The Mystery of the Great Sphinx (Article) - Ancient History Encyclopedia The Mystery of the Great Sphinx Article by Brian Haughton published on 01 June 2011 Buried for most of its life in the desert sand, an air of mystery has always surrounded the Great Sphinx , causing speculation about its age and purpose, method of construction, concealed chambers, role in prophecy, and relationship to the equally mysterious pyramids . Much of this theorizing is to the despair of Egyptologists and archaeologists, who, reasonably it seems to me; only give credence to theories that are backed up by tangible evidence. The Mystery of the Great Sphinx Facing the rising sun, the Great Sphinx is located on the Giza plateau, about 10 km west of Cairo, on the west bank of the Nile River. Later Egyptian rulers worshipped it as an aspect of the sun god, calling it Hor-Em-Akhet (“ Horus of the Horizon”). The Sphinx sits in part of the necropolis of ancient Memphis , the seat of power for the pharaohs, a short distance from three large pyramids – the Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops), Khafre (Chephren) and Menkaura (Mycerinus).

Remove Ads Advertisement The monument is the largest surviving sculpture from the ancient world, measuring 73.5 m in length and in parts 20 m in height. Part of the uraeus (sacred cobra which protected from evil forces), the nose and the ritual beard are missing; the beard is now displayed in the British Museum. The extensions at the side of the head are part of the royal headcloth. Although the head of the Sphinx has been badly affected by thousands of years of erosion, traces of the original paint can still be seen near one ear. It is thought that originally the Sphinx’s face was painted dark red. A small temple between its paws contained dozens of inscribed stelae placed by the Pharaohs in honour of the Sun god. The Pharaoh ’s Dream The Sphinx has suffered greatly from the ravages of time, man and modern pollution. In fact, what has saved it from complete destruction is the fact that it has been submerged beneath the desert sand for most of its life. There have been various attempts to restore the Great Sphinx over the millennia, beginning in c. 1400 BCE with the pharaoh Tuthmosis IV.

After falling asleep in the shade of the Sphinx when out hunting, the pharaoh dreamt that the great beast was choking from the sand engulfing it, and that it told him if he cleared the sand he would obtain the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt . In between the front paws of the Sphinx is a granite stela, now called the “Dream Stela”, which is inscribed with the story of the pharaoh’s dream. Remove Ads Advertisement Archaeologists believe that the wall was built by Tuthmosis IV after his dream to protect the Sphinx from the desert winds. Towards the end of 2010 CE, during routine excavation work in the area of the monument, Egyptian archaeologists discovered large sections of mudbrick walls which were part of a larger wall which stretched for 132 meters (433 feet) around the Great Sphinx. The archaeologists believe that the wall was built by Tuthmosis IV after his dream to protect the Sphinx from the desert winds. After the clearing ordered by Tuthmosis IV, and despite the wall, the colossal sculpture once again found itself beneath the sand. When Napoleon arrived in Egypt in 1798 CE, he found the Sphinx without its nose.

18th century CE drawings reveal that the nose was missing long before Napoleon’s arrival; one story goes that it was the victim of target practice in the Turkish period. Another and perhaps the most likely explanation, is that it was pried off by chisels in the 8th century CE, by a Sufi who considered the Sphinx a sacrilegious idol. In 1858 CE, some of the sand around the sculpture was cleared by Auguste Mariette, the founder of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, and between 1925 and 1936 CE, French engineer Emile Baraize excavated the Sphinx on behalf of the Antiquities Service. Possibly for the first time since antiquity, the Great Sphinx was once again exposed to the elements. Who does the Great Sphinx Depict? The explanation for the enigmatic sculpture favoured by most Egyptologists is that Chephren, a Fourth Dynasty pharaoh, had the stone shaped into a lion with his own face at the same time as the construction of the nearby Pyramid of Chephren, around 2540 BCE.

However, there are no inscriptions anywhere that identify Chephren with the Sphinx, neither is there mention anywhere of its construction, which is somewhat puzzling when considering the grandness of the monument. Despite many Egyptologists' claims to the contrary no-one knows for sure when the Sphinx was built or by whom. Remove Ads Advertisement In 1996 CE, a New York detective and expert in identification concluded that the visage of the Great sphinx did not match known representations of Chephren’s face. He maintained that there was a greater resemblance to Chephren’s elder brother Djedefre. The debate is still continuing. The mystery of the Sphinx’s origin and purpose has often given rise to mystical interpretations, such as those of English occultist Paul Brunton and, in the 1940′s CE, controversial American psychic and prophet Edgar Cayce. The Great Sphinx was excavated from a relatively soft, natural limestone, left over in the quarry used to build the Pyramids; the forepaws being separately made from blocks of limestone. One of the main oddities about the sculpture is that the head is out of proportion to its body.

It could be that the head was re-carved several times by subsequent pharaohs since the first visage was created, though on stylistic grounds this is unlikely to have been done after the Old Kingdom period in Egypt (ending around 2181 BC). Perhaps the original head was that of a ram or hawk and was recut into a human shape later. Various repairs to the damaged head over thousands of years might have reduced or altered the facial proportions. Any of these explanations could account for the small size of the head in relation to the body, particularly if the Great Sphinx is older than traditionally believed. The Dating of the Great Sphinx There has been lively debate in recent years over the dating of the monument. Author John Anthony West first noticed weathering patterns on the Sphinx that were consistent with water erosion rather than wind and sand erosion. These patterns seemed peculiar to the Sphinx and were not found on other structures on the plateau. West called in Geologist and Boston University professor Robert Schoch, who, after examining the new findings, agreed that there was evidence for water erosion. Although Egypt is arid today, around 10,000 years ago the land was wet and rainy.

Consequently West and Schoch concluded that in order to have the effects of water erosion they found, the Sphinx would have to be between 7,000 and 10,000 years old. Egyptologist’s dismissed Schoch’s theory as highly flawed; pointing out that the once prevalent great rain storms over Egypt had stopped long before the Sphinx was built. More seriously, why were there no other signs of water erosion found on the Giza plateau to validate West and Schoch’s theory? The rain could not have been restricted to this single monument. West and Schoch have also been criticised for ignoring the high level of local atmospheric industrial pollution over the last century, which have severely damaged the Giza monuments. Someone else with his own theory behind the Sphinx’s date is author Robert Bauval. Bauval published a paper in 1989 CE showing that the three Great Pyramids at Giza, and their relative position to the Nile, formed a kind of 3-D ‘hologram’ on the ground, of the three stars of Orion’s belt and their relative position to the Milky Way.

