When was the Sphinx built and Who built it?

The Sphinx is one of the most easily recognized symbols of ancient Egypt. It is part of Khafre's pyramid complex. Now Khafre is quite possibly the greatest maker of statues of the pyramid age ( ca.2575-2467 B.C. ) Through archaelogical studies of the Sphinx Temples, many possibilities for its purpose have been suggested. One concept is that the Sphinx represents the Sun god, the king as the god Horus , or a king in the leonine form of a god. Unfortunately, the builders of the Sphinx left no writing as to its purpose, just as they had left the Sphinx in a unfinished state.There have been numerous attempts at restoration on the Sphinx over thousands of years.Over the centuries , all the restoration has actually changed the shape of the Sphinx from its original form. In the 18th Dynasty , the Pharaoh known as Thutmose IV , included in the restoration the "Dream Stele" , which was carved into the chest of the Sphinx. Symbolizing the relationship between the Pharaoh and the gods. And , again ,even the most recent attempts at restoration have changed the outward appearance of the Sphinx. Maybe , it is our opinion , that it is time to let nature take its course and man should stop interfering with the effects of time.

Now there are basically two schools of thoughts concerning the origin, age, and the builder of the Sphinx in Egypt. The established group are Egyptologists who believe that Pharaoh Khafre built the Sphinx around 2500 B.C., which is about the 4th dynasty. This theory makes the Sphinx about 5,000 years old according to Dr. Zahi Hawass, Director of Giza Saqqara of the Egyptian Antiquities Organization (p. 348) as stated in Graham Hancock’s book 'Fingerprints of the Gods' (1995 Crown Trade Paperbacks).
Now the other school of thought does not believe that the Egyptians built the Sphinx, but think that it was built by an advanced civilization 8,000 to 10,000 B.C. This school of thought has been around for hundreds of years, but new findings give it more credibility. Recently, Graham Hancock, John West, an American scholar, Robert Bauval, and others have presented certain evidence that challenges the traditional thoughts about the Sphinx and the whole Giza complex.They present proof that may cause a rethinking of the model used to determine who built the Sphinx and the Great Pyramid and for what purpose. Their proofs consist of basically two pieces of evidence. First the geological indications that the Sphinx’s erosion was due to water rather than wind/sand making it much older than previously thought, according to the book Fingerprint of the Gods. Second, astronomical alignments show that the Sphinx was clearly an equinoctial marker facing east, which identifies the exact position on the horizon that the sun dawns on the spring equinox (1st day of spring) according to Graham Hancock’s and Robert Bauval’s book The Message of the Sphinx (p. 59).Many of the legends of the Egyptians and Arabs support this position. They believe that an advanced civilization prior to the flood (i.e., in the Ante-Diluvian Age) built these structures.

What is the intent of this article?
Now the intent of this article is to briefly investigate the old and new theories about the origin, purpose, and builders of Sphinx. It will also explore the implications of these new findings.This article will show also the reality of the Sphinx using the Bible and the Tabernacle for the Sphinx also appears to have close similarities to the creatures seen by Ezekiel and the Apostle John in their visions.

Now no one knows how the Sphinx looked at its completion because both natural erosion and destruction at the hand of man have altered its original form. Archeologists and historians found many pictures of the Sphinx drawn with wings, the body of a lion and ox, and the face of man. Today only the face of a man and body of a lion are apparent on the Great Sphinx.Now the Sphinx faces east or the raising sun. Many Egyptologists overlooked this simple fact, which will play a major part in identifying its purpose.The Sphinx was carved out of a single piece of stone weighing hundreds of tons. It is over 200 feet in length or about as long as a city block. According to Manly P. Hall’s book The Secret Teachings of the Ages (p. XLII), the Sphinx is about 70 feet in height and is 38 feet across the shoulders. Now no one knows what types of tools were used to carve the stone.

