All language subtitles for Unearthed Secret History of the Sphinx 720p

Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF EGYPT,

MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS OLD,

AND PERHAPS THE MOST
ICONIC STATUE IN THE WORLD.

NEVER HAD EGYPT SEEN
SCULPTURE ON SUCH A SCALE.

Narrator: THIS HUMAN-HEADED LION
HAS PUZZLED ARCHAEOLOGISTS

FOR GENERATIONS.

WHAT WAS THE SPHINX FOR?

THE EGYPTIANS ACTUALLY THOUGHT

THAT THESE STATUES DID THINGS.

THEY HAD POWER.

Narrator: TODAY,
PIONEERING TECHNOLOGIES...

REVEAL NEW TRUTHS.

THERE'S NO SMOKING GUN.

THERE'S NO SIGNATURE
LEFT ON THE SPHINX,

BUT THERE ARE CLUES.

Narrator: TO UNRAVEL
THE MYSTERY OF THE SPHINX,

WE WILL VENTURE DEEP INSIDE
THIS ASTONISHING MONUMENT.

WE WILL EXPLORE
ITS EXTRAORDINARY TEMPLES

AND INVESTIGATE
ITS ABANDONED WATERWAYS

TO REVEAL THE HIDDEN SECRETS

AT THE HEART
OF THIS ANCIENT WONDER.

¶¶

-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com

CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA SITS

IN THE OUTSKIRTS
OF MODERN-DAY CAIRO.

IT APPEARS TO GUARD

AN ANCIENT COMPLEX
OF TEMPLES AND PYRAMIDS.

THESE TOWERING MONUMENTS
WERE BUILT AS TOMBS

FOR THE GREAT KINGS OF EGYPT.

WE KNOW WHICH PHARAOH
EACH PYRAMID WAS BUILT FOR,

BECAUSE THE EGYPTIANS LEFT
PLENTY OF CLUES BEHIND.

THE PYRAMIDS ARE MORE OBVIOUS.

THEY SEEM TO BE
COLOSSAL, GIGANTIC TOMBS

TO THE DECEASED PHARAOH.

WE KNOW THAT FROM TEXTS.

WE DON'T HAVE THOSE TEXTS
FOR THE SPHINX,

SO WE HAVE TO GO ON CONTEXT
INSTEAD OF HIEROGLYPHICS.

Narrator: THE IDENTITY

OF THE PHARAOH
THAT BUILT THE SPHINX

IS ONE OF THE MOST ENDURING
MYSTERIES IN EGYPTOLOGY.

TODAY, INVESTIGATORS USE
NEW FORENSIC TECHNIQUES...

AND MAPPING TECHNOLOGY

TO SEE THE SPHINX
AS THEY NEVER HAVE BEFORE.

THE HEAD OF THE SPHINX IS BIGGER

THAN THE HEAD
OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY.

IT'S CARVED FROM LAYERS
OF ANCIENT LIMESTONE

AND TOWERS 65 FEET
ABOVE THE DESERT SAND.

IT HAS A MASSIVE BODY,

AS LONG AS A JUMBO JET.

AND UNDER HUNDREDS
OF PROTECTIVE LIMESTONE TILES...

...ITS GIGANTIC PAWS STRETCH OUT
LONGER THAN A CITY BUS.

BUT SURPRISINGLY,

THE STEEP-SIDED HOLLOW THAT
THE SPHINX SITS IN

OFFERS THE BEST CLUE
TO WHO BUILT IT.

EGYPTOLOGIST MARK LEHNER
BELIEVES THE EGYPTIANS DUG DOWN

TO CREATE THE SPHINX,

REMOVING THOUSANDS
OF TONS OF STONE

TO SHAPE THE STATUE'S
MASSIVE BODY.

TODAY, THE STEEP-SIDED PIT WALLS
THAT SURROUND THE SPHINX

STILL BEAR THE ANCIENT SCARS

OF THIS MAMMOTH EXCAVATION.

Lehner: YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE
WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE.

THIS ENTIRE VOLUME OF QUARRY
WAS BEING WORKED.