Along with Fingerprints of the Gods author Graham Hancock, Bauval developed an elaborate theory that the Sphinx, its neighbouring pyramids and various ancient writings, constitute some sort of astronomical map connected with the constellation Orion. Their conclusion is that the best fit for this hypothetical map is the position of the stars in 10,500 BCE, so pushing the origin of the Sphinx even further back in time. This date is understandably disputed by Egyptologists, as not a single archaeological artefact dated to that period has ever been discovered in the area. Secret Passageways? There are various legends of secret passages associated with the Great Sphinx. Investigations by Florida State University, Waseda University in Japan, and Boston University, have located various anomalies in the area around the monument, although these could be natural features. In 1995 CE, workers renovating a nearby parking lot uncovered a series of tunnels and pathways, two of which plunge further underground close to the Sphinx. Robert Bauval believes these are contemporaneous with the Sphinx itself.

Between 1991 and 1993 CE, while examining evidence for erosion at the monument using a seismograph, Anthony West’s team found evidence of anomalies in the form of hollow, regularly shaped spaces or chambers, a few metres below the ground, between the paws and at either side of the Sphinx. No further examination has been allowed. Today, the great statue is crumbling because of wind, humidity and the smog from Cairo. A huge and costly restoration and preservation project has been underway since 1950 CE, but in the early days of this project cement was used for repairs which was incompatible with the limestone, and so caused additional damage to the structure. Over a period of 6 years over 2,000 limestone blocks were added to the structure and chemicals were injected into it, but the treatment failed. By 1988 CE the sphinx’s left shoulder was in such a state of deterioration that blocks were falling off. At present restoration is still an ongoing project under the control of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, who are making repairs to the damaged shoulder and attempting to drain away some of the subsoil.

Consequently, today the focus is on preservation rather than further explorations or excavations, so we will have to wait a long time yet before the Great Sphinx gives up her secrets. About the Author The Great Sphinx Facts The Great Sphinx Facts Facts About the Great Sphinx of Egypt The Sphinx has been a symbol of Egypt from ancient times to the present. It has inspired the imaginations of artists, poets, adventurers, scholars and travelers for centuries and has also inspired endless speculation about its age, its meaning and the secrets that it might hold. A Description of the Great Sphinx The Great Sphinx of Giza is an immense stone sculpture of a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human. The greatest monumental sculpture in the ancient world, it is carved out of a single ridge of limestone 240 feet (73 meters) long and 66 feet (20 meters) high. The Sphinx sits in a shallow depression to the south of the pyramid of the Pharaoh Khafre (also known as Chephren) at the west bank of the Nile River near the city of Cairo. The rock stratum out of which the Sphinx has been made varies from a soft yellowish to a hard grey limestone.

The massive body is made of the softer stone, which is easily eroded, while the head is formed of the harder stone. To form the lower body of the Sphinx, enormous blocks of stone were quarried from the base rock and these blocks were then used in the core masonry of the temples directly in front and to the south of the Sphinx. Despite the hard quality of the stone of the head, the face is badly damaged, and not only by natural erosion. The nose is missing altogether and the eyes and the areas around them are seriously altered from their original state. Some scholars believe that the Great Sphinx originally had a beard. Pieces of this beard discovered by excavation are in the British Museum in London and the Cairo Museum. These pieces, however, may be dated to the New Kingdom times of 1570-1070 BCE. The Sphinx is part of a complex of structures that also contains the Sphinx temple. This temple, like the Great Pyramid and the Oseiron temple at Abydos in Southern Egypt, may also date from Pre-dynastic times. Napoleon's artillerymen have been blamed for using the face of the Sphinx for target practice.

The History of the Sphinx According to orthodox Egyptology the Sphinx was constructed in the 4th Dynasty (2575 – 2467 BCE) by the Pharaoh Khafre. However, an accumulating body of evidence, both archaeological and geological, indicates that the Sphinx is far older than the 4th Dynasty and was only restored by Khafre during his reign. There are no inscriptions on the Sphinx, or on any of the temples connected to it that, that offer evidence of construction by Khafre. The so-called 'Inventory Stele' (uncovered on the Giza plateau in the 19th century) tells that the Pharaoh Khufu (Cheops) – Khafre’s predecessor - ordered a temple built alongside the Sphinx, meaning of course that the Sphinx was already there, and thus could not have been constructed by Khafre. A much greater age for the Sphinx has been suggested by R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz, based upon geological considerations.

Schwaller de Lubicz observed, and recent geologists (such as Robert Schoch, Professor of Geology at Boston University) have confirmed, that the extreme erosion on the body of the Sphinx could not be the result of wind and sand, as has been universally assumed, but rather was the result of water. Geologists agree that in the distant past Egypt was subjected to severe flooding. Wind erosion cannot take place when the body of the Sphinx is covered by sand, and the Sphinx has been in this condition for nearly all of the last five thousand years - since the alleged time of its 4th Dynasty construction. If wind-blown sand were responsible for the deep erosion of the Sphinx, we would expect to find evidence of such erosion on other Egyptian monuments built of similar materials and exposed to the wind for a similar length of time. Yet the fact of the matter is, that even on structures that have had more exposure to the wind-blown sand, there are minimal effects of erosion, the sand having done little more than scour clean the surface of the dressed stones. The purpose of the Sphinx is not known. Some orthodox archaeologists assume that it was a memorial to a Pharaoh or that it functioned as some sort of talisman or guardian deity.

Other scholars, however, believe the Sphinx functioned as an astronomical observation device that marked the position of the rising sun on the day of the spring equinox in the time of Leo the Lion, which lasted from 10,970 to 8810 BCE. This interpretation is given support by the leonine shape of the Sphinx. In 1798, when Napoleon came to Egypt the Sphinx was buried in sand up to its neck. Between 1816 and 1858, a series of adventurers and antiquarians, including Giovanni Caviglia, Auguste Mariette and Gaston Maspero, attempted to clear the sand from around the body of the Sphinx but were each forced to abandon the project due to the enormous amount of sand. Finally, between 1925 and 1936, the French engineer Emil Baraize was successful in clearing the sand to reveal the base of the Sphinx. The Mystery of the Sphinx Edgar Cayce (1877-1945) the ‘sleeping prophet’ had the ability to put himself into a deep trance.

He stated in some of his trances that Egypt was the repository for records of the alleged civilization of Atlantis, about 10,500 B.C. This repository was an underground library, called the Hall of Records," that contained the wisdom of Atlantis. Cayce claims that the Sphinx points in the direction of the "Hall of Records." His reading states: "There is a chamber or passage from the right forepaw of the [Sphinx] to this entrance of the Hall of records, or chamber." In the 1980’s and 1990’s the Edgar Cayce Foundation conducted research in Egypt around the Sphinx to verify Cayce’s reading. Although researchers from all over the world have begun to look for this chamber with very sophisticated instruments, they have not found the Hall of Records." There are three passages into or under the Sphinx, two of them of obscure origin. The one of known cause is a short dead-end shaft behind the head drilled in the nineteenth century. No other tunnels or chambers in or under the Sphinx are known to exist. A number of small holes in the Sphinx body may relate to scaffolding at the time of carving.

