“The goal of creating the sphinx is becoming a little clearer today. Atlanta Egypt built it as a grand statue, the greatest memorable a statue and dedicated it to his bright god – the Sun. “- Paul Brighton.
“A pile of cobblestones left by the builders of the Great Pyramids during stone mining time, turned into the time of Chefren (Cheops) in a huge lying lion with a human head. “- I. С.. S. Edwards.
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These passages illustrate the polar views of the Great Sphinx: from mystical perception to cold pragmatism. Statue for centuries which was in the sand, always enveloped in a halo of mystery, giving rise to speculation regarding the age of the sphinx, purpose and method its creation, existence inside hidden cameras, and also about the prophetic gift of the statue and its connection with no less mysterious the pyramids.
Mostly similar theories put forward by desperate Egyptologists and archaeologists in vain trying alone to uncover the secrets of the sphinx. Probably the national symbol of ancient and modern Egypt, standing like a sentry on a plateau in Giza, at all times he played one and the same role: century after century excited the imagination of poets, scientists, mystics, travelers and tourists. In the sphinx of Giza all is enclosed essence of Egypt.
Sculpture of the Great, facing the rising sun Sphinx is located on the Giza plateau 6 miles west of Cairo on West Bank of the Nile. Egyptian government sees it as embodiment God of the Sun, which the Egyptians call Khor Em Ahet (Horus on sky). Sphinx occupies part of the territory of the necropolis in ancient Memphis – the residence of the pharaohs, where the three largest Egyptian pyramids – The Great Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops), Hafra (Chefren) and Menkaur (Mycerin). The monument is the largest of surviving sculptures of the ancient world – 241 feet long and 65 feet in height at the highest point.
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Part of the urea (sacred snake protecting from evil forces), its nose and the ritual beard collapsed over time. The beard is now stored in The British Museum. The elongated element on the forehead of the sphinx is a fragment of the royal headdress. Although the head of the sphinx for thousands of years has been fatally affected by erosion, traces the paint with which it was originally coated can still be considered near the ear of the statue. It is believed that once the face of the sphinx was painted burgundy. In a small temple located between with his paws, a dozen painted steles are kept, set in honor of god of the sun.
The Sphinx is badly damaged by the ravages of time, human activities and environmental pollution these days. By in fact, he was saved from complete destruction by a long stay in the sand. Over the centuries-old history of the monument, many attempts have been made reconstruct the statue. They began in 1400 BC. e., in the reign of Pharaoh Thutmose IV.
Once after a hunt, Pharaoh dozed off in the shadow of the sphinx, and he dreamed that a huge beast was choking on an absorbing statue sand. In a dream, the sphinx told Pharaoh that if he pulls out the beast and cleans it of sand, it will receive the crown of Upper and Lower Egypt. Today, between the front legs of the sphinx you can see granite a stele called the Dream Stele, on which is written the legend of a dream Pharaoh.
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Although the sculpture was cleared, it soon returned to the sand. When Napoleon arrived in Egypt in 1798, the Sphinx was already without a nose. However, the nose disappeared long before Napoleon’s arrival, which captured in the paintings of the XVIII century. One legend says that the nose broke during the bombing of the period of Turkish rule. According to another version, probably more believable), in the VIII century. he was hit by a chisel by a Sufi who considered the sphinx to be pagan idol.
In 1858, the founder of the Egyptian Antiquities Service, Auguste Mariette began excavation of the sculpture, but only a part was cleared. IN 1925-1936 French engineer Emile Barez, acting on behalf of The service of antiquities, completed the excavation of the Sphinx. And probably for the first time since the days of the legendary Ancient Egypt, sculpture has become available for all to see.
The riddle of the Great Sphinx, most Egyptologists prefer explained as follows: the sculpture belongs to Chefren – Pharaoh IV Dynasty. Carved in stone image of a lion with a face Chefren himself was created in 2540, at about the same time that the nearby pyramid of Chefren was erected. However still not a single inscription confirming the connection Chephren with the sphinx, and records of the time and purpose of creation sculptures too.
Given the grandeur of the monument, a similar fact seems rather strange and mysterious. Although not all Egyptologists agree with the traditional version, to say exactly when and by whom the sphinx was erected until no one can. In 1996, a detective from New York, identity expert, concluded that the Great the sphinx does not look like Chefren, but more like his older veil Gedefra. Discussions on this subject are ongoing.
