Hidden passage discovered in Great Pyramid of Giza

Egyptian and international scientists have been scanning the famous edifice using 3D-imaging technique since 2015

Scientists discovered a 9m-long corridor inside the Great Pyramid of Giza. Photo: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities

A passageway has been discovered inside the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt’s tourism minister said at an unveiling ceremony held at the Giza plateau on Thursday.

The previously hidden corridor is the latest discovery of the ScanPyramids project, a mission made up of heritage experts from Cairo University and the French Heritage Innovation Preservation (HIP) Institute.

It is nine metres in length and 2.1 metres wide.

The team began its work on the Great Pyramid in 2015 and the following year announced the discovery of a void inside.

Another void was discovered through scanning in 2017 and was named the ScanPyramids Big Void.

Among those attending Thursday's ceremony were renowned Egyptologist Zahi Hawass, an integral member of the scanning mission, Egypt’s Minister of Tourism and Antiquities Ahmed Eissa and a delegation of scientists from the mission.

An imaging robot used in the unearthing of a corridor inside the Great Pyramid. Photo: Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities

The ScanPyramids project began its work on the Great Pyramid in 2015 and made the discovery through the use of muon tomography, a technique that produces accurate 3D imaging.

Robots were placed in the pyramid and controlled externally by specialists who made the discovery, Mr Hawass said on Thursday.

The passageway was most likely built to relieve the weight of the pyramid either on the main entrance hall or on a yet-to-be-discovered chamber, according to a brief address on Thursday by Dr Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of the Egyptian Supreme Council of Antiquities, which oversaw the process.

ScanPyramids will continue to explore the Great Pyramid, its board said on Thursday.