the base of the Pyramid) practically corresponds to a 7" arc of the meridian, which is equal to from 8494.5 to 8521.8 in. And 420 cubits multiplied 20.2208 in (the length of one cubit) equals 8492.4 in. According to Petrie, a triangle with an aspect ratio of 3:4:5 was used to design the angle of slope of the Pyramid, since in this case the angle between the sides of 3:5 is 53° 7' 48", practically, as well as the average angle of slope of the Pyramid faces - 53° 10' ±4'.
Opposite the northern face of the Pyramid, on the rock, traces of stone quarrying are visible. An analysis of the gouging and impact marks (the oblique parallel lines that the chisel left on the wall of the quarry) indicates a method typical of the reign of Ramses II. In the Old Kingdom, copper chisel marks were very short, irregular, and rarely parallel. From a mining archaeological point of view, it is clear that "stripes" about 20 m wide practically along the entire length of the quarry to the north of the Khafre Pyramid may not have served the purpose of extracting stone for the construction of the Pyramid. In this place, at the time of the construction of the Pyramid, a massive rock was still present to a large extent.
Probably, the Pyramid began to be dismantled during the time of Ramses II and the blocks were used to build a temple in Heliopolis. The Arab historian Abd al-Salam mentions that the Pyramid was discovered around 1372. Perhaps at this time a bypass tunnel was dug around the portcullis near the upper descending corridor. Other sources say that the blocks of the Pyramid were used to build the Hassan Mosque.
Thick walls of raw stone surround the Pyramid on three sides, and behind the western front, a row of stone sheds, hastily built of limestone and clay, is visible in an oblong enclosure. In this place, a large amount of garbage (shards, fragments of various types of hard stone, granite, alabaster, diorite, fragments of statues broken during the sculpture process, and blocks of even granite ready for use) is piled up, left by the workers.
The Pyramid was erected on a terrace that the ancient builders had cut to the northwest, 10 m (33 ft) below the original bedrock surface. However, in the opposite southeast corner, the terrace was built up with large blocks of stone to compensate for the natural 3-6° slope of the Mokattam Formation. The wide terrace to the east of the Pyramid consists of massive limestone blocks weighing up to hundreds of tons. Huge limestone piers jut out from the northeast and southwest corners of the terrace. At the top of the Pyramid there is a slight turn. The reason for this was that the four corners of the structure were not quite properly aligned and therefore it was not possible to accurately connect its top. Around the Pyramid, a clear line of holes with a diameter of 30-40 cm is visible, which is parallel to the base of the Pyramid and is located about 10 cubits (about 5 m) from its base. At four corners in the rocky base of the plateau around the Pyramid there are trenches about 6 m long. All these holes and trenches served, most likely, to level the base of the Pyramid. One end of each trench is aligned with the diagonals of the Pyramid.
The entrance does not coincide with the central axis of the Pyramid, it is located just over 12 m (39 ft) to the east.
Not far from the central axis of the Pyramid, on the north side, at a height of about 8-8.5 m, begins a passage dug by robbers through rough masonry. At the beginning of the passage, traces of an attempt to dig down are visible, then it continues in a southerly direction, but bends to the east and down, where it decreases in size. Finally, after a short stretch running from west to east, the passage descends steeply to reach the passage to the Pyramid. The construction of this passage, obviously, was not originally planned by the builders, and could only be a robbers tunnel. It is likely that the passage was enlarged later, when it was cleared of rubble, as Belzoni did when he made his first attempt to enter the Pyramid.
In fact, the Khafre Pyramid has two entrances on the north side. One is at a height, and the other is at the level of the bedrock.
The azimuth of the entrance has already been described by Professor Piazzi Smith as -5' 37". This almost exactly corresponds to the average azimuth of the sides of the Pyramid, since according to Petrie's triangulation, the azimuth is -5' 26", with an average difference of 33".
From the entrance there is a smooth corridor of red granite, which first slopes before running horizontally at the level of the base of the Pyramid.
It is believed that the descending corridor (upper) was made after the lower one was ready.
V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi suggested that the floor and ceiling blocks of the descending corridor had a variable width and a length of about 3 m. The ceiling blocks of the corridor reached a thickness of 1.4 m, floor - 1.2 m. The height of the wall blocks is 1.2 m, their thickness is about 1 meter, and their length is very variable. At the lower end, the descending corridor becomes horizontal for a short distance, while retaining the granite casing. The connection between the ceilings of the two corridors consists of a semicircular frieze.