BLOCKS WERE BEING TAKEN AWAY
IN THE FORM OF, YOU KNOW,

MASSIVE STONES,
100 TONS IN WEIGHT.

Narrator: MARK BELIEVES
FINDING THESE QUARRIED STONES

IS THE KEY TO REVEALING
WHO BUILT THE SPHINX.

HE SUSPECTS THE BLOCKS
DIDN'T GO FAR.

THESE RUINS THAT SIT
AT THE PAWS OF THE SPHINX

WERE ONCE LAVISH TEMPLES

BUILT BY THE GREAT
PHARAOH KHAFRE.

MARK IS CONVINCED
THE SAME PHARAOH

CREATED BOTH THE SPHINX
AND THE TEMPLES

AT THE SAME TIME.

I THINK THEY MUST'VE TAKEN
THE STONE FROM THE QUARRY

THAT MADE THE SPHINX

AND MOVED THEM DIRECTLY
TO THE FRONT

FOR MAKING THE TEMPLE.

Narrator: TO PROVE HIS THEORY,
MARK NEEDS HARD EVIDENCE.

HE COMPARES THE DISTINCT LAYERS
THAT RUN THROUGH BOTH

THE TEMPLE STONES
AND THE CHEST OF THE SPHINX,

HOPING TO FIND A PERFECT MATCH.

Lehner: IF YOU LOOK AT
THE BEDROCK BODY OF THE SPHINX,

FOR EXAMPLE, ITS CHEST,
YOU SEE THE SAME LAYERING,

THE SAME SOFT, HARD, SOFT,
HARD SEQUENCE

THAT WE SEE RUNNING THROUGH

THE MASSIVE STONES
OF THE SPHINX TEMPLE.

Narrator: THESE
DISTINCTIVE BENDS

THAT RUN THROUGH BOTH STRUCTURES

ARE NATURAL LAYERS,

FORMED LONG BEFORE
THE EGYPTIANS CAME TO POWER.

MORE THAN 50 MILLION YEARS AGO,

GIZA WAS A WARM, TROPICAL LAGOON

TEEMING WITH LIFE.

DEAD CREATURES COLLECTED
ON THE SEAFLOOR...

AND TRANSFORMED INTO
DISTINCT LAYERS OF LIMESTONE.

AS EARTH'S CLIMATE CHANGED,
THE SEAS RETREATED,

LEAVING BEHIND AN OPEN SPACE

WITHOUT CROPS OF LIMESTONE.

MARK BELIEVES THAT
MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO,

THE EGYPTIANS CUT AWAY
THIS LAYERED ROCK

TO FORM THE SPHINX.

MARK WORKS WITH FOSSIL EXPERT
RICHARD REDDING

TO SEARCH
FOR GEOLOGICAL SIGNATURES

HIDDEN WITHIN THE STONE BLOCKS.

THE THICKNESS OF THE
DIFFERENT COLORED LAYERS

AND THE TYPES OF FOSSILS
THEY CONTAIN

GIVE EACH BLOCK
A UNIQUE FINGERPRINT.

WHAT DO YOU SEE
IN THERE, RICHARD,

IN THIS YELLOW MARLY BAND?

Redding: WELL,
IT'S A LOT OF FOSSILS.

YOU DO HAVE A NUMBER HERE.

HERE. OH, RIGHT HERE.

THAT'S A SPINY OYSTER SHELL,
RIGHT THERE.

AND WE'VE GOT BUNCH
OF NUMMULITES,

THESE COIN-SHAPED THINGS.

THERE'S...

Narrator: AFTER YEARS OF WORK,

MARK NOW HAS
A UNIQUE FINGERPRINT

FOR EVERY BLOCK
IN THIS TEMPLE.

TO SHOW THE TEMPLE
AND THE SPHINX WERE BUILT

AT THE SAME TIME,
BY THE SAME PHARAOH,

HE HOPES TO MATCH
THE TEMPLE STONES

BACK TO THE LOCATIONS
THEY WERE CUT FROM

AROUND THE SPHINX.

FIRST, MARK COMPARES
THE THICKNESS OF THE LAYERS

TO SEE IF HE CAN FIND
A PERFECT MATCH

WITH ANY OF THE TEMPLE BLOCKS.

