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Worksheet 7

The document discusses the Sphinx monument in ancient Egypt. It describes the Sphinx as a large statue with the body of a lion and head of a pharaoh. The most famous Sphinx is located at Giza and faces east, guarding the pyramid tombs of pharaohs like Khafra. The origins and builder of the Sphinx are uncertain, though many believe it was constructed during the reign of Khafra or his father Khufu.

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25 views1 page

Worksheet 7

The document discusses the Sphinx monument in ancient Egypt. It describes the Sphinx as a large statue with the body of a lion and head of a pharaoh. The most famous Sphinx is located at Giza and faces east, guarding the pyramid tombs of pharaohs like Khafra. The origins and builder of the Sphinx are uncertain, though many believe it was constructed during the reign of Khafra or his father Khufu.

Uploaded by

savantnewz
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Name Ancient Egypt

The Sphinx
The Greek Sphinx was a fierce mythical creature with the head of a
woman, body of a lion, and wings of a bird. In ancient Egypt, though, a
Sphinx was male, benevolent, and of immense strength. Egyptian sphinxes
did not have wings, and often had faces of pharaohs or gods. They were
built by ancient Egyptians to guard
important places like tombs and temples.

The most well known Sphinx is carved out of


the bedrock at Giza, where it faces east
and guards the pyramid tombs. Its face is
believed to be a likeness of the pharaoh
Khafra. The Great Sphinx is at least 4,500 years old. It is also enormous. It is
241 feet long, 20 feet wide, and 66 feet high. Its eyes are 6 feet tall, and its
nose was almost five feet long before it was broken off. Before time and
erosion took its toll and the Great Sphinx became a ruin, it is thought to
have been very colorfully decorated with paints, with a red face and
body, a blue beard, and a yellow headdress.

It is uncertain which Egyptian pharaoh built the Sphinx. Because its face is
so similar to that of Khafra, and because of its proximity to Khafra’s
pyramid, the second largest at Giza, many believe Khafra to be
responsible for the massive construction. Others believe it to have been
the work of Khafra’s father, Khufu, whose tomb was the Great Pyramid at
Giza. Others believe it is even older, theorizing that the damage to its face
was done during a period of intense rainfall, which could make the Sphinx
as much as eight thousand years old.

Within a thousand years after being built, the Sphinx was already
deteriorating. Its body became covered in the shifting desert sands so
that only the head was visible. A legend says that Prince Thutmose fell
asleep near the Sphinx’s head and dreamed that he would become
Pharaoh of Egypt if he restored the Sphinx. He did as he had been told in
his dream, and did, in fact, later become Pharaoh.

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