Although there are no records regarding the construction of the Sphinx, there are records of its restoration. The "Sphinx Stela," a stone-engraved inscription dated around 1400 B.C., is the oldest record concerning the Sphinx. According to Fingerprints of the Gods, it describes the restoration of the Sphinx by Pharaoh Thutmosis IV (1401-1391 B.C.) of the 18th Dynasty.The Stela states that during a hunting trip Prince Thutmosis became tired and slept in the shadow of the Sphinx. He had a dream that the Sphinx promised to reward him with a double crown of Egypt if he would remove the sand from it and restore the sculpture.According to Manly Hall’s book and Max Thoth book Pyramid Prophecies (p. 158), another account of this legend states that the god appeared unto Prince Thutmosis asking him to do the same. Due to erosion of the stela inscription, no one knows how this promised was fulfilled.Basically, this granite inscription described the form of the Sphinx as a lion’s body. It also stated that the embodiment was "a great magical power that existed in this place from the beginning of all time (p. 11)," according to the book The Message of the Sphinx by Graham Hancock and Robert Bauval (1996 Three Rivers Press).Now this stone inscription did not explain the purpose, the original designer and builder, or the date of the Sphinx’s erection. However, it did cause a great controversy. On line 13 of the inscription it contains the first syllable "Khaf" and it has been associated with King Khafre of the Fourth Dynasty of Pharaoh, who reigned during 2520-2494 B.C.From this inscription the orthodox view found in any textbook and encyclopedia states that King Khafre built the Sphinx. It will be shown later that a minority group does not accept this view.Since the Sphinx is located in a desert region, the sand constantly recovered it. In the last 200 years the Sphinx has been excavated and re-excavated four or five times. Basically, this has been the history of the Sphinx.

If you have gone through my earlier posts on Atlantis then you would be familiar with the name of Edward Cayce. He also spoke of The Sphinx and this is what he had to say about it.He stated in some of his trances that Egypt was the repository for records of the alleged civilization of Atlantis, about 10,500 B.C. This repository was an underground library, called the Hall of Records," that contains the wisdom of Atlantis. Cayce said that during this period this was the first attempt to restore and add to the Sphinx.Cayce claims that the Sphinx points in the direction of the "Hall of Records." His reading states: "There is a chamber or passage from the right forepaw of the [Sphinx] to this entrance of the Hall of records, or chamber," as quoted by Graham Hancock Many of his followers believe this chamber will be found before the end of the 20th century.Now in the 1980’s and 1990’s the Edgar Cayce Foundation conducted quite a bit of research in Egypt around the Sphinx to verify Cayce’s reading. Although researchers from all over the world have begun to look for this chamber with very sophisticated instruments, they have not found the Hall of Records."

In the book of Genesis in the Old Testament there is no reference to the Sphinx or any other monuments that antediluvian civilizations built. In fact, there is very little written in Genesis on how far mankind’s technology advanced in this age. The seed of Cain was described as craftsmen of iron and brass (Gen. 4:17-22). It can be said that at the time of the flood these civilizations were at their zenith.Clearly, no one can be sure if the Sphinx and the monuments of Giza were built in the Antediluvian age. If they were, this chronology assumes that the Sphinx is no more than 6,000 or 7,000 years old, which fits into the Biblical time frame.
Manly Hall states in his book that there are many myths and legends surrounding the Sphinx. The Bible will show later that there is quite a bit of truth in many of these myths and legends.The most popular myth was that "…the Sphinx was the true portal [entrance] of the Great Pyramid…(p. XLII)" Mr. Hall quotes from P. Christian’s book Historie de la Magie (Paris, 1876). P. Christian states that "The Great Sphinx of Gizeh served as the entrance to the sacred subterranean chambers [of the Great Pyramid] in which the trials of the initiate were to be undergone …(p. XLII)." Now P. Christian claims that sand and rubbish covered a bronze door in the forelegs of the Sphinx that the Magi sprung open. Now various diggings around the Great Pyramid have not verified any of these basic claims about the Sphinx.The consensus about the Sphinx is that some priestly class erected it for some symbolical purpose. It is clear from the granite Stela, inscription by Pharaoh Thutmosis IV of the Fourth Dynasty, that many of previous eras believe that there is something magical about this Sphinx.

As was stated earlier in this article, the traditional view of Egyptologists is that the Egyptian Pharaoh Khafre of the fourth Dynasty built the Great Sphinx along with the Great Pyramid, about 2500 B.C.. Hancock states in his book Fingerprint of the Gods that there are three pieces of evidence Egyptologists use to support their position (p. 158).First, they mention the interpretation of the Khafre name on the Sphinx Stela, in which vast portions of the text are eroded. The second piece of evidence attributes Khafre as the builder of the monuments in the Valley of the Temple, which Hancock says is a very shaky premise. The third proof is that the face of the Sphinx is thought to resemble a statue of Khafre.These are the so-called facts that Egyptologists used to determine the sphinx builders. They are flimsy at best and are definitely not smoking guns. Any layman knows that if this evidence were presented in a criminal case, it would be thrown out of court....

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