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Unresolved issue of the origin and purpose of the creation of the sphinx gave rise to the appearance of more and more new versions of the mystical character such as the theory of the British occultist Paul Brighton or a version of the American medium and visionary Edgar Cayce, put forward in the 40s of XX century. In a trance, Case predicted that under the front paws of the sphinx a camera will be found in which kept a collection of manuscripts about the lives of those who survived the destruction Atlantis.
The Great Sphinx was carved from soft limestone left in a career from which materials were taken for the construction of the pyramids. Paws were created separately from limestone blocks. One of the main features of the sculpture is that her head is not proportional to the body. Perhaps it was repeatedly remade, changing the face of the sphinx as directed by each subsequent pharaoh.
By style, you can determine that hardly changes were produced after the period of the Late Kingdom, which ended around 2181 BC e. It is likely that the original head portrayed a ram or falcon and was converted into a human later. Restoration work carried out throughout millennia to save the head of the sphinx could also convert or change face proportions.
Any of these explanations could have caused the resizing. heads compared with the body, especially if we assume that The Great Sphinx is much older than traditional science believes. Recently, there have been lively debates about dating the monument. The author of one version, John Anthony West, was the first to draw attention to the fact that the surface of the sphinx was exposed forces of nature – and more affected by water erosion than from wind and sand.
However, other structures on the plateau have not experienced this. radiance. West turned to geologists and professor of Boston Robert Schoch University, having studied the latest finds, confirmed that these are the results of water erosion. Although today the climate of Egypt arid, about 10,000 years ago it was wet and rainy. West and Schoch concluded that for wow to undergo water erosion, the sphinx was supposed to exist 7,000 – 10,000 years ago. Egyptologists have rejected the theory of Shokh, considering it incorrect. They are claimed that frequent once-heavy thunderstorms in Egypt stopped long before the appearance of the sphinx.
A serious approach to business raises the question: why on the Giza plateau no other traces of water erosion were found that could to confirm the theory of West and Shoch? Could not rain only over the sphinx. West and Shoch were also criticized for not taking into account high level of industrial pollution of the local atmosphere, which has had a devastating effect on the last hundred years Monuments of Giza.
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By another version about the time of creation and purpose Sphinx is Robert Buvel. In the 1989s. he published a work in which hypothesized that the three Great Pyramids in Giza together with Neil create a kind of three-dimensional hologram on earth three stars of the Orion belt and the nearby Milky The way.
Building on Graham Hancock’s Version of the Famous Book “Traces of the Gods,” Buvel put forward the theory that both the Sphinx and nearby pyramids, and all kinds of ancient manuscripts are components of a certain astronomical map related with the constellation Orion. He concluded that in the best way such a hypothetical map corresponded to the position of the stars at 10 500 BC e., discarding the version that the sphinx was created in more ancient times.
There are many legends about unusual phenomena, one way or another. ways associated with the Great Sphinx. Researchers Florida State University; Waseda University in Japan and Boston University using ultra-sensitive technology found a number of anomalies in the atmosphere above this place. However, these phenomena could have a natural character. In 1995 during repair work in the parking lot near the statue was found several tunnels and passages, two of which went deep underground near the sphinx. Buvel suggested that moves were created simultaneously with a statue.
In 1991 – 1993 research team led by Anthony West, studying the erosion traces on the monument with a seismograph, discovered something strange: a few meters below the surface land between the paws of the statue, as well as on the other side of the sculpture holes, cavities or chambers of the correct form were found in the sphinx. However for further research expedition permits not received. The question arises: maybe in the prediction of Edgar Cayce is there a grain of truth regarding the manuscript collection?
Today the great statue is crumbling from the winds, humidity and Cairo smog.
A photo from open sources
In 1950, the development of large-scale and expensive project of restoration and preservation of the monument. First attempts to restore the monument led to its even greater destruction, since cement was used to restore the structure, incompatible with limestone. For six or more years reconstruction used about 2000 limestone blocks, used various chemicals, but the efforts were in vain. TO 1988, the blocks of the left shoulder of the sphinx collapsed.
Currently, attempts to restore a statue under the strict supervision of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. Restorers try to repair a damaged shoulder using part of the subsoil. So today all the attention is focused to preserve the monument, and not to excavate and further research. We can only wait. There will be many more time until the Great Sphinx reveals its secrets.
B. Hoton “The Great Secrets and Mysteries of History”
Egypt Time Stones Napoleon Bonaparte Pyramids Sculptures Sun Pharaohs
