The ancient Egyptians took many steps to protect the pyramids. But have they ever resorted to booby traps?
The answer Egyptologist told Live Science is highlighted no.
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It is not clear where the idea for a booby trap within the Egyptian pyramid came from. Tombs with booby traps are sometimes depicted in movies (such as Indiana Jones’ movies) and video games (such as Tomb Raider Franchise). However, it does not appear that ancient Egyptians used booby traps, like holes spiked under the false floor or rope snares where intruders could remain hanging upside down.
“Booby Trap is unknown to Egyptian scholars,” independent scholar and Egyptian scholar Rolf Kraus, who wrote extensively about Egyptian pyramids, told Live Science in an email. Klaus said the booby trap would not have been effective in stopping robbers who want to plunder the pyramid. He pointed out that ancient tomb robbers worked in a large team and Booby Trap didn’t get all of them.
You could “catch a robber at a booby trap/or perhaps two graves,” Klaus said. “But what about other people? Construction of graves and funerals large enough to hide booby traps cannot enter and be taken away. Only the team can do that.” Instead, pyramid builders used a variety of building methods to prevent people from stealing the structure.
Related: What did the pyramids of ancient Egypt look like when they were created?
In his book, “Eternal: Preservation of Ancient Egyptian Tombs from Prehistoric Times to Pyramids” (American University of Cairo Publishing, 2019), Clark writes that one of the reasons why the pyramids were built was to protect the Pharaoh’s final resting place. Before the pyramid was built, the pharaohs were buried in smaller “Mastabu” tombs – flat rectangular structures with walls that draw inward-facing walls, he said. In contrast, the tomb robber had to dig far deeper into the tunnels below or below the pyramid to reach the Pharaoh’s burial chamber.
“The pure mass and nature of the resistant material that made up the pyramid’s superstructure provided a high level of protection for the internal arrangement within and/or lower parts,” Clark told Live Science in an email.
After the Pharaoh was buried, the passageway and entrance to the pyramid were cut off. The Great Pyramid has passageways that do not lead to the burial chamber, but their exact purpose is unknown. It is not certain whether they were created to deceive intruders.
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“It can pose a very risk to intruders and blocking of the passages and shafts of some pyramids,” Clark said. “Sadly, this has been revealed [Egyptian archaeologist] Excavation of Zakaria Gonim, the pyramid of the Third Dynasty of Sekemket in Saqqara in the 1950s. As Goneim workers had cleared the main passageway to the pyramid, the backfill and blocking of the construction shaft above the corridor at the main entrance collapsed into them, killing one and injuring two. ”
In ancient times, Egyptians “close the slide block to close the burial room,” he told Live Science via email using David Ian Lightbode, an Egyptian scholar and adjunct professor at the University of Vermont.
Lightbody added that “magical protection spells” are written on several pyramids. Known as the “Pyramid Text,” they did not “curse” the robbery of the grave, but they were thought to provide magical protection to the Pharaohs. One line is “Osiris, carry everyone who hates [the pharaoh]he speaks violently against his name” (translated by Samuel Mercer).
One of the most serious dangers to robbery was the punishment for being caught. Clark said the text of the 20th Dynasty (1186-1070 BC) suggests that punishment for stealing the grave has been stabbed after cutting off your nose and ears.
Despite these measures, protections often failed. Many pyramids, including the great pyramids built for Pharaokhu, were taken away in ancient times or the Middle Ages (around 500-1500 AD). During the 18th Dynasty (1550-1295 BC), the Egyptians stopped building the royal pyramids and instead buried the Pharaohs in the Valley of Kings. However, this did not prevent theft yet. Most graves in the valley have been taken away, with Tutang Kamun’s grave being a notable exception.
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