The sphinxes measure 26 feet in length and represent King Amenhotep III, who reigned about 3,300 years ago. [sic]
Posted on 02/06/2022 7:23:05 AM PST by SunkenCiv
Archeologists have discovered the remains of two huge sphinx statues, each measuring 26 feet in length, at the funerary temple of King Amenhotep III, a pharaoh who reigned about 3,300 years ago, according to a recent statement from the Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.
A team led by Horig Sorosian found the sphinxes partially submerged in water at the funerary building, known as the “Temple of Millions of Years,” located within the vast ruins of Luxor, Egypt, which includes the ancient city of Thebes.
Amenhotep III’s temple is packed with artifacts and was once a resplendent feature of Luxor. However, it has been eroded by thousands of years of floods and at least one ancient earthquake. The discovery of the sphinxes is part of a decades-long effort to restore the temple and the Colossi of Memnon, which are two gigantic stone statues of Amenhotep III that mark the entrance to the funerary complex.
The sphinxes are also representations of Amenhotep III, who is shown adorned with a mongoose headdress, a royal beard, and a broad necklace, according to Mustafa Waziri, Secretary-General of the Supreme Council of Antiquities. During the cleaning and restoration process of the statues, Sorosian and her colleagues came across an inscription that reads “the beloved of the god Amun-Ra,” which is the royal name of Amenhotep III...
Sorosian’s team also discovered three black granite busts of Sekhmet, a goddess of war who took the form of a lioness, which will be moved to their original place within the temple.
The sphinxes are just the latest of many discoveries from ongoing excavation and restoration efforts at Luxor, which have included a never-before-seen mud-caked mummy and the “lost golden city” of Aten.
(Excerpt) Read more at vice.com ...
Kewl!
wow - what a civilization! i can hardly wait to find out what there is to be learned.
The ancient Egyptians sure had a thing for cemeteries. Now they are all dead. Perhaps their time would have been better spent developing irrigation systems.
King Amenhotep III may be the best match for the face of the Giza Sphinx
Grewvy too!
I wonder what the significance of the sphinx was that it was assigned to King’s burial chambers.
That is just cool. However, 26 feet is not huge.
Yep. Civ’s posts are boss.
What Is a Sphinx?
A sphinx (or sphynx) is a creature with the body of a lion and the head of a human, with some variations. It is a prominent mythological figure in Egyptian, Asian, and Greek mythology.
https://www.history.com/topics/ancient-egypt/the-sphinx
The poem “Ozymandias” comes to mind.
That was on “Blizzard of Oz” I think.
And the word is a transliteration of the ancient Egyptian term for “living image”.
Why, thank you! Good info.
Amenhotep III did take an interest in the Giza monuments, as the other pharaohs of the later 18th dynasty. But the head was obviously recarved (out of scale, much better preserved than the body), and the most likely match would be from the 25th (Kushite) dynasty.
“Sphinx” is a transliteration of “Sheshep-ankh”, living image.
Sheshep-ankh-en-Amun Setepenre was actually one of the kings of Meroe in the 3rd c BC — well after the 25th dynasty was booted from Egypt.
:^) By and large, people from ancient times are all dead.
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![The sphinxes measure 26 feet in length and represent King Amenhotep III, who reigned about 3,300 years ago. [sic]](https://video-images.vice.com/articles/61e9d64bbf2d5e0095b41a17/lede/1642714897131-screen-shot-2022-01-20-at-44019-pm.png)
