604 



ANNUAL REGISTER, 1818. 



together with cement, were 

 equally hard as the former, and 

 we had as many large stones to 

 remove as before. By this time 

 my retreat had been discovered, 

 which occasioned me many in- 

 terruptions from visitors, among 

 others was the Abbe de Forbin. 



" On February 28th, we dis- 

 covered a block of granite in an 

 inclined direction towards the 

 centre of the pyramid, and I per- 

 ceived that the inclination was 

 the same as that of the passage of 

 the first pyramid, or that of 

 Cheops ; consequently I began to 

 hope that I was near the true 

 entrance. On the 1st of Marcii 

 we observed three large blocks of 

 stone one upon the other, all in- 

 clined towards the centre ; these 

 large stones we had to remove as 

 well as others much larger as we 

 advanced, which considerably re- 

 tarded our approach to the desir- 

 ed spot. I perceived, however, 

 that 1 was near the true entrance, 

 and in fact, the nest day, about 

 noon, on the 2nd of March, was 

 the epoch at which the grand 

 pyramid of Cephrenes was at last 

 opened, after being closed up for 

 so many centuries, that it re- 

 mained an uncertainty whether 

 any interior chambers did or did 

 not exist. The passage I dis- 

 covered was a square opening of 

 four feet high and three and a 

 half wide, formed by four blocks 

 of granite; and continued slanting 

 downward at the same inclination 

 as that of the pyramid of Cheops, 

 which is an angle of 26 deg. It 

 runs to the length of 104< feet 6 

 inches, lined the whole way with 

 granite. I had much to do to 

 remove and draw up the stones, 

 which filled the passage down to 



the portcullis or door of granite, 

 which is fitted into a niche, 

 also made of granite, I found 

 this door supported by small 

 stones within 8 inches of the 

 floor, and in consequence of the 

 narrowness of the place, it took 

 up the whole of that day and part 

 of the next to raise it sufficiently 

 to afford an entrance ; this door is 

 1 foot 3 inches thick, and together 

 with the work of the niche, occu- 

 pies 6 feet 1 1 inches ; where the 

 granite work ends ; then com- 

 mences a short passage, gradually 

 ascending towards the centre, 22 

 feet 7 inches at the end, on which 

 is a perpendicular of 15 feet ; on 

 the left is a small forced passage 

 cut in the rock, and also above, on 

 the right, is another forced 

 passage, which runs upwards and 

 turns to the north 30 feet, just 

 over the portcullis. There is no 

 doubt that this passage was made 

 by the same persons who forced 

 the other, in order to ascertain if 

 there were any others which 

 might ascend above, in conformity 

 to that of the pyramid of Cheops. 

 I descended the perpendicular by 

 means of a rope, and found a 

 large quantity of stones and earth 

 accumulated beneath, which very 

 nearly filled up the entrance into 

 the passage below which inclines 

 towards the north. I next pro- 

 ceeded towards the channel that 

 leads to the centre, and soon 

 reached the horizontal passage. 

 This passage is 5 feet 11 inches 

 high, 3 feet 6 inches wide, and the 

 whole length, from the above 

 mentioned perpendicular to the 

 great chamber, is 158 feet 8 

 inches. These passages are partly 

 cut out of the living rock, and at 

 half-way there is some mason's 



work 



