Egyptian archaeologists have discovered a 3400-year-old enclosure wall around Giza's Sphinx, presumably erected to protect the celebrated landmark from desert winds. It was probably one of the earliest tries at architectural conservation.
According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Culture, two sections of the enclosure wall were discovered, one 86 metres long and 75 cm high and the other 46 metres long and 90 cm high. In the statement, Supreme Council for Antiquities Secretary-General Zahi Hawass said the enclosure had been part of the wall currently located on the north side of the Sphinx to protect the monument from wind erosion. The wall was uncovered in the area located in front of King Khafre’s valley temple on the Giza plateau.
The wall was built by the pharaoh Thutmose IV (reigned c. 1401-1391 BC) who had a dream in which the Sphinx told him it was choking on sand. The Sphinx itself was probably built during the reign of the pharaoh Khafra (c. 2558-2532 BC), who also built one of the nearby pyramids at Giza.
Hawass said, "According to ancient Egyptian texts the construction of this wall was the result of a dream which Thuthmose had after a long hunting trip in Wadi El-Ghezlan (Deer Valley), an area next to the Sphinx. In the king’s dream, the Sphinx asked the king to move the sand away from his body because it choked him. For this favor, the Sphinx promised to make Thutmose IV King of Egypt. To accomplish this task, Thuthmose IV removed the sand that had partially buried the Sphinx and built an enclosure wall to preserve it."
Hawass believes that this wall could be the remains of Khafre’s pyramid settlement, which was inhabited by priests and officials who oversaw the activities of the mortuary cult of Khafre. This cult began at the king’s death and continued until the eighth dynasty (c. 2143-2134 BC), which was the end of the Old Kingdom.
The Great Sphinx is part of Memphis and its Necropolis – the Pyramid Fields from Giza to Dahshur, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.
