the great sphinix
The largest and most famous sphinx is the
Great Sphinx of Giza, situated on the
Giza Plateau adjacent to the
Great Pyramids of Giza on the west bank of the
Nile River and facing east (
29°58′31″N 31°08′15″E). The sphinx is located southeast of the pyramids. While the date of its construction is not known for certain, the general consensus among Egyptologists is that the head of the Great Sphinx bears the likeness of the pharaoh
Khafre, dating it to between 2600 and 2500 BC. However, a fringe minority of late 20th century geologists have claimed evidence of water erosion in and around the Sphinx enclosure which would prove that the Sphinx predates Khafre, at around 10,000 to 5000 BC, a claim that is sometimes referred to as the
Sphinx water erosion hypothesis but which has little support among Egyptologists and contradicts other evidence.