Why is Sphinx nose missing?

In 1378 CE, Egyptian peasants made offerings to the Great Sphinx in the hope of controlling the flood cycle, which would result in a successful harvest. Outraged by this blatant show of devotion, Sa'im al-Dahr destroyed the nose and was later executed for vandalism. Whether this is absolute fact is still debatable.



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Whereas the body has suffered the most erosion, the face has also been damaged, and its nose is notably missing.

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A number of shafts or tunnels are known to exist within or below the body of Great Sphinx at Giza. Zahi Hawass (pictured here) approaches a small square lid of a shaft (shaft C), believed to have been dug by treasure hunters at some point in antiquity.

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Egyptologists believe the Sphinx to be approximately 4500 years old.

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Archaeologists in Egypt have unearthed a sphinx statue “with a smiley face and two dimples” near the Hathor Temple, one of the country's best-preserved ancient sites, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities (MoTA) has announced. It is the latest in a series of discoveries revealed over the past few months.

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Some tourists planning a Great Sphinx of Giza tour wonder if you can go inside og the Great Sphinx enclosure. It is possible, but only during our tour of the Giza Pyramids and Sphinx.

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More likely is that the head became smaller because it had been re-carved from the weathered remains of a larger original.

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Robert Schoch notes that for centuries, starting in the period of the New Kingdom and throughout Roman times, the Great Sphinx of Giza was considered to have been built before the Pyramids. Oral traditions of villagers who live in the Giza area date the Sphinx to 5000 b.c., before Khafre's time.

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