ギザの大ピラミッドのサーモスキャンをすると、岩壁に「ある異常」があることがわかった。4500年前につくられた壁の奥に「何か」が存在していることをを示す温度の変化がみつかったのだ。
「この異常は、本当にとても印象的なもので、なおかつ私たちの目の前、同じ高さの場所で起こっているのです」と、パリに拠点を置く遺産保存機関HIPの創設者メフディ・タユビ氏は語った。この機関は、赤外線サーモグラフィ、ミューオンX線撮影法、そして3次元再構築を組み合わせて用いた『スキャン・ピラミッド』と呼ばれる実験を行っている。
機関が発表した画像からわかるように、この"異常"は、クフ王のピラミッドとしても知られるギザの大ピラミッドの東側に位置している。
温度は石が温まる昼と、冷却された夜のそれぞれに測定された。大部分の隣接した石の間の温度差は、概して0.1度から0.5度の違いしかなかった一方で、サーモスキャンで確認できるように、ある特定の1箇所だけに6度の温度差が見られた。
「私たちは今のところ結論には達していませんが、幾つかの仮説が考えられます」と、タユビ氏は語った。
エジプトのマンドゥーハ・エル・ダマティ考古大臣も「幾つかの仮説を持っていたが、それらを発表する前により多くの調査を行いたい」と語った。
「ピラミッドの内部に空洞があるのかもしれないし、裂溝や通路かもしれません」と、考古大臣はアフラム・オンラインに述べた。「今の段階では、私には分かりません」。
「ピラミッドの東側にあり、温度変化のある区域まで続く「小さな通路」のように見えるものの存在が、その区域のより詳細な調査で明らかになりました」とエル・ダマティ考古大臣は AP通信に語った。
「この異常がピラミッドの東側にあることは、理に適っています。なぜなら、ピラミッドの東側にある幾つかの重要な寺院や墓を含めて考えると、この異常がこれら地域の“焦点”にあたると考えられるからです」とエジプト学者べス・アン・ジューダス博士は語った。
「ナイル川がピラミッドの東にあったので、殆ど誰もが東から近づいていったのでしょう」と、博士は話している。「また、ピラミッドは占星術でいう『太陽の相』とも繋がりがあるほか、古代エジプト宗教の神ラー崇拝にも関連しているのです」。
「クフ王のピラミッドは、あらゆるピラミッドの中で最も複雑な通路群を持っています。建設中に何回かの設計変更があったのかもしれません」とエジプトで数カ月間のフィールドワークを行ってきたジューダス博士は語った。
「例えば、元々の埋葬室は地下にありました。しかし、最終的にファラオの最後の霊安室は、ピラミッドの頂上近くに位置する『王の間』におかれました。
この異常を招いているものが何であれ、それは建設の初期段階に関係があるのでしょうし、それが最初の埋葬室だった可能性もありますね」とジューダス博士は語った。
「少なくとも、この異常はエジプト第4王朝の建設技術に更なる光を当てることになるでしょう」と、ジューダス博士は語った。「かなりエキサイティングなことです。過去数年間、考古学者たちはピラミッド建設に関係した労働者や役人について、多くのことを学んできました。そして、このことが、彼らの作業についてより詳細な情報を私たちに提供してくれるのです」。
『スキャン・ピラミッド』プロジェクトは2016年まで続く予定だ。クフ王のピラミッドで発見された他のいくつかの異常、そして同じように他のモニュメント上で発見された異常も含め、さらなる調査がなされることだろう。
この記事はハフポストUS版に掲載されたものを翻訳しました。
エジプト ピラミッド画像集
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