The Sphinx, Identity Riddle
While wandering at the Giza Plateau, a huge statue couldn’t be missed of a creature with a lion’s body and a human head laying there heading toward the east. The Sphinx, merging the Pharaoh with the lion, was a symbol to serve the cult of the Dead King and god Re and as a spiritual guardian.
Sphinx Definition, What is A Sphinx?
Sphinx Mythology originated in the Greek tradition. It’s what they used to call a creature with a lion’s body and a woman’s head with wings.
She was a merciless creature who was guarding the entrance to the Greek city of Thebes, and she used to ask the passersby a riddle: who can give the right answer can go safely, but who cannot will be eaten.
The Riddle Of The Sphinx
The main riddle is a popular one. It says, “Which creature has one voice and yet becomes four-footed, two-footed, and three-footed?” The answer is clear: ” A man who was crawling on all fours when he was a baby, and walking on two legs as a grown-up, and using a cane to help him walk as an old man.”
Another Sphinx riddle says, “There are two sisters: one gives birth to the other, and she, in turn, gives birth to the first. Who are the two sisters?” The answer is day and night. Unlike the Egyptian Sphinx, which has the head of a man with a lion’s body without wings, the Sphinx didn’t have time to ask riddles; he was guarding the King’s tomb.
Sphinx Egypt, How Was The Sphinx Built?
The statue is carved from the natural limestone of the Giza Plateau; it’s carved from only one massive stone (monolith). When it’s called a huge statue, we should mention dimensions to try to imagine how big the Great Sphinx of Giza is.
It’s 73 m (240 feet) long from paw to tail and 20 m (66 feet) high from base to top of the head. It took around three years and 100 workers to complete. Theories say it’s here to guard the King’s tomb; no wonder it’s that huge to protect.
Who Built The Sphinx? What Does The Sphinx Represent?
When trying to determine the statue’s origin, we can only find some theories that are not confirmed, and there are many debates. The most widely believed theory is that this Sphinx statue was built by King Khafre (Chephren)—who had also made the middle Pyramid—to symbolize the unification with the god Re.
To guard his tomb, which faces, it’s believed that the age of the Sphinx is around 4500 years old, which corresponds to the King’s reign period. But still, there is no assured evidence that this is Khafre’s statue, which has left room for some more theories.
One theory is that this is Khufu (Cheops), the owner of the Great Pyramid. Based on that, the Sphinx’s face resembles Khufu’s. Another theory, based on the same assumption, tells that it was built by Pharaoh Djedefre Khufu’s older son and half-brother to commemorate his father, Khufu.
So, if it’s confirmed to be Khufu’s statue, we still don’t know who built it: Khufu himself or his older son Djedefre. However, again, some pieces of evidence indicate that it is Khafre’s statue, which makes us a little bit confused.
A rectangular Stele of 3.6 m height, 2.18 m wide and 0.7 m depth, found between the paws of the Sphinx, called the Dream Stele or the Sphinx Stele, was erected by the Pharaoh Thutmose IV 1402 BC, where Khafre’s name was mentioned twice, which gives him some privilege of being the owner.
However, Cheops’ name was mentioned once, which leaves us uncertain. If we can’t be precise about the owner, that doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy such a beautiful statue. It gives some mystery to the whole story, which we can use to make more theories and myths until something is proven.
What happened to the Sphinx's nose?
The missing nose is another mystery. What we are sure about is that the Sphinx’s nose had been removed on purpose, not damaged by natural causes, as it was proved by examination that some signs of rods or chisels were found that were used to remove it forcibly.
Which Let us Wonder Who, How, And Why?
It’s believed that it had been damaged sometime between the 3rd and 10th centuries. Investigating an accused, Napoleon Bonaparte, was believed to be the destructor. Still, it was denied after, as a Sphinx drawing from 1757 belongs to Frederic Louis Norden, a Danish explorer.
The drawing shows the Sphinx already without its nose, knowing that Napoleon came to Egypt 41 years later. Fingers of accusations then go toward the Mamluk Era, or maybe, according to Al-Maqrizi, an Arab historian, it could be an act of iconoclasm from someone named Muhammad Sa’im al-Dahr who was a Sufi Muslim in 1378.
How Many Sphinx Are There?
A second Sphinx was discovered in Luxor while upgrading the road of Ram – Al Kabbash road – between Luxor Temple and Karnak Temple. For instance, there were several sphinxes statues discovered in Luxor. There is a road with sphinxes on both sides in Karnak Temple, 3 km length.
But still, the Sphinx of Giza is the most popular one to be connected to the Great Pyramids. No doubt, the Great Sphinx of Giza is one of the most amazing monuments in the world; even if we don’t know much about it, it has its way of attraction.
Theories and myths swirl about who it belongs to and how the nose was lost, which arouses our curiosity to know more about it; maybe someday we can reach the truth.