There are some structural violations in the descending corridor. The fact that in different places of the corridor the width is different, and the height is almost the same, suggests that the builders were less careful than the masons. The height of the corridor depends precisely on the size of the side blocks, while the width depends only on their position, that is, on the work of the builders. In the lower part of the corridor, the ceiling has a semicircular shape, similar to the "cornices" above all the doors of the tombs.
Portcullis, the closing system of the Pyramid, were built into the beginning of the lower and upper horizontal corridors.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. The first (upper) portcullis is located where the descending corridor meets the horizontal one. The second (lower) portcullis is located where the lower descending corridor turns into a horizontal one.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. They are located at the beginning of the upper and lower horizontal corridors.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. They are located at the beginning of the upper and lower horizontal corridors.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. The upper and lower portcullises are located at the northern ends of the upper and lower horizontal corridors.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. They are located at the beginning of the upper and lower horizontal corridors.
There are two portcullis in the Pyramid. The upper portcullis is located in the granite wall in grooves, at the northern end of the upper horizontal corridor. The lower portcullis is located in the grooves of the carved bedrock, at the northern end of the lower horizontal corridor.
Description
Granite portcullis rose into special niches. The thickness of the upper portcullis is 0.39 m (1 ft 3.5 in), the lower portcullis is 0.33 m (1 ft 1 in).
The groove in which the upper portcullis is located has a width of 0.39 m, which practically corresponds to the thickness of the portcullis itself. The portcullis was inserted into the grooves from above and moved along two side grooves, about 25 cm deep. The gap between the portcullis and the grooves is about one centimeter, and the thickness of the moving block is 0.37 m. The portcullis was lowered in the floor into a special groove 3-4 cm deep, which did not allow the levers to capture it without prior preparation. The lower portcullis, which, although somewhat reduced in height (the current maximum height is 1.23 m) and is not in its original place, is still preserved. The height of the groove in which the lower portcullis was located is 2.85 m, the width is 0.34 m, which practically corresponds to the thickness of the portcullis itself. Above the lower portcullis there are two steps in the ceiling. The distance from the lower corner of the corridor to the upper end of the portcullis seat in the ceiling is approximately 1.55 m. The portcullis was lowered into a special groove in the floor, and this made it possible to quite firmly hold the portcullis in its place.
When Belzoni first entered the Pyramid, the upper portcullis was raised about 8 in (20.3 cm) from the bottom of a groove that had been carved for this block at the bottom of the passage. There was a small gap at the top of the portcullis. It took several people to lift this piece of granite at least 6 ft (1.83 m) high, 5 ft (1.52 m) wide and 1 ft 3 in (0.38 m) thick. The lower portculis is similar to the upper one, however, when discovered, it was taken out and was visible nearby under debris and stones.
The upper portcullis is a granite slab running in vertical grooves of a granite horizontal corridor. The width of the corridor is 41.38 in (1.05 m). The groove depth is 9.68 in (0.25 m) on the east side and 10.05 in (0.26 m) on the west side. The width of the grooves is 15.77 in (0.40 m) on the east side and 15.19 in (0.39 m) on the west side. The portcullis itself is about 0.5 in (1.27 cm) thinner than the grooves. Perring tried to break the portcullis, hoping to find a way up, but it resisted. In Petrie's time the portcullis was propped up with rough pieces of limestone to such a height that it was possible to crawl under it. The lower portcullis was at the northern end of the lower horizontal corridor. The block was pushed into a recess made in the wall for it. When measuring the mass, it turned out that this portcullis weighed almost two tons, and it would take from 40 to 60 people to lift it. However, space would not allow more than a tenth of that number to be worked on, and this proves that some very effective method was used to control such masses, quite different from a simple excess of manual force.
Material
Rose granite
Rose granite
Rose granite
Rose granite
Rose granite
Rose granite
Rose granite
Additional Data
The robbers, penetrating inside the Pyramid, bypassed the portcullis.
The effectiveness of the portcullis closure system in a time when granite was almost impassable to robbers. This is proved by the fact that the robbers who made their way into the Pyramid were forced to lift the portcullis, since they could not break it.
