The Mysterious Great Sphinx of Giza Essay - 1359 Words

I Thought There Would Be Answers: The Mysterious Great Sphinx of Giza At the request of Napoleon Bonaparte in the early 1800’s Dominique Vivant Baron Denon French artist and diplomat was to record the exploits and accomplishments of Bonaparte’s Egyptian campaign. In 1802, he published his travels. â€Å"The perfection given by the Egyptians to the representations of their animals proves that they were not without an idea of that bold style which expresses much character in a few lines, and their execution tended to the grave, and to ideal perfection, as we have already remarked in instance of the Sphinx.† The generally accepted date of the great Sphinx of Giza is 2500BC attributed to Pharaoh Khafre of the fourth dynasty. If this is the†¦show more content†¦The Sphinx represents the guardian of the Giza plateau. Revered in Ancient Egypt the feline form has a long association with royalty, power and protection. An evacuation lead by French archaeologist Dr. Alain Zivie believed inscriptions suggest Egyptians bred lions as well as buried them in sacred cemeteries. In 2001, Zive and his crew found a mummified lion in the tomb of a woman understood to be the wet nurse of Pharaoh Tutankhamen dated to 1430. The wear of the lion’s teeth indicate it lived to old age and was in captivity. One theorist, Robert Temple, declares the Sphinx is not a lion at all, because of the flat back, lack of mane, and the disproportion of the head. He believes the original statue was craved before the old kingdom and portrayed the Egyptian god Anubis, with a head of a jackal and body of a man (see figure 1). Anubis is traditionally associated with mummification and the afterlife. Temple believes that between 2200-2000BC, the monument was defaced then re-carved during the fourth dynasty in the image of Pharaoh Khafre. He also presumes the Sphinx enclosure was flooded with Nile water to make an island. He uses a passage from Herodotus that discusses the cruelty of Pharaoh Khufu and how the slaves had to dig the moat for his burial chamber â€Å"For this they said, the ten years were spent, and for the underground he caused to be made as sepulchral chambers for himself in an island, havingShow MoreRelatedEgyptian Pyramids And The Pyramids960 Words   |  4 Pagesof Giza are one of th e mysterious ancient architecture in today’s world where people from all around the world go to visit this particular ancient art. It is extremely beautiful and is one of the many famous tourist spots around the world. The three main pyramids were built for each of the three pharaohs; Khufu, Khafre and Menkaure. The first and the largest pyramid at Giza was built by pharaoh Khufu whose reign started around 2551 B.C. 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