Excavating the Sphinx, 1867
In 1960, part of Khafre’s pyramid complex was found by archeologist and Egyptologist, Auguste Mariette. The picture, taken some time between 1867 and 1899 shows the partial excavation of his finding. The Great Sphinx of Giza is a limestone statue of a creature called a sphinx. The mythical beast which was thought to represent the pharaoh Khafra has the body of a lion and the head of a human.
It is located on the Giza Plateau on the western bank of the Nile River in Giza, Egypt. The sphinx is the oldest known monument in Egypt and is believed by many to be built by the ancient Egyptians between 2558 – 2532 BC.