All the walls and floor of the burial chamber are carved into the bedrock, while the ceiling is made of large limestone blocks. Where the rock was faulty, limestone patches were inserted, and everything was carefully plastered, as evidenced by abundant traces of plaster. The triangular pediment in the western wall under the ceiling itself is made of blocks, while on the eastern side the lower part is a bedrock, and the upper one is masonry. This allows you to find out what was the level of the stepped rock hill in a particular place inside the square base of the Pyramid. Near the chamber, it reached a height of at least 3 m above the level (considered zero) of the surrounding courtyard. There are no images or original inscriptions on the walls of the chamber. The cleaning of the chamber in 1966 showed that over the centuries its walls, especially at the bottom, had taken on a rather dark color due to water penetration. Two vertical lines are clearly visible on the northern and southern walls, drawn in red and as high as the walls themselves. The eastern one is in line with the edge of the rocky floor, and the second one is 23 cm further to the west. At a certain height from the floor, two horizontal lines about 30 cm apart form a small square with the rest. Higher in the wall, on both sides, shafts of the same size are visible, which were cut in the south wall to a depth of about 33 cm, in the north - up to 43 cm. The bottom of these shafts is roughly worked. The floor of the chamber is carved into the bedrock and has two levels. The length of the floor in the eastern part of the chamber is 4.89 m. In the western part, the floor is roughly cut and is lower by 0.3 - 0.4 m. Initially, in the western part of the chamber, the floor was paved with large limestone and granite blocks, but Perring them completely turned over and removed in search of a hidden room. On the white limestone blocks of the floor, he found many signs left by stonecutters. According to the drawings by Belzoni, the discoverer of the Pyramid, it is known that the floor was still in good condition at the time of entry, except for a few blocks that had been moved or repositioned. Given the thickness of the floor of the burial chamber, V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi believed that only one row of thin limestone slabs was laid on the rock, as can be seen from Belzoni's drawings. This does not apply to the part of the chamber where the sarcophagus is located, which was installed in the excavation made in the rock, where there could even be two rows of masonry. Near the southern wall of the chamber, at a distance of 3.99 m from its western wall, there is a pit. The dimensions of the pit are 0.76 x 0.72 m, the depth is 0.7 m. It may have served as a container for canopus and was originally covered with a limestone slab, which was part of the floor. The central horizontal corridor enters the chamber from the northern side, 2.65 m from the eastern wall of the chamber. The center of the Pyramid is 1.19 m west of the western wall and 1.17 m north of the southern wall of the burial chamber. In other words, the center of the Pyramid is not in the chamber, but a little to the west, in the bedrock itself.
Belzoni and his team, when opening the camera, were looking for some inscription that would shed light on the purpose of the Pyramid itself. They examined all the walls and found many scrawls written in charcoal, but with unknown and almost indistinguishable characters. The inscriptions were erased to dust at the slightest touch. An Arabic inscription was found on the wall at the western end of the chamber. The translation of the inscription was made by Mr. Salame: "The Master Mohammed Ahmed, lapicide, has opened them; and the Master Othman attended this (opening); and the King Alij Mohammed at first (from the beginning) to the closing up." On several sections of the wall, saltpeter formed many beautiful arborizations, similar to those that are visible in the horizontal corridor, only there are much more of them in the chamber. Some of these formations were up to 6 inches long. Under one of the floor blocks of the chamber, Belzoni found what looked like a thick piece of an axe, but so rusty that it had lost its shape. On the north and south sides of the chamber, two holes are carved into the rock that run in a horizontal direction, similar to those seen in the Great Pyramid.
The burial chamber may have been built in a rock-cut pit, similar to the pit of Pyramid of Djedefre at Abu Roash. However, the pit in the Pyramid of Khafre is not so deep. The burial chamber is located at a right angle relative to the axis of the entrance. The tops of the walls of the burial chamber are at the level of the terrace of the Pyramid. A square hole in the floor at the western end of the south wall probably contained a chest with canopic jars. This is the earliest known example of such a pit in a pyramid. The pit was probably covered by one of the paving blocks on the floor of the chamber. In 1818, G. B. Belzoni snuck into the burial chamber, rediscovering the upper entrance to the Pyramid. To his dismay, he discovered that there were already others in the Pyramid in post-Pharaonic times. It is curious that the bones found in the sarcophagus turned out to be the bones of a bull. It is known that in a later period, bulls were buried as symbols of the pharaoh himself or Osiris.
The lower part of the burial chamber was carved entirely in the rock, but its upper part and the gable vault ceiling were made of large limestone blocks.
The burial chamber, oriented east-west, was completely carved into the bedrock.