The Pre-Dynastic era age of the Sphinx Evidence suggesting a construction period for the Sphinx – greatly predating the 4th Dynasty - may perhaps be indicated by the astronomical significance of its shape, being that of a lion. Roughly every two thousand years (2160 to be exact), and because of the precession of the equinoxes, the sun on the spring equinox rises against the stellar background of a different constellation. For the past two thousand years that constellation has been Pisces the Fish, symbol of the Christian age. Prior to the age of Pisces it was the age of Aries the Ram, and before that it was the age of Taurus the Bull. It is interesting to note that during the first and second millennia BC, approximately the Age of Aries, ram-oriented iconography was common in Dynastic Egypt, while during the Age of Taurus the Bull-cult arose in Minoan Crete. Perhaps the builders of the Sphinx likewise used astrological symbolism in designing their monumental sculpture.

Geological findings indicate that the Sphinx may have been sculpted sometime before 10,000 BC, and this period coincides with the Age of Leo the Lion, which lasted from 10,970 to 8810 BC. Further support for this vast age of the sphinx comes from a surprising sky-ground correlation proven by sophisticated computer programs such as Skyglobe 3.6. These computer programs are able to generate precise pictures of any portion of the night sky as seen from different places on earth at any time in the distant past or future. Graham Hancock explains in Heaven’s Mirror that, “computer simulations show that in 10,500 BC the constellation of Leo housed the sun on the spring equinox - i.e. an hour before dawn in that epoch Leo would have reclined due east along the horizon in the place where the sun would soon rise.

This means that the lion-bodied Sphinx, with its due-east orientation, would have gazed directly on that morning at the one constellation in the sky that might reasonably be regarded as its own celestial counterpart.” Restoration of the Sphinx Repairs to the Sphinx have been made over the centuries by the Pharaohs Tuthmosis IV and Ramesses II, and also during the Roman era. Restoration attempts have continued to the present time yet the Sphinx continues to deteriorate because of the relentless wind, humidity and the ever-increasing smog from nearby Cairo. In the 1980’s, during a six-year period, more than 2000 limestone blocks were added to the body of the Sphinx and various chemicals were injected in the hopes of preventing its further deterioration. This treatment was not successful and in fact contributed to the deterioration. In 1988 the left shoulder crumbled and blocks fell off. Present attempts at restoration are under the control of the Supreme Council of Antiquities' archaeologists. What city is the Sphinx located in? | Reference.com What city is the Sphinx located in? A: Quick Answer The Great Sphinx is located near the northern Egyptian city of Giza on the west bank of the Nile River.

The Pyramids of Giza are also located there. The Sphinx, which lies south of the Great Pyramid, is around 24 feet in length and 66 feet in height. Full Answer The Great Sphinx is the most famous artistic rendition of a sphinx. It is also the earliest surviving example, dating back to the third century B.C. The sphinx, in general terms, is a mythological creature of great importance to ancient Egyptian and Greek art and mythology. In both cultures, the sphinx has a human head and the body of a lion. In the earliest reference to a sphinx, Hesiod referred to it by the name "Phix." Pyramids of Giza & the Sphinx Pyramids of Giza & the Sphinx By Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor | October 9, 2014 09:24pm ET MORE Credit: Dan Breckwoldt | Shutterstock Constructed between 2589 and 2504 B.C., the Egyptian pyramids of Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure, built in that order, are a testament to ancient planning and engineering. How these pyramids were built is a source of speculation and debate.

Many researchers believe that a ramp system of some form was used to move the blocks into place during construction. When the pyramids were completed they were encased in white limestone, most of which is lost today . Recent research suggests that when the blocks were being moved across the desert, a small amount of water was put on the sand in front of them, making them easier to move. Additionally, archaeologists have found new evidence that Giza had a bustling port , allowing goods to be shipped to the site from across Egypt and the eastern Mediterranean. Despite the differences among the three pyramids (Khufu’s pyramid, the "Great Pyramid," is several times the mass of Menkaure’s) the southeast tips of each pyramid align together almost precisely. Each pyramid had a mortuary and valley temple, with a causeway connecting them. They also had smaller pyramids referred to as satellite or queens' pyramids. The Sphinx, an enigmatic monument usually associated with king Khafre, stands watch near his valley temple. In addition, tombs sprawling to the east and west of Khufu’s pyramid contain the remains of officials, royal relatives and others who had the privilege to be buried there.

To the south of the Sphinx is the “Wall of the Crow,” which is 656 feet (200 meters) long and 32 feet (10 m) thick. South of the wall is a settlement that archaeologists sometimes refer to as “the lost city.” This city has barracks that may have housed troops . Recently, archaeologists have discovered a mansion in the city that would have been used by senior officials. The pyramid workers may have lived in simpler housing located by the pyramids themselves. Recent research has also revealed evidence for a massive catering operation that kept people at Giza fed. Khufu’s pyramid When it was completed by Khufu, the Great Pyramid rose 481 feet (146 m), approximately the height of a modern, 30-story office building. Today, with the loss of the some of the stone, the pyramid is slightly shorter, measuring 455 feet (138 m). It was the tallest building in the world until the 14th century, when the Lincoln Cathedral was completed in England. Three smaller pyramids, often referred to as queens’ pyramids, are located adjacent to Khufu’s pyramid.

It’s difficult to say for sure for whom they were built, but one of them may have been for Khufu’s mother, Hetepheres. In addition, a smaller satellite pyramid, located between the queens’ pyramids and Khufu’s, was discovered in the 1990s. Seven boat pits have been found at Khufu’s pyramid, two on the south side, two on the east side, two in between the queens’ pyramids and one located beside the mortuary temple and causeway. The best preserved boat, carefully reassembled from more than 1,200 pieces, is 142 feet (43 m) long, with wooden planks and oars. The purpose of these boats is a mystery. [Related: Natural Disasters in Ancient Egypt Revealed ] Khufu’s pyramid held three chambers. A grand gallery lead up to the king’s chamber, a red granite room that contains a now-empty royal sarcophagus. In the center of the pyramid is the so-called queen’s chamber, although it probably never held a queen. Beneath the pyramid is a subterranean chamber, its purpose, like the queen’s chamber, a mystery.

