The Third Pyramid of Giza,
Menkaure's House of Eternity
The Pyramid of Menkaure (Mycerinus) would be a stupendous attraction were it located anywhere else but where it is - on the Giza Plateau overshadowed by the two greatest stone buildings in the world. Either a more humble nature or, more likely, diminished resources compelled Menkaure to build a smaller Pyramid than his predecessors.
The Pyramid of Menkaure was opened in the 1830's by Colonel Howard-Vyse. Sadly, the only object of note found inside, the presumed sarcophagus of Menkaure, was placed on board a ship that sank in deep water off the coast of Spain. One wonders if modern diving techniques could recover it, and if the long exposure to salt water has ruined it.
The North face of Menkaure's Pyramid
and the mysterious pit there.
by E.J. Andrews, 1842
It was early evening when I approached the Third Pyramid, lengthening shadows gave an eerie aspect to the ancient shrine. The area is less visited, strewn with the rubble of four and a half millennia. The solitary Arab guard rushed up to me, pressing a crude modern scarab into my hand.
"Welcome, Welcome to the Pyramid Menkaure," he said, the "of" somehow being lost in translation. "Do you want guide?"
"No, no guide."
I examined the entrance before me. Several courses of the original granite casing stones remained, and they were rounded - almost polygons, fitted together irregularly, a much more difficult work of stonemasonry than if they were laid in neat rows as they are in the larger Pyramids. Similar, even more irregular, stonework can be seen at Machu Picchu in Peru. The difficulty and precision of the work, along with the rounded shapes, has caused speculation that somehow the stone was softened before it was laid. While this is unlikely, it is a reflection of the obstacles encountered in explaining the accomplishments of the ancient Egyptians.
The entrance and casing stones of Menkaure's Pyramid
by E.J. Andrews, 1842
The Pyramid was indefinable as it stood before me in the desert evening, nether temple nor tomb, hardly the work of human hands, it's entrance an opening to something deep and eternal. The structure was there with a solidity not shared by its larger brethren, or any other building in my experience - more the solidity of an ancient mountain, the entrance suggesting the permanence of a smooth stone cave into the roots of that mountain.
The Arab guard put his hand on my shoulder. "Would you like spend the night in the Pyramid, to pray?" he asked.
There are many stories of people spending the night in Pyramids, stories often filled with mysterious visions and extraordinary revelations. Napoleon spent some time alone in the Great Pyramid and emerged profoundly shaken. To the end of his life he refused to discuss what had happened there, explaining that he felt no-one would believe it.
The interior of the Pyramid of Menkaure
by E.J. Andrews, 1842
Sadly I had a far different suspicion of what would be in store for me. The guard's posture showed that he had no intention of leaving me in solitude in that hidden chamber, so I returned the scarab and bid Menkaure and him a good evening.
The Pyramid of Menkaure
by E.J. Andrews, 1842.
The Pyramid of Menkaure at Giza
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Map of the Giza Pyramids by Prisse de l'Avennes, 1878.
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Ancient Egypt's Era of Pyramids
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