A horizontal corridor enters the burial chamber from the north side. The distance from the east wall of the chamber to the horizontal corridor is 2.62 m (8 ft 7 in). The floor of the chamber on the east side is a bedrock and is 4.88 m (16 ft) long. On the western side, where the sarcophagus itself is located, the floor is composed of two rows of cubic blocks and is 9.14 m (30 ft) long. Herodotus assumed that the sarcophagus could hide the entrance to a hidden burial chamber, but nothing was found after shifting of the blocks. The center of the Pyramid is located 2.44 m (8 ft) from the western wall, and 1.17 m (3 ft 10 in) from the southern wall of the chamber.
The entire burial chamber, except for its ceiling, was carved into the bedrock. The gable vault ceiling of the chamber is made of huge limestone blocks. The chamber is located under the center of the Pyramid, has a rectangular base, and oriented along the east-west axis. There are short horizontal shafts in the northern and southern walls, similar to the "air shafts" in the Great Pyramid, only they are long there. Perhaps in the Pyramid of Khafre, these shafts served to unload some kind of wooden structure. At the western end of the chamber is a sarcophagus sunk into the floor. There is also a small depression in the floor, which probably contained canopic jars. The pharaoh's mummy and funerary items were not found at the opening of the Pyramid.
According to Petrie, assuming the horizontal passage has the same azimuth as the descending corridor, the burial chamber is located at a distance of about 47 in (1.19 m) from the center of the Pyramid. This is practically the same arrangement as in the Great Pyramid. The doorway to the chamber is located in the north wall at a distance of 104.3 in (2.65 m) from its east wall. The width of the doorway is 40.6 in (1.03 m). Vertical red lines are visible on the northern and southern walls of the chamber, which are located at a distance of 198.3 in (5.04 m) and 198.6 in (5.04 m) from its eastern wall. These red lines reach dead-end square holes cut in the rock in the northern and southern walls. The holes are like ventilation shafts. A little below the holes, next to the red line, visible drawn squares of the same size as the holes themselves. Perhaps they were originally intended to cut a hole below. The dimensions of the drawn squares are as follows: the width of the northern square is 8.7-9 in (22.1-22.9 cm), the height is 11.8-12.2 in (30-31 cm); the width of the southern square is 8.7-9 in (22.1-22.9 cm), the height is 11.5-11.6 in (29.2-29.5 cm).
Perring and Vyse discovered that the lid, which fit into grooves at the ends of the sarcophagus, was originally sealed with some kind of molten resin, traces of which remained in the grooves.
The burial chamber is located at a right angle to the axis of the horizontal passage. The black granite sarcophagus is located in the western part of the chamber and is half sunked into the thick pavement that once covered most of the chamber's floor. The lid of the sarcophagus rests on two supports.
The sarcophagus was made of granite and, like that of Cheops, there was neither the name of the king nor the image of a god on it. The lid was so firmly attached that the Arabs were unable to remove it when they robbed the tomb in 1200. They were forced to break one side of the lid with a hammer before they could get to the coffin and take the pharaoh's mummy out of it.
The sarcophagus was sunk into the floor to its lid. When Belzoni discovered it in 1818, the sarcophagus was already desecrated and empty.
The sarcophagus was sunk into the floor of the burial chamber, not far from its western wall (1.10 m from the western wall and 1.08 m from the northern wall) and approximately along its axis. Only the lid of the sarcophagus must have protruded from the floor. Chephren's sarcophagus is similar to Cheops' sarcophagus, it was polished inside and out, and only its lower face remained rough. This detail indicates that the granite block from which the sarcophagus was made was processed with a saw, the traces of which are clearly visible. The final work is so precise that deviations do not exceed even 2 mm. The lid of the sarcophagus was retractable. It moved horizontally along special grooves made on both sides in the upper part of the sarcophagus. These half-dovetail slots diverge slightly to facilitate entry into the lid. The final sealing of the sarcophagus was provided by two small pins, probably metal, which fit completely into two holes in its lid. After closing, the pins were lowered into two corresponding holes made in the thickness of the western side of the sarcophagus, the depth of which was less than the length of the pins. This system made it impossible to invert the movement of the lid. All holes were made with a tubular drill. Petrie believed that the metal pins were heated at the time of use and then placed into holes in the lid, which then closed quickly. When lowered, the pins melted the wax, which, cooling down, locked them forever. Judging by the traces found, the mortar was also placed in the dovetail grooves in order to press the lid even more tightly to the sarcophagus. Another precautionary measure was, apparently, the embedment of the sarcophagus in the floor. It is curious that the lower part of the sarcophagus was polished from the outside during manufacture, which indicates that it was originally planned to be placed on the floor. However, for some reason, the system of closing the sarcophagus did not enjoy the full confidence of those who accepted it, and they decided to drown it in the floor and securely fasten it to granite blocks.
