The new theory is even greater proof that the Great Pyramid "is a marvel of engineering, planning, and conservation," he said.
Houdin said he had applied for permission to test his theory on the actual pyramid using radar scans and other sensing equipment.
"I think this will speed up [approval of the application] in the coming weeks," he said.
But Zahi Hawass, general secretary of Egypt's Supreme Council of Antiquities and a National Geographic Explorer-in-Residence, said Houdin's application has been rejected. (National Geographic News is part of the National Geographic Society.)
Houdin, he said, had applied using an Egyptian "cover institution" that didn't have the proper expertise to examine the Great Pyramid.
"If we open the pyramid to everyone with a theory to prove, we would ruin the pyramid," he said.
Hawass, who wrote the preface to Houdin's 2006 book Khufu: The Secrets Behind the Building of the Great Pyramid, said the architect "has done his best [producing a theory] that is logical."
"But he has no proof," Hawass said. "And we do have evidence" to support other theories.
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