Both the king’s chamber and the queen’s chamber contain two “air shafts” (it’s doubtful they were ever used as such). The shafts from the king’s chamber now lead outside, while the two from the queen’s chamber stop after a distance. Robot exploration of the shafts reveal that they lead to doors with copper handles and hieroglyphs. Recently, archaeologist Zahi Hawass, the former Egyptian minister of state for antiquities, told Live Science that he believes these shafts lead to Khufu’s real burial chamber. "There is no pyramid of the 123 pyramids in Egypt that have these type of doors with copper handles," Hawass said. "Really, I believe they're hiding something." The construction of Khufu’s pyramid complex was a massive undertaking. Archaeologist Mark Lehner, who excavates at Giza, estimates that — assuming Khufu reigned for about 30 years — an estimated 251 cubic yards (230 cubic meters) of stone per day had to be put down.

That’s “a rate of one average-size block every two or three minutes in a ten-hour day,” he writes in his book " The Complete Pyramids: Solving the Ancient Mysteries " (Thames & Hudson, 2008), adding that estimates for the average size of these pyramid stones are as high as 2.5 tons. Khafre’s pyramid Khufu’s successor, Djedefre, built his pyramid off-site at Abu Roash. The person who succeeded Djedefre, Khafre, returned to Giza and built a pyramid that, although smaller than Khufu’s, was on a slightly higher elevation. Only one satellite pyramid sits outside Khafre's pyramid. Inside, the pyramid's architecture is simpler than Khufu’s. It has two entranceways, both on the north side, one located 38 feet (12 m) above the base of the pyramid and another on ground level. Both entrances lead to passageways that ultimately lead to the burial chamber.

Robbed long ago, this chamber contains a black granite sarcophagus that, when found in the 19th century, contained the bones of a bull, an animal loaded with religious symbolism in ancient Egypt; the body of the king himself was gone. Menkaure’s pyramid With a height of 215 feet (65 m) and a base of 335 by 343 feet (102 by 105 m), Menkaure’s is by far the smallest of the three pyramids. Lehner notes that its building mass is about one-tenth that of Khufu’s pyramid. Its complex includes three queens’ pyramids on its south side. The entranceway for Menkaure’s pyramid is located just above ground level, its passages leading to an antechamber and burial chamber. An ornate sarcophagus was found in the 19th century by Howard Vyse but it was lost when the ship that was taking it to England, the Beatrice, sank. It’s a mystery as to why Menkaure’s pyramid is so much smaller than the other two.

It could simply be that there wasn’t room at Giza for another large pyramid or perhaps events during Menkaure’s reign prevented him from building another large structure. No future pharaoh would ever build a pyramid as large as those built by Khufu and Khafre. The Sphinx and the Great Pyramid of Giza, Egypt are pictured here. USGS and University of Pennsylvania research shows that ancient pollen and charcoal preserved in deeply buried sediments in Egypt's Nile Delta document the region’s ancient droughts and fires, including a huge drought 4,200 years ago associated with the demise of Egypt's Old Kingdom, the era known as the pyramid-building time. Credit: Benjamin P. Horton , University of Pennsylvania The Sphinx All three of Giza’s pyramids had mortuary temples connecting to valley temples through a causeway. However, in the case of Khafre’s pyramid, his valley temple also has an enigmatic monument nearby known as the Sphinx, with an uncompleted temple dedicated to it. The Sphinx is a 241-foot (74 m) long monument carved out of the limestone bedrock of the Giza Plateau. It has the face of a man and the body of a lion.

The mythical creature is seen in art throughout the ancient Middle East, as well as in India and Greece. The word "sphinx" is, in fact, a Greek word meaning "strangler," according to Tour Egypt . The face of the giant statue at Giza may have been based on that of Khafre. Efforts at conserving and restoring the Sphinx go back at least as far as 3,400 years. What purpose did the pyramids have? The simplest explanation for the use of the pyramids is that they were places of burial for their respective kings; the discovery of a sarcophagus in all three pyramids back this idea up. The pyramid complexes, and the grave goods once located inside them, helped the king ascend to the afterlife. In addition to being used to bury the pharaoh numerous mastaba tombs were built near the pyramids. These were used to bury royal family members and senior officials. Recently, an elaborate wall painting was discovered in one of these tombs. Interestingly, the spiritual importance of Giza appears to cross the ages.

In late 2010, archaeologists announced the discovery of about 400 malnourished people, buried with few grave goods, located near the Wall of the Crow. They date to between 2,700 and 2,000 years ago, two millennia after the pyramids had been built, their burial location suggesting they had a desire to be near Giza. Additional resources UNESCO's World Heritage List , which recognizes sites with cultural, historical and natural significance, includes the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx. Take a tour of the Pyramids of Giza and the Sphinx at Tour Egypt. Author Bio Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor Owen Jarus writes about archaeology and all things about humans' past for Live Science. Owen has a bachelor of arts degree from the University of Toronto and a journalism degree from Ryerson University. He enjoys reading about new research and is always looking for a new historical tale. Owen Jarus, Live Science Contributor on Latest on Pyramids of Giza & the Sphinx The Great Sphinx | Who Built it and When? | Mark Lehner | Ancient Egypt Research Associates Puzzles come in pieces The Sphinx. Who built the Sphinx?

The most compelling evidence that the Sphinx was built for the Egyptian Pharaoh Khafre during his reign (2520-2494 BC) is in the architecture, geology, and archaeology of the Sphinx and its related monuments. People propose all kinds of theories about Old Kingdom (2575-2465 BC) pyramid construction and the date of the Sphinx. Few of them have examined the evidence at Giza in detail. Some theorists use the evidence selectively instead of looking at all of the available evidence together. Khafre's funerary complex. The Sphinx is only part of a set of structures built to serve the cult of the dead king and the sun god, Re, consisting of a pyramid, Pyramid Temple, causeway, Sphinx, Sphinx Temple, and Valley Temple. The Sphinx may have been intended to associate the king with the sun god. The ancient Egyptian general term for sphinx, shesep ankh Atum, means “living image of Atum,” Atum being both the creator god and the setting sun. The Sphinx looks onto a temple built directly east of the statue. The alignment of the Sphinx Temple probably indicates sun worship (see sidebar).

We can show that the three lower Khafre structures (Sphinx, Sphinx Temple, and Valley Temple) fit within the same archaeological sequence. On the March and September equinoxes each year, the sun sets along the south side of the Khafre pyramid on a line extending along the right side of the Sphinx and aligned with the east-west axis of the Sphinx Temple. The Sphinx, Egypt The Sphinx, Egypt The Sphinx, Giza Plateau, near Cairo, Egypt ( Enlarge ) The greatest monumental sculpture in the ancient world, the Sphinx is carved out of a single ridge of stone 240 feet (73 meters) long and 66 feet (20 meters) high. The head, which has a markedly different texture from the body, and shows far less severe erosion, is a naturally occurring outcrop of harder stone. To form the lower body of the Sphinx, enormous blocks of stone were quarried from the base rock (and these blocks were then used in the core masonry of the temples directly in front and to the south of the Sphinx).

