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Great Sphinx of Giza
Monument at Giza Pyramids · also called Sphinx, The Sphinx, Abu el-Hol, Abu al-Hol, Horemakhet
The Great Sphinx carries no inscription of its own, but between its paws stands the Dream Stela of Thutmose IV, the most famous text at Giza. It tells how the Sphinx, as the god Horemakhet, promised a prince the throne.
The Sphinx was carved from the bedrock, probably for Khafre c. 2520 BC, beside his causeway and valley temple. No text of that time names it. In the New Kingdom, more than a thousand years later, it was worshipped as the sun god Horemakhet, 'Horus in the horizon'.
Around 1400 BC Thutmose IV cleared the sand from it and set up a granite stela between its paws. The text tells how, as a prince, he slept in the Sphinx's shadow and the god promised him the kingship if he freed it from the sand. Visitors see it from the viewing area.
What to see and read
The Dream Stela
Its rounded top shows Thutmose IV twice, offering to the Sphinx under a winged sun disc. The dream story runs in lines below. Its lower part is worn and broken.
A lost name
An early copy showed the syllable 'Khaf' in a damaged line, sometimes read as part of Khafre's name. That part has since flaked away, and its meaning is debated.
Names you can find here
Signs to look for
- Falcon G5ḥr The falcon (Horus) begins Horemakhet, the Sphinx's name on the Dream Stela.
- Sun over a mountain N27ꜣḫt The sun over a mountain (akhet, 'horizon') ends the same name.
- Scarab beetle L1ḫpr The scarab (kheper) sits in Thutmose IV's cartouche, Menkheperure.
- Cartouche V10 The cartouches of Thutmose IV are repeated in the scene at the top.
Reading the hieroglyphs here
- Bring a zoom, then crop the photo before reading it in Hiero Lens.
- Start with the cartouches at the top: they are larger and better kept than the lines below.
Point your camera at a wall Hiero Lens boxes the signs and names them, on your phone; nothing is uploaded. On worn stone, trace a sign over the photo.
Questions
Are there hieroglyphs on the Sphinx?
The Sphinx itself has no ancient inscription. Readable texts stand in front of it, above all the Dream Stela, which you can photograph from the viewing area with a zoom.
What did the ancient Egyptians call the Sphinx?
In the New Kingdom, Horemakhet, 'Horus in the horizon'. Its name in Khafre's time is not known.
Also at Giza Pyramids
Great Pyramid of Khufu
The Great Pyramid, built for Khufu c. 2560 BC, has no ancient texts in the rooms visitors see. Its writing is hidden: workers' marks with Khufu's name above the King's Chamber, and a hieroglyphic text from 1842 above the entrance.
MonumentTomb of Meresankh III
The rock-cut chapel of Queen Meresankh III, granddaughter of Khufu and wife of Khafre, has the best-kept painted hieroglyphs at Giza. Her names and titles fill the walls, and a text at the door records when she died and when she was buried.
Where it is
Open in OpenStreetMap · Written from published sources and not yet checked on site by our team: displays and open tombs change.