At Egypt’s Saqqara Serapeum temple, there are giant square granite sarcophagi weighing hundreds of tons that have baffled the world’s scientists.

The Saqqara Serapeum has been a source of constant speculation and mystery since its rediscovery in 1850. Even now, no theory can explain exactly how or why more than 20 giant stone coffins were moved to the site and installed so precisely in their grooves.

The orthodox theory holds that the site was used to bury Apis bulls, however archaeological findings show that there are many factors that do not fit this belief.

For example, the size of these stone coffins was too large for the bulls and this has led to a variety of different questions such as was it done to make the bulls more comfortable? If this is true then why not do the same for the pharaohs who were buried in coffins that fit their bodies? Why did they make the Serapeum coffins out of granite rather than limestone, a much easier material to work with? And if the Serapeum was the burial place for the Apis bulls then where are the mummified bulls?

Some have dismissed the theory that the Serapeum sarcophagus was used for a ritual burial, but if not, what was it used for? That is the question being asked by some Egyptologists…

Over the centuries, there have been many reports of lights appearing in various shapes and at different times on the ground just before, during, or after an earthquake. A recent case of earthquake lights was reported in L’Aquilla, Italy in 2009, when the area was hit by a 6.3 magnitude earthquake. Just before the earthquake, residents reported seeing lights above the city. The phenomenon was analyzed in detail and about 1,000 people were interviewed. The study concluded that the electric charges released during the earthquake caused the light effects.

Although the phenomenon has been known since ancient times, recent video surveillance (which is installed in pretty much every corner of the city) has allowed researchers to analyze it. And a few research teams have done so. A team at San Jose State University led by Professor Freund compiled data from 65 different locations around the world where earthquake lights were observed. Extensive work was done to analyze the data and the physics behind it. The results showed that the earthquake lights phenomenon is caused by the stress of granite materials in the soil. Theoretical and experimental verification has been completed to support the results.

Many may therefore wonder whether a similar lighting mechanism could have been used in the Serapeum during predynastic times. When granite sarcophagi are subjected to mechanical stress, an electrical charge is generated. The charges are usually dispersed toward the ground surface. When the charges reach the surface, they ionize air pockets above the ground and can light up the sky above Saqqara.

So, at the present time, many people think that the giant Serapeum was used to generate electricity with the pressure created inside by CO2 gas. The pressure acting on the quartz crystals created an electric charge on the surface of the sarcophagus. Those charges were then dispersed from underground towards the surface. The released charges ionized the air above Saqqara, causing the air to glow.