While a few stubborn Egyptologists still maintain that the Sphnix was constructed in the 4th Dynasty by the Pharaoh Chephren (Khafre), an accumulating body of evidence, both archaeological and geological, indicates that the Sphinx is far older than the 4th Dynasty, and was only restored by Chephren during his reign. There are no inscriptions on the Sphinx, or on any of the temples connected to it that, that offer evidence of construction by Chepren, yet the so-called 'Inventory Stele' (uncovered on the Giza plateau in the 19th century) tells that the Pharaoh Cheops - Chephren's predecessor - ordered a temple built alongside the Sphinx, meaning of course that the Sphinx was already there, and thus could not have been constructed by Chephren. A much greater age for the Sphinx has been suggested by R.A. Schwaller de Lubicz, based upon geological considerations.

Schwaller de Lubicz observed, and recent geologists (such as Robert Schoch, Professor of Geology at Boston University) have confirmed, that the extreme erosion on the body of the Sphinx could not be the result of wind and sand, as has been universally assumed, but rather was the result of water. Geologists agree that in the distant past Egypt was subjected to severe flooding. Wind erosion cannot take place when the body of the Sphinx is covered by sand, and the Sphinx has been in this condition for nearly all of the last five thousand years - since the alleged time of its 4th Dynasty construction. Furthermore, if wind-blown sand had indeed caused the deep erosion of the Sphinx, we would expect to find evidence of such erosion on other Egyptian monuments built of similar materials and exposed to the wind for a similar length of time. Yet the fact of the matter is, that even on structures that have had more exposure to the wind-blown sand, there are minimal effects of erosion, the sand having done little more than scour clean the surface of the dressed stones. Additional evidence for the great age of the Sphinx may perhaps be indicated by the astronomical significance of its shape, being that of a lion.

Roughly every two thousand years (2160 to be exact), and because of the precession of the equinoxes, the sun on the vernal equinox rises against the stellar background of a different constellation. For the past two thousand years that constellation has been Pisces the Fish, symbol of the Christian age. Prior to the age of Pisces it was the age of Aries the Ram, and before that it was the age of Taurus the Bull. It is interesting to note that during the first and second millennia BC, approximately the Age of Aries, ram-oriented iconography was common in Dynastic Egypt, while during the Age of Taurus the Bull-cult arose in Minoan Crete. Perhaps the builders of the Sphinx likewise used astrological symbolism in designing their monumental sculpture. The geological findings discussed above indicate that the Sphinx seems to have been sculpted sometime before 10,000 BC, and this period coincides with the Age of Leo the Lion, which lasted from 10,970 to 8810 BC.

The Sphinx, Giza Plateau, near Cairo, Egypt ( Enlarge ) Further support for this vast age of the sphinx comes from a surprising sky-ground correlation proven by sophisticated computer programs such as Skyglobe 3.6. These computer programs are able to generate precise pictures of any portion of the night sky as seen from different places on earth at any time in the distant past or future. Graham Hancock explains in Heaven's Mirror that, "computer simulations show that in 10,500 BC the constellation of Leo housed the sun on the spring equinox - i.e. an hour before dawn in that epoch Leo would have reclined due east along the horizon in the place where the sun would soon rise. This means that the lion-bodied Sphinx, with its due-east orientation, would have gazed directly on that morning at the one constellation in the sky that might reasonably be regarded as its own celestial counterpart." The foregoing discussion means that the monumental sculpture of the Sphinx may have existed at a time when (according to prevailing archaeological theory) there were no civilizations on earth and humans had not yet evolved beyond hunter-gatherer lifestyles. This matter is so radical that scholarly reticence in acknowledging it is understandable.

If the Sphinx is indeed this old then contemporary assumptions regarding the development of civilization must be entirely reworked and the mystifying question of Plato's Atlantis should be given very serious consideration. Readers interested in this matter, certainly as fascinating as the mystery of the Great Pyramid, are encouraged to consult the following books: The Traveler's Key to Ancient Egypt; by John Anthony West Serpent in the Sky; by John Anthony West Fingerprints of the Gods; by Graham Hancock Heaven's Mirror; by Graham Hancock The Message of the Sphinx; by Robert Bauval and Graham Hancock Voyages of the Pyramid Builders; by Robert Schoch Gods of Eden; by Andrew Collins Napoleon at the Great Sphinx in 1798 The Great Sphinx in the early 1900's SPHINX - Woman-Headed Lion of Greek Mythology Sphinx, Athenian red-figure kylix C6th B.C., Museum of Fine Arts Boston THE SPHINX was a female monster with the body of a lion, the head and breast of a woman, eagle's wings and, according to some, a serpent's tail.

She was sent by the gods to plague the town of Thebes as punishment for some ancient crime, preying on its youths and devouring all who failed to solve her riddle. The regent of Thebes, King Kreon (Creon), offered the throne to the one who would destroy her. Oidipous (Oedipus) took up the challenge, and when he solved the Sphinx's riddle, she cast herself off the mountainside in despair. Sphinxes were very popular in ancient art. They were employed as sculptural gave stelae upon the tombs of men who died in youth. In archaic vase paintings they often appear amongst a procession of animals and fabulous creatures such as lions and bird-bodied sirens.

FAMILY OF THE SPHINX [1.1] ORTHOS & KHIMAIRA (Hesiod Theogony 326) [2.1] TYPHOEUS & EKHIDNA (Apollodorus 3.52, Hyginus Pref & Fabulae 151, Lasus Frag 706A) [2.2] TYPHOEUS & KHIMAIRA (Scholiast on Hesiod & Euripides) ENCYCLOPEDIA SPHINX (Sphinx), a monstrous being of Greek mythology, is said to have been a daughter of Orthus and Chimaera, born in the country of the Arimi (Hes. Theog. 326), or of Typhon and Echidna (Apollod. iii. 5. § 8; Schol. ad Eurip. Phoen. 46), or lastly of Typhon and Chimaera (Schol. ad Hes. and Eurip. l. .c.). Some call her a natural daughter of Laius (Paus. ix. 26. § 2).

