The Great Sphinx of Egypt Research Paper Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 2250 words

The Great Sphinx of Egypt - Research Paper Example Others believe that the nose was removed by Sufi who considered it was blasphemous. According to Robert (48), arguments have been raised that the sculpture was built by Pharaoh Khafre at around 2575-2465 BC. This was during the old kingdom which was characterized by the building of pyramids. However, there are various arguments surrounding the construction of the Sphinx. History There are various mysteries surrounding the great Sphinx. The great sphinx is located close to the pharaoh’s Valley Temple and along the covered causeway that led to Mortuary Temple beside the pyramid. The great sphinx is made of limestone with lion’s body and a human head. It is situated at the Giza plateau on the west bank of the Nile in Egypt. It is one of the world’s largest monoliths. It is 73.5 meters (241 ft) long, 19.3 meters (63 ft) wide, and 20.22 meters (66.34 ft) deep and weighs around 200 tons (Robert, and McNally). It is among the oldest monuments in the world and it’ s thought to have been built by ancient Egyptians during the reign of Pharaoh Khafra around (2558-2532 BC). However, there have been controversies regarding who built the statue and when it was built. The Egyptians used the statue as a sign of divinity, and there is a belief that king Harmais was buried in it. The statue faces East which signifies security. The direction the statue is facing means that it guards the temple and the other pyramids that surround it. Egyptians use different names to refer to the Sphinx (Robert, 51). These include Hor-em-Takht (Horus in the horizon), Bw-How (Olacr of Horus) and Ra (Ra of two Horizons). The building of the Sphinx could have taken place during the fourth dynasty of Egypt in the 3rd millennium BC. Also, the statue could have been built by Pharaoh Khafre and the carved image of the face looks just like his face. Others suggest that the Sphinx was built by Pharaoh Khufu the father of Pharaoh Khafre, who also built the great pyramid of Giza. H owever, there is no conclusive evidence regarding who exactly built the great sphinx. Robert (49) states that Pharaoh Khafre ruled the fourth dynasty (2558-2532 BC) after having succeeded his brother King Djedefre. Khafre was the son of King Khufu and Queen Henutsen. He reigned for around 24-26 years and he is also appreciated for having built the second pyramid at Giza. He is also thought to have built the great Egyptian sphinx. During his reign, the Egyptian kingdom obtained great prosperity. Dimensions and Proportionality The head of the sphinx is smaller than the rest of the body which makes it disproportionate. However, this contradicts the facts that it was made by Egyptians since they were good at making proportionate items. The Sphinx was carved from limestone and the stones that were removed were used in the construction of pyramids and temple. The limestone that was removed around the head was stronger and was used in building pyramids while the weaker ones were used in bu ilding the temple (Graham, and Bauval, 17). There was also another suggestion that Sphinx would have been formed through water erosion. According to Manager (1993), the history of the great sphinx had long been forgotten and the monument suffered neglect. The story of the Sphinx began around 1400 BC when pharaoh Thutmose IV was told in a dream to unearth the Sphinx body. In his dream, he was promised to become the king if he carried out the errand.