The Mighty Sphinx

Sphinx of Giza

The sphinx of Giza is the statue therianthrope that stands before the Great Pyramids plateau of Giza, upstream of the Nile Delta in Lower Egypt. It is also known by the Arabs Abu al-Hol ( "father of terror").

With a length of sixty-three meters from a height of twenty meters and a width of fourteen the Sphinx of Giza is a sculpture carved in a natural promontory in the rock. His head is carved into a limestone peak of hard plaque Mokattam which are built on the three pyramids, a revered peak times already pre-Pharaonic It is in the midst of a great career which provided some of the blocks for the construction of the pyramid. His head is turned towards the lifting. The body of the Sphinx is that of a lion lying and head of a sovereign bearing the Nemes, adorned the front of a uraeus (there are still front of the place where it was attached).

Long identified with the pharaoh Chefren, son of Cheops, it could actually represent Cheops himself, as claimed by Vassil Dobrev Several indices have enabled him to develop his theory, as the study of layers of rocks at the site of the Sphinx compared to the pyramids, or the observation of his cap, the width of his chin, shape of its ears or beard ceremony.

It would be Djedefrê, son of Cheops and brother of Chefren, reportedly built the Sphinx to the glory of his father. In addition, enrollment suggest that Djedefrê would also dismantle and bury the solar boats in trenches, on the south side of the pyramid of Cheops his father so that he can travel to another world.

It is believed that the Sphinx providing a caretaker of the site, or perhaps more precisely solar temple built next to the pyramid of Cheops

If the body and head are carved into the rock, legs stretched were added in masonry. In the beginning, according to the writings of Pliny the Elder and traces on the face, the Sphinx would be entirely covered with plaster painted face and body in red, Nemesis in blue and yellow as it was common to do so Egyptian statuary. But archaeologists date the paintings of a later era, the New Kingdom, when the Sphinx was honored as dynastic god.

It was also found foundations of a temple and a statue of a king walking in front of his chest, but it is perhaps of late additions, like the stele of pink granite placed between his legs by Thutmose IV. Carved into the rock, this stele tells the dream of Thutmose IV: it was the Sphinx to meet the God appeared to him in a dream, the promise in exchange the throne of the Kingdom of Egypt. This event, recorded on the stele, then it served its legitimacy.

The text of the stela would be it

"One day it happened that the son Thutmose Royal, who would walk at noon, rested in the shade of this great god, the numbness of sleep know when the sun was at its zenith. He realized then that the majesty of this god August he spoke of his mouth even as a father spoke to his son, saying, look at me, contemplating me, O my son Thutmose I am your father-Horakhety Khepri-Ra-Atoum I will give you the kingdom on earth, head of the living, you bear the crown white and red crown on the throne of Geb, the prince (the gods). The land t'appartiendra in length and width, and everything qu'illumine eye brilliant master of the universe. (...) This is now the desert sand storm me, the sand above which I was once, so hurry up to me, so that you can accomplish anything I want. "

dating and origin

Thesis official

The Egyptologists found the date of construction of this book around -2500, which corresponds to the reign of Pharaoh Chefren, including the Sphinx would be the portrait. Christiane Zivie Coche-shows over the beds of limestone, as they are clearly visible on the southern wall of the cavity that surrounds the Sphinx, are on the blocks used for the shell of the temple of the Sphinx, neighbor geographically and architecturally very near Temple Valley Chefren. However, the origin of the Sphinx is called into question in recent years, particularly by Egyptologist Rainer Stadelmann, which, containing a thesis oldest, sees the work of the pharaoh Cheops. Based on archaeological and stylistic analysis, it demonstrates that the shape of hairdressing (nemesis), lack of beard at the time of construction, the presence of the Sphinx in a career of Cheops and features face are characteristic of the reign of the latter.

Estimate Climate

In 1990, a team of four scientists, including geophysicist Thomas L. Dobecki and geologist Robert Schoch of the Boston University have shown that traces of erosion on the Sphinx are more important than those of surrounding monuments such as pyramids. It would, in addition to traces of erosion by sand, traces of erosion by the weather. However, climatologists think that the last period of heavy rainfall were recorded in the Sahara would be between -12000 / -3400. This would give a date of construction of several millennia prior to that advanced by Egyptologists.

Silting and degradation

The time has seriously damaged the great Sphinx, especially because of erosion caused by sand pile and constantly provoked the "waves" that now cover the entire body. Several times, the Sphinx had to be sand; Auguste Mariette began to emerge in 1853 and the last date of sand in 1925.

The man is also responsible for maiming, particularly with regard to its enigmatic smile, damaged by blows to canon ordered by a sheikh of the FOURTEENTH century. What these firing cannon casserent wig beard and nose has never been demonstrated. The beard is at the British Museum, which refuses to make it to Egypt, and the nose was not recovered.

Part of the right shoulder had collapsed in 1988, his neck being fragile, work to save the Sphinx took place in 1989. Since April 2006, a restoration of the Sphinx is big business, hoping to correct errors (use of cement to restore the statue) of previous restorations of the monument.

Origin of the mutilation of the nose

The legend was that the nose of the Sphinx was destroyed by the soldiers of Napoleon during the campaign of Egypt. When we know the work done by Napoleon to list all the arts events in Egypt, we realize the legendary character of these assertions In a speech in 1995, the American black activist Louis Farrakhan takes this legend, in an Afrocentric, believing that "white supremacy led Napoleon to destroy the Sphinx's nose because he too recalled the majesty of the black man

Historians had long believed that those responsible for the mutilation of the nose of the Sphinx was the Mamelukes who occupied Egypt for several centuries before being beaten by troops Bonaparte. Engravings dating from before the campaign in Egypt also show the sphinx without its nose confirming that the mutilation preceded the arrival of French soldiers.

In 1980, German historian Ulrich Haarmann based on testimony from several Arab authors of the Middle Ages (as Ahmad al-Maqrizi and Rashidi), revealed that the face of the Sphinx was damaged in 1378 by Mohammed Sa 'im al-Dahr, a Muslim fanatic who wanted to destroy what he regarded as a pagan idol, addressing in particular the nose and ears. However, from the TENTH century, Arab authors reported that the nose was damaged as a result of iconoclastic fury. The comprehensive archaeological survey conducted recently by archaeologist Mark Lehner shows clear signs of destruction tool at a time which is between THE third and TENTH CENTURY.

Anecdotes

The destruction of the Sphinx's nose is explained in fantasy in several works:

• in the comic book and the film Asterix and Cleopatra, the nose was destroyed by Obelix trying to climb the Sphinx to enjoy the view;

• in the cartoon Aladdin Disney, a tailor was surprised to see Aladdin and Princess Jasmine on a magic carpet, and accidentally destroyed the nose.

• in advertising 1990s to an optician where an archaeologist with glasses too heavy Sphinx that would have broken his nose.