Laser Scanning the Sphinx and Pyramids
Beginning in 1979 Mark Lehner undertook a five-year project of mapping the Sphinx, after which he founded the Giza Mapping Project with the much grander goal of mapping the entire plateau. The resulting diagrams and detailed drawings helped in later restorations of the Sphinx in 1998.
Now, with help from Professor Dr. Ayman el-Dessouki and his team at the National Authority for Remote Sensing and Space Sciences, the Sphinx has been scanned in high definition.
Dr Hawass explains:
These advanced scanners record an object’s distance, colour and roughness, and, by using multiple scans, create a detailed record of the object being scanned. In order to take multiple scans at Giza, the team would set up their laser scanner at different ocations around the plateau, even using cranes from the back of a fire truck, 45m high. This allowed them to create the most accurate plan of the Great Pyramid and Sphinx ever made. The results are accurate to less than 5cm, produced at high resolution, and most importantly, the process of data collection is non-destructive to the monuments.
Not only was the Sphinx laser scanned but also the pyramid of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure! It took just one month to complete the task. The team also conducted aerial scans by flying over Giza as well as a number of other archaeological sites along the Nile.
While the world waits with much anticipation for the results of last month’s robotic exploration of the shafts in the pyramid of Khufu by the team from Leeds University it was also announced that work is currently underway to laser scan the interior chambers and shafts of the Giza pyramids. With the combination of the robotic investigations and laser scans we should be able to learn a lot about what lies behind these mysterious ‘doors’.
On the matter of the results of the robotic exploraration of the shafts Hawass remains tight lipped. All he has said publically about the results is:
“I’m promising all of you that the secrets of the pyramid
will be revealed for the first time.”
Last year a joint effort by the Osaka University together with AREA worked to scan the pyramid of Djoser with a specially designed scanner called the ‘Djoser Scanner’ so that a 3D model of the pyramid could be created to help restore the substructure and superstructure of the pyramid.
Sources: Laser Scanning the Sphinx, Mark and Me
Previous related stories:
New Shaft Found in Worlds Oldest Pyramid
Laser Scanning Djoser’s Pyramid
Djoser 3D Scanning Begins
Egyptian Monuments to be Recreated in 3D
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Tags: Giza, lehner, sphinx, technology