YEAH, 15.75.

Narrator:
THE LAYERS ARE A GOOD MATCH,

BUT TO SEAL THE DEAL,

RICHARD LOOKS TO SEE
IF THE FOSSILS MATCH, TOO.

Redding: THAT IS ANOTHER
SPINY OYSTER.

SPINY OYSTER, WHICH MATCHES
PERFECTLY OUR BLOCK DOWN THERE.

YOU'VE GOT A LOT
OF THE SMALL NUMMULITES,

HARDLY ANY OF
THE LARGE NUMMULITES.

SO, YEAH, THIS IS A --
THIS FOSSIL COMMUNITY IS VERY,

VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT
WE WERE LOOKING AT DOWN

AT THE SPHINX TEMPLE.

SO IT'S
A GOOD MATCH.

Narrator:
THERE IS STILL WORK TO DO,

BUT THESE FINDINGS SUGGEST
THAT MARK'S THEORY IS CORRECT.

EVERY STONE IN THE TEMPLE
WAS ORIGINALLY QUARRIED

FROM THE SIDES
OF THE GIANT LION.

USING THIS MYTHOLOGICAL
APPROACH,

MARK BELIEVES HE CAN MATCH EACH

AND EVERY BLOCK IN THE TEMPLES

TO THEIR ORIGINAL POSITION
INSIDE THE SPHINX ENCLOSURE.

TWO BLOCKS FROM THE FRONT WALL
OF THE TEMPLE

MATCH THE MID-CHEST
OF THE SPHINX.

THE GEOLOGICAL LAYERS
AND THE FOSSILS INSIDE THEM

ARE THE SAME.

MORE BLOCKS FROM THE TEMPLE
PERFECTLY ALIGN

WITH THE FLOOR
OF THE SPHINX ENCLOSURE.

AND THE MATCHES
KEEP ON COMING --

LAYER AFTER LAYER OF STONE...

COMPLETELY FILLING THE QUARRY.

IDENTIFYING THE SOURCE
OF THESE TEMPLE BLOCKS

PROVIDES IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCE

OF WHICH PHARAOH
BUILT THIS MONUMENT.

Lehner: SO IF KHAFRE BUILT
THE SPHINX TEMPLE,

IT HAD TO HAVE BEEN KHAFRE
WHO MADE THE SPHINX,

BECAUSE THEY WERE PART
OF THE SAME PROCESS.

Narrator: INSPIRED
BY THE COLOSSAL PYRAMIDS

OF HIS PREDECESSORS,

KHAFRE SEEMED DETERMINED
TO GO ONE BETTER.

HE NOT ONLY BUILT
A HUGE PYRAMID,

BUT A GIANT STATUE
THAT HISTORIANS BELIEVED

WAS CARVED WITH AN IMAGE
OF HIS OWN FACE.

BUT WHY DID THE GREAT
PHARAOH KHAFRE DECIDE

TO PLACE HIS LIKENESS

ON THE BODY OF A GIANT LION?

NEW TECHNOLOGIES MAY BE
ABOUT TO REVEAL...

THE ASTONISHING TRUTH.

¶¶

Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA --

THIS ANCIENT SCULPTURE
IS UNSURPASSED

IN ITS SCALE AND AMBITION.

Lehner: NEVER BEFORE HAD
ANYTHING LIKE THIS

BEEN SEEN IN EGYPT.

NO COLOSSAL STATUE THIS SIZE,

THIS SCALE EXISTED.

Narrator: EGYPTIAN STONE MASONS

CUT THE SPHINX
FROM LIMESTONE BEDROCK

MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO,

MOST LIKELY TO HONOR
THE GREAT PHARAOH KHAFRE.

HISTORIANS BELIEVE THE HUMAN
FEATURES OF THE SPHINX

ARE A DIRECT LIKENESS
OF THE PHARAOH HIMSELF.

BUT OVER THOUSANDS OF YEARS,
THE HARSH DESERT WIND

HAS SANDBLASTED KHAFRE'S
CARVED FEATURES AWAY,

LEAVING JUST A FEW
TANTALIZING CLUES

AS TO HOW THE SCULPTURE
ORIGINALLY LOOKED.