Respecting her stay at Thebes and her connection with the fate of the house of Laius. The riddle which she there proposed, she is said to have learnt from the Muses (Apollod. iii. 5. § 8), or Laius himself taught her the mysterious oracles which Cadmus had received at Delphi (Paus. ix. 26. § 2). According to some she had been sent into Boeotia by Hera, who was angry with the Thebans for not having punished Lains, who had carried off Chrysippus from Pisa. She is said to have come from the most distant part of Ethiopia (Apollod. l. c. ; Schol. ad Eurip. Phoen. 1760); according to others she was sent by Ares, who wanted to take revenge because Cadmus had slain his son, the dragon (Argum. ad Eurip. Phoen.), or by Dionysus (Schol. ad Hes. Theog. 326), or by Hades (Eurip. Phoen.

810), and some lastly say that she was one on the women who, together with the daughters of Cadmus, were thrown into madness, and was metamorphosed into the monstrous figure. (Schol. ad Eurip. Phoen. 45.) The legend itself clearly indicates from what quarter this being was believed to have been introduced into Greek mythology. The figure which she was conceived to have had is originally Egyptian or Ethiopian; but after her incorporation with Grecian story, her figure was variously modified. The Egyptian Sphinx is the figure of an unwinged lion in a lying attitude, but the upper part of the body is human. They appear in Egypt to have been set up in avenues forming the approaches to temples. The greatest among the Egyptian representations of Sphinxes is that of Ghizeh, which, with the exception of the paws, is of one block of stone. The Egyptian Sphinxes are often called androsphinges (Herod. ii. 175; Menandr. Fragm. p. 411, ed.

Meineke), not describing them as male beings, but as lions with the upper part human, to distinguish them from those Sphinxes whose upper part was that of a sheep or ram. The common idea of a Greek Sphinx, on the other hand, is that of a winged body of a lion, having the breast and upper part of a woman (Aelian, H. A. xii. 7; Auson. Griph. 40 ; Apollod. iii. 5. § 8; Schol. ad Eurip. Phoen. 806). Greek Sphinxes, moreover, are not always represented in a lying attitude, but appear in different positions, as it might suit the fancy of the sculptor or poet. Thus they appear with the face of a maiden, the breast, feet, and claws of a lion, the tail of a serpent, and the wings of a bird (Schol. ad Aristoph. Ran. 1287 ; Soph. Oed. Tyr. 391 ; Athen. vi. p. 253; Palaephat.

7); or the fore part of the body is that of a lion, and the lower part that of a man, with the claws of a vuiture and the wings of an eagle (Tzetz. ad Lycoph. 7). Sphinxes were frequently introduced by Greek artists, as ornaments of architectural and other works. (Paus. iii. 18. § 8, v. 11. § 2; Eurip. Elect. 471.) In the Boeotian dialect the name was phix (Hes. Theog. 326), whence the name of the Boeotian mountain, Phikion oros. (Hes. Scut. Herc. 33.) Source: Dictionary of Greek and Roman Biography and Mythology. ALTERNATE NAME SPELLINGS Sphinx, Athenian red-figure amphora C5th B.C., Museum of Fine Arts Boston Hesiod, Theogony 326 ff (trans.

Evelyn-White) (Greek epic C8th or C7th B.C.) : "But she [Khimaira (Chimera)] also, in love with Orthos (Orthus), mothered the deadly Sphinx, the bane of the Kadmeians (Cadmeans) [Thebans]." Lasus, Fragment 706A (from Natale Conti, Mythology) (trans. Campbell, Vol. Greek Lyric III) (Greek lyric C6th B.C.) : "The Sphinx was daughter of Ekhidna (Echidna) and Typhon, according to Lasus of Hermione." Corinna, Fragment 672 (trans. Campbell, Vol. Greek Lyric IV) (Greek lyric C5th B.C.) : "Oidipos (Oedipus) killed not only the Sphinx but also the Teumessian fox." Aeschylus, Sphinx (lost play) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) : The Sphinx was the satyr-play of Aeschylus' Oedipus-trilogy. It told the story of Oidipous' (Oedipus') encounter with the monster.

Aeschylus, Fragment 129 Sphinx (from Aristophanes, Frogs 1287 with Scholiast) (trans. Weir Smyth) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) : "The Sphinx, the watch-dog that presideth over evil days." Aeschylus, Seven Against Thebes 539 ff (trans. Weir Smyth) (Greek tragedy C5th B.C.) : "[During the war of the Seven against Thebes Parthenopaios (Parthenopaeus) threatens the Thebans with the image of the Sphinx embossed on his shield :] Nor does he take his stand at the gate unboasting, but wields our city's shame on his bronze-forged shield, his body's circular defence, on which the Sphinx who eats men raw is cleverly fastened with bolts, her body embossed and gleaming. She carries under her a single Kadmean (Cadmean) [Theban], so that against this man chiefly our [the Thebans] missiles will be hurled . . .

[But] he [Aktor (Actor), a defender of Thebess] will not let in a man who carries on his hostile shield the image of the ravenous, detested beast. That beast outside his shield will blame the man who carries her into the gate, when she has taken a heavy beating beneath the city's walls." Aeschylus, Seven Against Thebes 773 ff : "For whom have the gods and divinities that share their altar and the thronging assembly of men ever admired so much as they honored Oidipous (Oedipus) then, when he removed that deadly, man-seizing plague (kêr) [i.e. the Sphinx] from our land." Pseudo-Apollodorus, Bibliotheca 3. 52 - 55 (trans. Aldrich) (Greek mythographer C2nd A.D.) : "While he [Kreon (Creon)] was king, quite a scourge held Thebes in suppression, for Hera sent upon them the Sphinx, whose parents were Ekhidna (Echidna) and Typhon.

She had a woman's face, the breast, feet, and tail of a lion, and bird wings. She had learned a riddle form the Mousai (Muses), and now sat on Mount Phikion (Phicium) where she kept challenging the Thebans with it. The riddle was: what is it that has one voice, and is four-footed and two-footed and three-footed? An oracle existed for the Thebans to the effect that they would be free of the Sphinx when they guessed her riddle, so they often convened to search for the meaning, but whenever they came up with the wrong answer, she would seize one of them, and eat him up. When many had died, including most recently Kreon's own son Haimon (Haemon), Kreon announced publicly that he would give both the kingdom and the widow of Laios (Laeus) to the man who solved the riddle. Oidipous (Oedipus) heard and solved it, stating that he answer to the Sphinx's question was man.

