Plioto and copyright by Underwood & Underwood 



I'.ROKEN BY ROBBERS ! KHUEu'S SARCOPHAGUS, IN THE SEPULCHER CHAMBER 01^ 'rH:E 



GREAT PYRAMID, EGYPT 



Unlike the rest of the pyramid, which is faced with limestone, the burial chamber of 

 Khufu is constructed of great blocks of weathered granite cut from the rocks at the first 

 cataract of the Nile. Over it are five small chambers, one above the other, designed to 

 render the roof of the burial chamber safe by relieving it of some of the weight of the vast 

 mass, which would otherwise press dangerously upon it. After the body of Khufu was laid 

 in his great sarcophagus, the entrance to this chamber was sealed and workmen dropped 

 into their places great blocks of granite, filling the end of the passage for 17 feet ; then a 

 cunningly devised block was filled into the entrance which hid all appearances of an opening. 

 Yet, despite all these precautions, the rest of the great King was disturbed by Arab tomb 

 robbers, who forced their way in, plundered the sacred body, and carried off the jewels and 

 the rich furniture which always surrounded the royal dead. 



969 



