The Great Sphinx in Giza

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The word 'Sphinx' is a Greek word which means "to bind between a man and an animal" . The Sphinx was known in the Ancient Egyptian as Šsp-´nh (which means 'The Living Image') . In the Egyptian texts , it was also called 'Bw-Hwl' , and 'Pr-Hr' , which mean 'The House (or the Temple) of god Horus) , taking in consideration that this statue is associated with the sun-god Rehorakhty , or Hr-m-3ht , then Bw-Hwr was taken as Bw-Hwl , then it became in Arabic Abu-el-Houl .
Many legends and myths exist about the world-famous Sphinx . The head of a human and the body of a lion , the Sphinx is one of the forms with which the sun-god became associated , which is confirmed by the 'Dream Stela' . Most probably , the Sphinx represents the guard of the eastern and western parts of the world or it might be representing the King himself .
Ordered to be built by King Khafre , the Sphinx was mainly a knoll of rock which remained from the Great Pyramid of Cheops .
The Sphinx was covered with a layer of stucco or limestone and then painted . Unfortunately , both the chin and nose of the Sphinx were broken . The length of the Sphinx is about 73m and its height is about 20m; and the head measures 4m in width . The widest part of the Sphinx is that one near the face . On its head appears the royal head-dress; and among the other emblems of royalty are the cobra on the forehead and the bead on the chin (now largely missing) . Although the face has been severely mutilated , it still gives the viewer the impression of its being a portrait of King Chephren . A figure , possibly of the King , was carved in front of the chest , but scarcely any trace of it now remains .
Between the outstretched paws , stands a large slab of red granite bearing an inscription which purports to record a dream of Thutmosis IV of the Eighteenth Dynasty before ascending the throne . According to the inscription , the Prince , when hunting , decided to rest at midday in the shadow of the Sphinx . During his sleep , the Sphinx , which was regarded at that time as an embodiment of the sun-god Harmakhit , promised him the double crown if he would clear away the sand which had meanly engulfed his body . Unfortunately , the latter part of the inscription is too badly weathered to be legible , but it may be surmised that it related how the god’s wish was fulfilled and how the Prince was finally rewarded with the crown of the Two Lands . In addition to clearing away the sand , Thutmosis IV may have repaired damaged potions of the body by the insertion of small blocks of limestone , an operation which repeated in the Ptolemaic or Roman Periods . When the sand was once more removed and an alter was erected in front of the figure , nothing of the column paintings remained except in few parts . In the New Kingdom , the Sphinx was called Hour-akhty or Harmakhis . The Sphinx is situated to the south of the Great Pyramid Complex and near the valley building of the second pyramid of King Chephren .
Carved out during the reign of King Chephren , the Sphinx was worshipped in all times (as symbolizing the sun-god) . Some rituals took place in the temple , just on the opposite side , then in the later periods the Sphinx became the guardian of the necropolis . Although it was carved out of a bad knoll of rock , the Sphinx statue was restored throughout the ages till our time nowadays . The beard of the Sphinx had fallen out in different times , some fragments of which are displayed in the Cairo Museum , and one fragment is in the British Museum (London) . Nevertheless , these fragments are not sufficient to re-form and construct the beard of the Sphinx altogether .
The nose of the Sphinx was not deliberately broken , as has been usually believed , but the break was due to the long course of time it has till now survived . Nothing except the statue's neck was seen since it was wholly covered with sand during the Eighteenth Dynasty . Later , the sand was cleared up in the reign of Thutmosis IV . Till the end of the Nineteenth century , the Sphinx was covered with sand , and was exposed to all natural air conditions .