As a baby he crawls on all fours, as an adult he is two-footed, and as he grows old he gains a third foot in the form of a cane. At this the Sphinx threw herself from the acropolis." Herodotus, Histories 4. 79. 1 (trans. Godley) (Greek historian C5th B.C.) : "In the city of the Borysthenites [in Asia Minor] a spacious house, grand and costly . . . all surrounded by Sphinxes and Grypes (Griffins) worked in white marble." Lycophron, Alexandra 1465 (trans. Mair) (Greek poet C3rd B.C.) : "Phikian monster [i.e. the Sphinx of Mount Phikion (Phicium)], mouthing darkly her perplexed words." Pausanias, Description of Greece 9. 26. 2 (trans. Jones) (Greek travelogue C2nd A.D.) : "Farther on [beyond Thebes, Boiotia (Boeotia)] we come to the mountain from which they say the Sphinx, chanting a riddle, sallied to bring death upon those she caught.

Others say that roving with a force of ships on a piratical expedition she put in at Anthedon, seized the mountain I mentioned, and used it for plundering raids until Oidipous (Oedipus) overwhelmed her by the superior numbers of the army he had with him on his arrival from Korinthos (Corinth). There is another version of the story which makes her the natural daughter of Laius (Laeus), who, because he was fond of her, told her the oracle delivered to Kadmos (Cadmus) from Delphoi (Delphi). Now Laius had sons by concubines, and the oracle delivered from Delphoi applied only to Epikaste (Epicaste) and her sons. So when any of her brothers came in order to claim the throne from the Sphinx, she resorted to trickery in dealing with them, saying that if they were sons of Laius they should know the oracle that came to Kadmos. When they could not answer she would punish them with death, on the ground that they had no valid claim to the kingdom or to relationship.

But Oidipous came because it appears he had been told the oracle in a dream." Oedipus and the Sphinx, Athenian red-figure amphora C5th B.C., Museum of Fine Arts Boston Pausanias, Description of Greece 5. 11. 2 : "[Amongst the images depicted on the throne in the temple of Zeus at Olympia :] On each of the two front feet are set Theban children ravished by Sphinxes." Diodorus Siculus, Library of History 4. 64. 4 (trans. Oldfather) (Greek historian C1st B.C.) : "A Sphinx, a beast of double form, had come to Thebes and was propounding a riddle to anyone who might be able to solve it, and many were being slain by her because of their inability to do so. And although a generous reward was offered to the man who should solve it, that he should marry Iokaste (Jocasta) and be king of Thebes, yet no man was able to comprehend what was propounded except Oidipous (Oedipus), who alone solved the riddle.

What had been propounded by the Sphinx was this : What is it that is at the same time a biped, a triped, and a quadraped? And while all the rest were perplexed, Oidipous declared that the animal proposed in the riddle was ‘man’, since as an infant he is a quadruped, when grown a biped, and in old age a triped, using, because of his infirmity, a staff. At this answer the Sphinx, in accordance with the oracle which the myth recounts, threw herself down a precipice." Aelian, On Animals 12. 7 (trans. Scholfield) (Greek natural history C2nd A.D.) : "Egyptian artificers in their sculpture, and the vainglorious legends of Thebes attempt to represent the Sphinx, with her two-fold nature, as of two-fold shape, making her awe-inspiring by fusing the body of a maiden with that of a lion. And Euripides suggests this when he says `And drawing her tail in beneath her lion's feet she sat down.'" Aelian, On Animals 12.

38 : "Every painter and every sculptor who devotes himself and has been trained to the practise of his art figures the Sphinx as winged." Pseudo-Hyginus, Fabulae 67 (trans. Grant) (Roman mythographer C2nd A.D.) : "The Sphinx, offspring of Typhon, was sent into Boeotia, and was laying waste the fields of the Thebans. She proposed a contest to Creon, that if anyone interpreted the riddle which she gave, she would depart, but that she would destroy whoever failed, and under no other circumstances would she leave the country. When the king heard this, he made a proclamation throughout Greece. He promised that he would give the kingdom and his sister Jocasta in marriage to the person solving the riddle of the Sphinx. Many came out of greed for the kingdom, and were devoured by the Sphinx, but Oedipus, son of Laius, came and interpreted the riddle. The Sphinx leaped to her death. Oedipus received his father's kingdom." Hyginus, Fabulae 151 : "From Typhon the giant and Echidna were born . . .

the Sphinx which was in Boeotia." Ovid, Metamorphoses 7. 759 ff (trans. Melville) (Roman epic C1st B.C. to C1st A.D.) : "The riddle that had baffled earlier brains was solved by Laiades [Oidipous (Oedipus) son of Laius] and headlong down the Carmina [Sphinx] had fallen, her mysteries forgotten." Seneca, Oedipus 87 ff (trans. Miller) (Roman tragedy C1st A.D.) : "[Oidipous (Oedipus) speaks :] Far from me is the crime and shame of cowardice, and my valour knows not dastard fears . . . The Sphinx, weaving her words in darkling measures, I fled not; I faced the bloody jaws of the fell prophetess and the ground white with scattered bones. And when from a lofty cliff, already hovering over her prey, she prepared her pinions and, lashing her tail like a savage lion, stirred up her threatening wrath, I asked her riddle.

Thereupon came a sound of dread; her jaws crashed, and her talons, brooking no delay, eager for my vitals, tore at the rocks. The lot's intricate, guile-entangled words, the grim riddle of the winged beast, I solved. Why too late dost thou now in madness pray for death? Thou hadst thy chance to die. This sceptre is thy meed of praise, this thy reward for the Sphinx destroyed. That dust, that cursed dust of the artful monster is warring against me still; that pest which I destroyed is now destroying Thebes. [I.e. the land is suffering from drought and pestilence and Oidipous incorrectly blames the ghost of the dead Sphinx]." Oedipus and the Sphinx, Athenian red-figure stamnos C5th B.C., Musée du Louvre Seneca, Oedipus 245 ff : "Oedipus : Did any fear prevent a pious duty? [i.e. the proper burial of the dead.] Creon : Aye, the Sphinx and the dire threats of her accursèd chant." Statius, Thebaid 2. 500 ff (trans.

Mozley) (Roman epic C1st A.D.) : "At a distance from the city [of Thebes] two hills bear close upon each other with a grudging gulf between; the shadow of a mountain above and leafy ridges of curving woodland shut them in . . . Through the middle of the rocks threads a rough and narrow track, below which lies a plain and a broad expanse of sloping fields.

Over against it a threatening cliff rises high, the home of the winged monster [the Sphinx] of Oedipus; here aforetime she stood, fierce uplifting her pallid cheeks, her eyes tainted with corruption and her plumes all clotted with hideous gore; grasping human remains and clutching to her breast half-eaten bones she scanned the plains with awful gaze, should any stranger dare to join in the strife of riddling words, or any traveller confront her and parley with her terrible tongue; then, without more ado, sharpening forthwith the unsheathed talons of her livid hands and her teeth bared for wounding, she rose with dreadful beating of wings around the faces of the strangers; nor did any guess her riddle, till caught by a hero that proved her match, with failing wings--ah! horror!--from the bloody cliff she dashed her insatiate paunch in despair upon the rocks beneath.

