Sphinx of Great Egypt

What on earth has the body of a lion, the head of a man and is the size of a large house? Some claim it to be the guardian of the pyramids; others say it is the statue of a god or king, while some others say it could well be both! Whatever the case, the Sphinx of Giza remains shrouded in mystery, with no convincing explanation for its origin, construction or purpose. Who built it? How was it built? Most importantly, why was it built? Most of what is known today about the Sphinx is just speculation.

To start with, no one really knows what it was called. The statue seems to have mysteriously disappeared from all the ancient texts. There are very few references to it, and none have given it a specific name. The name sphinx is derived from its resemblance to the Greek legend: a creature with the head of a woman, the body of a lion, and the wings of an eagle that would kill anyone who refused to answer its riddle. Its original Egyptian name seems hidden somewhere in the pages of history.

Well, what's in a name anyway? Call it whatever you like, that still doesn't change the fact that we have no idea who built it or why. Most historians believe that the statue was built during the reign of the Pharaoh Khufu, or perhaps his son Khafre, both of whose pyramids lie behind just behind the Sphinx. Some, however, claim that the body of the sphinx shows signs of water erosion that could have been caused only before Khafre's quarries were built on the Nile, thereby proving that the Sphinx predates even Khufu’s reign. But others throw this away as circumstantial evidence. Historians also claim that the model for the face of the Sphinx could be Khufu himself. But again, there is no written evidence for any of this.

We do, however, know how the Sphinx was built. The head and base are carved out of hard limestone that was dug out of nearby quarries. The rest of the body is mostly soft limestone, taken from around the Sphinx itself, and this is why the Sphinx sits in a deep crater, facing the rising sun. It is widely believed that the sculptors had to be some of the best craftsmen in their time, to maintain the proportion of all the parts of the face on such a massive scale. Yet this great symbol of craftsmanship has been quite unlucky in its life.

Before it was fully excavated in 1925, the Sphinx had been buried in sand all the way up to its chest by the desert wind. Most of the outer layers of its body had long since been eroded and the face and paws had been disfigured. Vandalism by Arab armies during the 1300s had left it nursing a broken nose and beard. Today, the Sphinx is a world heritage site, and a great effort is underway to prevent further erosion and restore it to its former glory. And besides, we still have a great riddle to solve.