The sarcophagus is located 4 ft 4 in (1.32 m) from the south wall of the chamber, and 3 ft 7 in (1.09 m) from its western wall.
The sarcophagus, having a width of 1.07 m, could never pass through the 1.04 m wide passages. Therefore, it was placed in еру burial chamber until the construction of the Pyramid was completed. The sarcophagus is of the usual form, sunk into the floor to the level of its sliding lid. Initially, the sarcophagus was located in the western part of the burial chamber, 1.09 m (43.1 in) from its western wall and 1.09 m (42.9 in) from the southern wall. This distance was increased by a few centimeters when it was moved, and is now 42 cm from the north wall, and 50 cm from the south. The sarcophagus is polished not only inside, but also outside, but its bottom is rough. According to Petrie, when sawing out the sarcophagus, the saw cut too deep and was then pulled out. Consequently, the sarcophagus was not polished all over the bottom, as the worst part of the cut was cut 0.2 in (0.51 cm) deeper than the machined part. Outside from below, the height throughout the polished part of the sarcophagus is constant, and is 0.96 m (38.12 in). The height is reduced only in the part where the saw went too deep and was not reduced by polishing. Horizontal lines, traces of polishing are visible inside from its northern end. The lid of the sarcophagus lies on the floor of the chamber, not broken. It was pushed over the sarcophagus and held by a protrusion on its base, which was inserted into cut grooves along the northern, eastern and southern sides of the sarcophagus, with the western side cut off to the depth of the groove. The grooves in the sarcophagus are not parallel to each other, but widen from the west. When placed in place, two bronze pins fell out of the holes in the lid into the corresponding holes in the western part of the sarcophagus. There was resin in the pin holes. The heated pins were immersed in it by 0.5 - 1 in. After that, the lid was cemented in the grooves. Groove dimensions: 3 to 6 cm (1.2 to 2.3 in) on the north side, 3 to 5 cm (1.08 to 1.9 in) on the south side. The average measurement error may be 0.1 cm (0.04 in). The two pin holes at the top of the west side are cut with a tubular drill and have an average diameter of 2.72 cm (1.07 in). Inside the sarcophagus, a large amount of crystallized salt is visible.
The sarcophagus is located at the western end of the burial chamber and is sunked into the floor. The sarcophagus had a sliding lid.
The sarcophagus is located in the burial chamber, near its western wall. The sarcophagus was originally closed with a sliding lid, which was found nearby in two parts.
The sarcophagus was at the western end of the burial chamber, and was sunk into the floor. It is surrounded by large granite blocks, apparently to prevent it from being removed, which can only be done with great effort. The lid of the sarcophagus was broken on the side, so that it was half open. The sarcophagus is made of high quality granite, however, like the sarcophagus in the Great Pyramid, this one also does not have a single hieroglyph. Looking inside, Belzoni discovered a large amount of earth and stones, but did not find the bones until the next day after opening. A young man named Pieri, who worked at the Briggs and Walmas office in Cairo, came the next day to visit the Pyramid, and after rummaging through the debris inside the sarcophagus, he found a piece of bone that was thought to belong to a human skeleton. Upon further search, they found several more fragments, which, after being sent to London, turned out to be the bones of a bull.
Additional Data
Two descending corridors (the upper one is located in the core of the Pyramid, and the lower one is several meters north of the base of the Pyramid) suggest that the Pyramid was originally planned with a larger foundation than it was eventually built.
The walls of the corridors and chambers were heavily plastered. There is a niche in the lower horizontal corridor in the eastern wall, opposite the western descent to the additional chamber. Its dimensions and the slightly trapezoidal shape of the floor are exactly suitable for maneuvering any object with similar dimensions to that of the lower part of the sarcophagus. The object could be laid on its side, rotated 90° and raised at one end, so it could be moved into a descending corridor, with only 6.70 m long, into an additional chamber. However, according to the calculations of J. Becker, transportation of the sarcophagus to the additional chamber is impossible. The reason for this is the too narrow design of the connection of the descending corridor to the additional chamber. This proves that the sarcophagus was never transported to the additional chamber.