The wood gives reminder of the dread story: the cattle abhor the neighbouring pastures, and the flock, though greedy, will not touch the fateful herbage; no Dryad choirs take delight in the shade, it ill beseems the sacred rites of the Fauni [Satyroi (Satyrs)], even birds obscene fly far from the abomination of the grove." Statius, Thebaid 1. 66 : "By wit of thy foreshowing I [Oidipous (Oedipus)] solved the riddles of the cruel Sphinx." Suidas s.v. Oidpous (trans. Suda On Line) (Byzantine Greek Lexicon C10th A.D.) : "The so-called Sphinx] appeared [at Thebes], a woman hideous and beastly in form, for having got rid of her man and having clenched her hand and having seized some difficult terrain, she would murder those who passed by. So Oidipous (Oedipus), after hatching a clever scheme, joined himself in piracy with her. Then biding his time as he planned, he took her in an ambush, and those with her." Suidas s.v.

Rhapsoidos : "Rhapsoidos (Rhapsody) : The Sphinx stitching together songs . . . Sophokles [says] : ‘Why, when the watchful dog who wove dark song was here, did you say nothing to free the people?’ He is speaking about the Sphinx." ANCIENT GREEK ART Sphinx | Great Sphinx of Ancient Egypt Sphinx | Great Sphinx of Ancient Egypt The History of the sphinx statues : This kind of statues appeared for the first time in Egypt as scenes with two dimensional representations in the beginning of the dynastic period. However the first representative of the king in the form of a sphinx was in the Middle of the 4th dynasty. The first king who had a sphinx statue was King Djetef Ra, the successor of King Cheops , and it is considered as the 1st royal representation in the form of a sphinx. It was discovered nearby his pyramid at Abu-Rawash in El Giza and it is now kept in Louver Museum.

While the largest representation was the Great Sphinx at Giza plateau, however the great sphinx itself is considered as the 1st representation of a royal sphinx in ancient Egypt depending on the fact which says that the great sphinx belongs to king Cheops not Chephren comparing between the artistic features appeared in the sphinx statue and those artistic feature of Cheops, so we found the following: - Style of the Royal headdress "Nemes" was pleated all over its surface. While those of Chefren were partly pleated. - The Nemes it self was decorated with strap represented in high relief and its begging over the forehead in all the statues of Chephren and all the Kings afterwards, while the Great Sphinx itself had no decoration or even this strap over the fore head. - The representation of the Cobra itself on the Great Sphinx was partly depicted, just the out starched part of the Cobra only depicted on the forehead on the sphinx, while all the statues of King Chephren and all the kings afterwards had the representation of the whole Cobra with the body being depicted over the head.

- The false beard, which is preserved now in the British Museum and Cairo Museum, it was represented plaited and curved, this type of divine false beard appeared in the New Kingdom which make the scholars to suggest that it was added as a separated part later during the New Kingdom in order to make the statue represent the divine form of a god who is Re hr 3hty as during this period the sphinx wasn't belonging to Chephren but it was Re hr 3hty. - The position of the sphinx it self, it was located on the south eastern part of the great pyramid of King Cheops nearby the remains of the quarries of this pyramid, but the Pyramid of Chephren has an angled caused way in order to avoid the quarries of King Cheops, so it isn't a straight cause way. And therefore being the sphinx sculptured from a remained rock of the great pyramid quarries then the sphinx should belong to King Cheops. - While an opposite opinion said that the sphinx belong to king Chephren as his name was mentioned twice on dream stela of Tuthmosis IV and his father Amenhotep II, while the name of Cheops was mentioned only one time.

By all of these evidences, if we accept that King Cheops is the owner of the great Sphinx, so he will be the 1st one who had a sphinx in ancient Egypt and if we accept that the sphinx belong to Chephren it will be King Djdef Re who was the 1st one who had a sphinx all over Egypt. The development of the Sphinx statues in Egypt : During the Old Kingdom : The sphinx statues were represented as a human head and body of a lion with the false royal beard and the names headdress. During the Middle Kingdom : It was just representation for the king in the form of the sphinx and the human head surrounded with the lion mane. The 1st King who represent him self in the form of a sphinx with lion's mane was Amenemhat III , in the second half of the 12th dynasty, Middle kingdom. During the New Kingdom : The sculptures continue the Middle Kingdom methods, but they had added their touch which is the transforming of the fore legs of the declining lion into human arms holding a cult objects. Te first King who represented himself in such form was King Amonhotep III.

This statue was discovered in the Templeof God Montuin the Karnakcomplex. There was a new artistic feature appeared for the firat time; decorating the body of the sphinx with wings, this appeared for the firt time during the reign of king Amonhotep III The meaning of the "Sphinx" The word "Sphinx" is the Greek word of the original Egyptian name "Ssp Ankh" which means the living image, according to this name we can suggest that they mainly represent the king I his living image which the combination between the mental power and the Physical power. The mental power represented in the human head while the physical power represented in the Lion's body. If the sphinx is God, so it is said that the ancient Egyptians managed to tame the violent characte5r of the lion with the human intelligence turning it into a divine calm power. The religious function of the sphinx avenue: Since the beginning of the 4th dynasty the sphinx statues were considered guardians of the cemeteries and it clearly appeared in the position of the great sphinx in the beginning of the royal cemetery at Al Giza Plateau.

Moreover the royal sphinxes as well as the divine sphinxes were considered as protectors for processional routes connecting between two temples such as the sphinxes of the Karnak temples and also the templeof God Ptahand the serabium temple at Memphis. This function is the representation of the life cycle, according to one of the book of the dead chapoters. They represent two sphinxes back to back one of them was called Sp while the other one is called Dwa and between them the 3ht. "Sp " means yesterday, "D3w " means tomorrow , and "3ht" means today. Comparing between this representation and the sphinx avenue, we will find that Sp on the right hand side, D3w on the left hand side and the 3ht is the route itself. Female sphinx statues: Since the second half of the 12th dynasty, most of the powerful queens and princesses stared to have their own sphinx statues.

The most famous sphinx statue for a lady or a queen was the sphinx statue of Queen Nefertiti wore a hair wig instead of Nemes and it was discovered in the eastern part of the Karnak complex near the ruins of the remaining parts of Aton temple. The sphinx statues continued to be produced for the Kings even during the Greek Roman period, and most of the Roman emperors got the Egyptian sphinxes and transported then to Europein order to decorate their cities and palaces. Suggested Tours

Question: The Sphinx is in which country?
Answer: Egypt