at that instant , light burst into life in the great lanterns that hung from the ceiling , illuminating the pillared hall , chasing away the shadows , revealing first the serried ranks of heep , then the hooded figure , then the dwarf and the highlander who were hanging from a trellis above a large pit in the far corner ... and finally , the contents of the dish , which one of the heep had opened to reveal a large mound of sheep-droppings .