The entrance to the Pyramid of Khafre was opened by G. B. Belzoni on March 2, 1818. After juxtaposing numerical calculation and observation, Belzoni began searching for an entrance. Reaching the base of the Pyramid near the temple, Belzoni saw a flat pavement carved into the solid bedrock that runs from the temple to the Pyramid and surrounds it. In his opinion, the Sphinx, the temple and the Pyramid were erected at the same time, because they were all built on one line and looked the same ancient. On February 18, upon seeing a gap between two stones, the workers of Belzoni noticed that one of the stones, which seemed motionless, was actually wobbling. They took it out and found a cavity leading inward. The entrance was no more than 3 ft wide and filled with small rocks and sand, behind which a wide passageway was seen. Expanding it, by the light of a candle, they saw a spacious cave, and they assumed that the passage was made in order to find the entrance to the inside of the Pyramid. At half that distance, there was another cavity that ran down 40 ft in an uneven trajectory with a clear direction toward the center. The top has collapsed. On March 2, the workers of Belzoni reached the actual entrance to the Pyramid. The passage descended 104 ft 5 in towards the center at a 26°slope. Most of the passage was filled with large stones. There was a portcullis at the end, raised about 8 in. Pulling it up, they squeezed inward into a corridor that was 22 ft 7 in long. At the end there was a well, at the bottom of which they saw another passage going down to the north. All passages were carved into the bedrock and, according to Belzoni, the walls were covered with saltpeter crystals. The burial chamber had a vaulted ceiling, and many blocks of the floors pavement were removed. At the western edge of the chamber, he found a sarcophagus sunk into the floor. Several bones of a bull were found inside and around the sarcophagus. The hieroglyphs were not found either inside or outside the Pyramid, and this led Belzoni to assume that the Pyramid was erected before this writing method was invented.
Traces of water were found inside the Pyramid. Water stood for a long time in the additional subterranean chamber, and traces of flowing water are visible in the descending corridor leading to the underground chamber. V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi believed that no relieving chambers were built above Khafre's burial chamber, as indicated by the shape of the ceiling. Those above the 'King's Chamber' in the Pyramid of Cheops did not perform well in the end, as many of the granite beams in the ceiling cracked. However, the ceiling beams of the 'Queen's Chamber' withstood the weight that pressed on them without breaking, and it was even more than the weight that is observed above the 'King's Chamber'. Therefore, the architects of Khafre copied this vault system exactly. It is likely that, as seen above the entrance to the Pyramid of Cheops, in the burial chambers of the pyramids of the Vth and VIth dynasties, and above the burial chamber of the Pyramid of Khafre, two or three systems of vaults were stacked on top of each other for greater security. According to I.E.S. Edwards, the original construction plan was to build the Pyramid about 30 m to the north, so that the lower chamber was almost under the apex of the Pyramid. This plan was probably abandoned because more suitable soil was found south of that originally chosen for the causeway. Evidence for this theory is provided by the fact that the alignment of the platform around the Pyramid is much more extensive to the north than to the west.
H. Vyse and his team on January 24, 1837 began excavations of the Pyramid of Khafre. While clearing the upper horizontal corridor, G. B. Caviglia discovered masonry in the floor. Removing this masonry, they discovered a descending passage in the north direction, which led to the lower section of the Pyramid. Below was another horizontal corridor, which ended in an ascending corridor parallel to the then known upper entrance. In search of a second descending corridor, the team began clearing from the outer north side of the Pyramid. The mound of debris, made up of large blocks, reached a height of 40 ft. The portcullises and the mechanism of their work were studied - they rose. The lower portcullis, which had been pierced, was in an elevated position, and it was assumed that the upper portcullis could also be raised. In the end, it was raised higher to make it easier for a person to move around, since G. B. Belzoni raised it only 8 inches.
The northern part of the corridor is built of granite blocks. After the granite part, the corridor rises 23 in (0.58 m) and is built of tightly fitted blocks of fine limestone. The length of the northern granite section of the corridor is: 40.92 in (1.039 m, the length of the corridor from the end of the descending corridor to the portcullis) + 15.19 in (0.386 m, the width of the groove in which the portcullis is located) + 43 in (1.092 m, the length of the granite section south of the porculis) = 2.52 m.
In the southern part of the corridor, tunnels are visible in the ceiling and in the floor, which were probably made by ancient robbers. The lower tunnel leads to the ascending corridor below it.
