Great Sphinx

The Great Sphinx, also known as the Great Sphinx of Giza, is the largest Sphinx in the world and is a Unesco World Heritage Site.
It is located to the east of the Pyramids in Giza, Egypt, and faces due East.

The Sphinx is a mythological creature having the body of a Lion and the head of a Man.
Pharaoh Khafre (c. 2,558-2,532 BCE) is thought to have built the Great Sphinx around the same time as he built the second largest Pyramid, the Pyramid of Khafre.
The face of the Sphinx is thought to be that of Khafre, also known as Cephren, who was the son of Khufu, builder of the Great Pyramid. The head of the Sphinx wears the headdress of the Pharaoh.
Its Egyptian name in the Old Kingdom is unknown as no reference to it has ever been found in any inscription. However, in the New Kingdom it was known as Hor-em-akhet (Horus of the Horizon).
Pliny the Elder commented in his ‘Natural History’ that King Harmais was buried inside it (not under it).

In Greek Mythology, the Sphinx had the body of a lion, the wings of a bird, the head of a woman and a tail ending in a snake’s head. The Greek Sphinx was female, showed no mercy and was treacherous.
In Egyptian Mythology, the Sphinx was male, had the head of a man, and was considered to be benevolent.
In both Mythologies, the Sphinx had enormous strength and acted as the Guardian of Temples.

In Luxor, 900 Sphinxes with Ram heads still form a 2 mile (3km) avenue.
The Avenue of the Sphinxes linked the Luxor Temple with The Temple of Mut at Karnak.
Originally, 1,350 Sphinxes lined the 3 km route, built by Nectanebo I (380-363 BCE) and his name was inscribed on each Sphinx.

In Southeast Asia, India, Sri Lanka and Myanmar, the Sphinx continues to exist as part of the culture, and can be found in many Temple entrances. The Sphinx is usually referred to as the ‘man-lion’.
In Sri Lanka, the Sphinx forms part of the Buddhist tradition, and acts as the guardian of the North.

In the Philippines, the Sphinx is portrayed as half man, half eagle. It lives and defends the Bicol region, and if visitors cannot answer its riddles, they are carried off to the Mayon volcano and given to the God of the volcano as an offering.

In Myanmar, the Sphinx is shown on the corners of the Buddhist Temples known as a Stupa. In legends, it was created to protect a Royal baby from female monsters.

In Thailand, the Sphinx is shown as walking upright, with the lower body of a lion or deer, and the upper body of a man.

In Greek Mythology, Hesiod in the Theogony, describes how Hera sent the Sphinx from Ethiopia to Thebes in Greece, who then sat on the Acropolis and brought Drought and Famine. The Sphinx would only leave if the Thebans could answer her riddle. Those who failed to answer correctly were strangled in the same way that a lion kills its prey by biting its neck and eating it.
The Riddle was: ‘What creature speaks with one voice, yet walks first on four legs, then two legs then three legs?’
Prince Oedipus gave the correct answer: ‘Man, who walks on four legs as a baby, on two legs as a man, and with a walking stick, three legs in old age’.
The Sphinx then destroyed herself by leaping off the Acropolis.

Legend tells of a second Riddle: ‘There are two sisters. The second sister is born by the first, then the first is born by the second. Who are they?’ The answer is ‘day and night’.

The Great Sphinx of Giza