One of the most mysterious pyramids in Egypt

2024 Author: Seth Attwood | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 15:55

More than one hypothesis has been put forward about why the second great pyramid of Dashur has such an unusual broken shape, from the "mistake of builders" to "protecting the interior from excessive pressure and destruction." But the shape is not the most interesting thing about this pyramid. It has a very complex system of internal passages and rooms.

The pyramid is closed for internal visits, so getting there was one of the most important and difficult tasks of our trip. Fortunately, luck has accompanied us here as well.

The complexity and scale of the Polyline's internal structure can only be appreciated by visiting it.

What for? For what purpose is this all so confusing?

All pyramids open to tourists are adapted for movement inside. Wooden ladders and railings seem to be their integral part. But in Lomaya there is nothing of this, only in some places there are steps.

One of the two entrances to the Broken Pyramid is located on the north side (at a height of 12 meters), like most of the pyramids of Egypt.

The descending corridor with a length of about 80 meters also has a standard size of about 1x1 m. The walls are very well preserved, the blocks are even, smooth and tightly fitted to each other, the angle of the corridor is also traditional: 26 degrees. Why exactly this angle was used in most pyramids is one of the still unresolved mysteries.

In the body of the pyramid there are two large chambers with a characteristic stepped ceiling. From them "shoots" emerge, some of which also have a stepped ceiling. The two main rooms are connected to each other by a curved tunnel roughly carved into the wall (perhaps not originally planned).

From the first northern chamber to the connecting tunnel, which is at a high altitude, you can climb a wooden staircase. Having overcome this tunnel, you find yourself in a horizontal corridor oriented from the west to the east.

On both sides, the path was once blocked by portcullis (as in the literature, the locking blocks in the pyramids are traditionally called, which could be lowered or extended. Initially, the term "port-curtain" means a heavy wooden fortress gate, bound with iron, which was lowered on chains or ropes, to block the attackers' path.) - Heavy blocks that may have been blocking the passage. The fragments of these blocks are still visible. Their size is significantly larger than the size of the corridor itself, that is, the portcullis should have been placed here during construction.

On the east side, the horizontal corridor ends with a large chamber, the floor of which is much lower than the entrance to it. It was not possible to get down to the floor of this cell; it had to be examined only from above. The room is badly destroyed and somewhat resembles a camera in the Meidum pyramid, only larger.

On the western side, the horizontal corridor turns into a long (65 meters) ascending passage, ending with a rectangular exit to the outside at a height of 33 meters. The corridor is not at all adapted for movement, the absence of steps or at least a wooden ladder makes the ascent very difficult. The walls of the corridor are perfectly flat and smooth. Its purpose is difficult to explain, since the outlet is too high. In this connection, this hole absolutely cannot serve for entry and exit. It is completely impossible to imagine the holding of any "funeral ceremony" here.

Restoration work is carried out from time to time in the pyramid, so it was quite difficult to find convenient slots for taking samples, but we still took a couple of samples.

Perhaps, the Broken Pyramid can be called the most complex in terms of internal structure of all the pyramids of Egypt. The meaning and purpose of this structure will most likely remain incomprehensible to us for a long time to come. We only have to be amazed at the knowledge and skill of the builders and look for answers to the riddles left to us by the ancient highly developed civilization.

No, it is no coincidence that it is closed for tourists …