The walls of this corridor are covered with saltpeter crystals (arborizations).
The horizontal corridor is completely carved into the bedrock, however, due to the poor quality of the limestone, defects are observed in places. The builders found it necessary to finish the walls and ceiling of the corridor with pinkish gypsum plaster. The corridor is not completely horizontal, there is a slight descent in a southerly direction, approximately to the middle, after which the corridor rises again at the same angle to the level of the northern end. Approximately in the middle of the corridor there is a 11 m long section, where the walls, ceiling and floor are cased with limestone blocks. This work was necessary because of the poor quality of the bedrock. In the western wall, 15 cm from the burial chamber and 75 cm from the floor of the corridor, there is a hole 3 cm in diameter. Perhaps there was some kind of door in this place.
It is believed that the lower descending corridor is older than the upper one. It was carved into the bedrock at a distance of about 8 m north of the northern edge of the Pyramid.
The lower entrance on the north side of the Pyramid was cleared in March 1837. The entrance is located in the bedrock, at a distance of 12.19 m (40 ft) from the base of the Pyramid.
The lower entrance was originally covered with blocks that formed the paving of the surrounding courtyard. It is important to note that this second entrance is located exactly below the upper entrance, so that the entire system of internal passages is in the same vertical plane.
The older of the two entrances to the subterranean chambers of the Pyramid is located about 30 m north of the Pyramid and is completely carved into the bedrock.
The lower entrance begins outside the base of the Pyramid, at a distance of more than 8 m from its northern edge. The axis of the corridor runs 12.45 m east of the central north-south axis of the Pyramid.
The entrance is located near the center of the northern edge of the Pyramid, at the level of its base.
The descending corridor was almost entirely carved into the bedrock, and was practically not plastered. There is no doubt that the entrance was completely blocked by large limestone blocks. Perring found that some of them were still in place for nearly 11 m from the outer opening, which he found was still hidden by the paving slabs of the courtyard. The first of these plugs was on average 3 m long, and some black dust of an undetermined nature was found at its lower end. Perring suggested that it was crushed stone. From the obvious marks, Perring could also see that the lower blocks, filled with mortar, reached the portcullis and were destroyed from the inside. At the north end in the floor of the corridor, one can see two longitudinal sections, parallel to each other, which are similar to those in other, later pyramids. In the rock under the pavement of the surrounding courtyard, opposite the east side of the passage, there is a strangely shaped hole, the purpose of which is unknown. Its shape and the fact that two protrusions remained at the bottom seem to rule out that it was a noose landing.
The corridor descends and at the end passes into a horizontal corridor.
Upon discovery, the corridor was filled with large blocks, ranging in size from 2 m to 3 m (6-10 ft). Vyse freed the entrance with dynamite, and found black dust under the stones (possibly a destroyed stone, but it is not clear). The entrance into the lower descending corridor was cleared in April 1837.
The lower entrance is located outside, a few yards from the base of the Pyramid, and after passing through the unfinished chamber, rejoins the upper one.
The entrance to the descending corridor from the side of the pavement was covered with limestone slabs, which Vyse partially cleared.
In the descending corridor, a large stone block was found, placed there from the top of the passage.
The lower entrance begins outside the base of the Pyramid, at a distance of more than 8 m from its northern edge. The axis of the corridor runs 12.45 m east of the central north-south axis of the Pyramid. The corridor were 1.07-1.20 m wide, but the ceiling and walls were plastered. The thickness of the plaster is at least one centimeter. The azimuth of the corridor is -5' 37".
At the end of the descending corridor, where it turns into a horizontal corridor, there was a granite portcullis.
Halfway down the horizontal corridor on the east side is a depression 3.35 m (11 ft) wide and 1.83 m (6 ft) deep.
The corridor is carefully carved and plastered. At a distance of 5.2 m from the southern end of the corridor, there is a niche in the eastern wall. The length of the niche is 3.09 m, the depth is 1.71 m, the height is 1.63 m. Opposite the niche there is a descending corridor to the additional chamber.
A niche has been carved in the eastern wall of the corridor. The length of the niche varies between 3.1 m and 3.14 m (122 - 123.8 in). Depth - 1.72 - 1.73 m (67.8 - 68.2 in). Opposite the niche is a descending corridor to the additional chamber. This arrangement of the niche allows for the possibility of maneuvering and introducing a coffin, approximately 40 x 105 in (1.01 x 2.66 m), into the additional chamber. Examples of the use of such a niche opposite a passage that turns at right angles are clearly visible in the satellite pyramids.
The ascending corridor is entirely carved into the bedrock and plastered with mortar. The walls of the corridor at the north end were hewn with some care and plastered with pink plaster, while the cracks in the rock were walled up or filled with mortar.
The descending corridor to the additional chamber is coordinated with the azimuth of the lower entrance.
The descending corridor starts in the western wall at a distance of 7.33 m from the southern end of the lower horizontal corridor. The corridor is rather rough work, apparently, was not plastered. The corridor had once been scraped off by running water. At the base of the entry corners are two holes within the opening, which correspond to significant traces of mortar on the lintel of the possible door. V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi suggested that there was a wooden door with two wings.
The additional chamber is carved into the bedrock and has a gable vault. The purpose of this chamber is not entirely clear. It can probably be regarded as the equivalent of the "Subterranean" or "Queen's chamber" of the Great Pyramid.
On the west wall of the chamber, peeling plaster, painted in red, is visible. Laboratory research shows that the lime (gypsum) plaster was mixed with small fragments of pink granite left over from the alignment of the lower row of the Pyramid's casing. This was probably necessary for the hardness of the plaster, or in order to imitate the granite casing of the chamber.
The descending corridor enters the additional chamber from the east side. The corridor is located at a distance of 1.03 m from the north wall of the chamber. The chamber is carved completely into the bedrock, the work is rather rough. About halfway along the ceiling, one can see that on both sides and symmetrically to each other, the rock has been cut deeper than it should have been. These cuts were subsequently patched with thick layers of plaster. The floor is also very uneven and was leveled with mortar. The walls retain clear traces of being under water up to a height of about 30 cm.
The additional chamber contains many small stone blocks, some no more than two feet in length. The chamber has a pointed roof, but it is carved entirely into the rock. There are several unknown inscriptions on the walls and ceiling of this chamber, just like in the burial chamber. Perhaps they are Coptic.
A descending corridor enters the chamber from the east side. The corridor is 1.04 m (40.9 in) from the north wall of the chamber, and 1.04 m (41.0 in) from the south.
The northern "air shaft" is located 1.36 m below the blocks of the gable vault and 1.35 m horizontally to the west of the entrance. It is not clear how the builders planned to cut the shaft to a great depth. V. Maragioglio and C. Rinaldi supported the idea that the shafts supported a transverse wooden beam with a curtain separating the burial chamber. This assumption is supported by the fact how long the burial chamber is compared to its width, and also that its western 2/3 part is paved, while the higher, eastern part of the floor is the bedrock. It can also notice that the red vertical lines almost correspond to the dividing line of these two levels, and that the "air shafts" are located opposite each other. Thus, a supposed cross beam with a curtain, inserted into the shafts, would divide the chamber into a true burial chamber, paved with granite, and an antechamber, a serdab or magazine with a limestone floor. Rectangles barely drawn on the walls may indicate that a second support beam was planned for a light partition wall, but was subsequently considered useless at that height and thus was never installed.
The northern "air shaft" is located 1.36 m (53.6 in) below the lower corner of the blocks of the chamber's gable vault.
The northern "air shaft" is located in the upper part of the northern wall of the burial chamber. A line painted in red runs perpendicularly down from the west side of the shaft to a point a few feet below, where it forms one side of a rectangle, also painted in red, which corresponds fairly closely in size to the openings above. Probably, it was originally planned to cut a shaft here, then the builders changed the plan. I.E.S. Edwards believes the plan was changed because it was easier to cut a hole through the blocks of the gable vault during construction than to cut all the way down into the rock. The purpose of the northern "air shaft" may have been that a corridor was needed that would look at the North Star (Alpha Draconis during the construction of the Pyramid), but in the end this role was played by an entrance descending passage with a horizontal corridor.
The southern "air shaft" is located 1.40 m below the lower corner of the blocks of the chamber's gable vault.
The southern "air shaft" is located 1.40 m (55.2 in) below the lower corner of the blocks of the chamber's gable vault.
The southern "air shaft" is located in the upper part of the southern wall of the burial chamber, approximately opposite the northern "air shaft". A line, painted in red, runs perpendicularly down from the west side of the shaft to a point a few feet below, where it forms one side of a rectangle, also painted in red, which corresponds fairly closely in size to the openings above. It was probably originally planned to cut a shaft here, then the builders changed the plan.