THE DEEP CUTS IN THE FACE
ARE CHISEL MARKS LEFT BY VANDALS

WHO CHOPPED OFF THE NOSE.

BASED ON OTHER STATUES
OF THE TIME,

THIS IS WHAT THE NOSE
MAY HAVE LOOKED LIKE.

STONE FRAGMENTS FOUND
BETWEEN THE PAWS ARE CLUES

THAT THE SPHINX HAD A BEARD.

TRACES OF PAINT BEHIND THE EARS

COULD MEAN THAT IT USED
TO WEAR HEAVY MAKEUP

AND WHAT LOOKS LIKE HAIR

IS ACTUALLY A REGAL HEADDRESS...

FRAMING THE IMMORTAL FACE

OF THE GOD KING KHAFRE HIMSELF.

BUT ONE BIG QUESTION
REMAINS UNANSWERED.

WHY DID KHAFRE PUT HIS FACE
ON THE BODY OF A LION?

THE ANCIENT WORLD HAD NEVER SEEN

AN ANIMAL-HUMAN HYBRID
QUITE LIKE IT BEFORE.

USUALLY STATUES
IN ANCIENT EGYPT ARE

COMPRISING A HUMAN BODY
WITH AN ANIMAL HEAD,

SO THEY'RE USUALLY
THAT WAY ROUND,

RATHER THAN IN THE CASE
OF THE SPHINX,

WHERE WE'VE GOT A LION'S BODY

WITH KHAFRE'S HUMAN HEAD ON TOP.

EGYPTOLOGIST LIDIJA McKNIGHT
BELIEVES CATS HAD

SPECIAL RELIGIOUS MEANING
TO THE EGYPTIANS

AND THAT PERHAPS
KHAFRE PUT HIS HEAD ON A LION

TO IMPRESS HIS CAT-MAD PEOPLE.

LIDIJA LOOKS FOR EVIDENCE
OF THIS CAT OBSESSION

IN TINY MUMMIES LIKE THIS,

COMMONLY UNEARTHED
IN EGYPTIAN DIGS.

WE'VE BROUGHT
A MUMMIFIED ANIMAL

FROM MANCHESTER
MUSEUM'S COLLECTIONS,

BECAUSE WE BELIEVE IT
TO BE THE MUMMY OF A CAT.

Narrator: TODAY, LIDIJA WANTS
TO CONFIRM THE CONTENTS

OF THIS TIGHTLY WRAPPED PACKAGE

AND GET SOME IDEA
OF HOW THE ANIMAL DIED.

SHE WANTS TO KNOW
IF THE DEATH WAS NATURAL

OR IF THE EGYPTIANS WERE
KILLING ANIMALS TO ORDER.

WE BROUGHT IT HERE TODAY
TO USE NONINVASIVE,

RADIOGRAPHIC METHODS,

WHICH ARE USUALLY USED
TO SCAN LIVING PATIENTS,

JUST TO CHECK WHAT'S
GOING ON ON THE INSIDE

IN A NONDESTRUCTIVE WAY.

Narrator: FIRST, LIDIJA NEEDS
TO CHECK IF IT REALLY IS A CAT

INSIDE THE ANCIENT DRESSINGS.

SHE HUNTS FOR TELL-TALE SIGNS
THAT THE SKELETON IS FELINE.

USUALLY, WE IDENTIFY A CAT
FROM THE SKULL AND THE TEETH,

SO THE SHAPE OF THE SCULL,
THE TEETH,

AND THE LIMB BONES
TO THE LEGS.

BUT WE'VE GOT WHAT APPEARS TO BE
FOUR LIMBS IN THE POSITION

WE WOULD EXPECT TO FIND THEM.

Narrator: THE ANCIENT SKULL
OF THIS SPECIMEN

IS BADLY DAMAGED,

BUT THE LEGS ARE INTACT

AND FOLDED UP
UNDERNEATH THE BODY.

YOU CAN SEE QUITE NICELY
THE PAWS HERE,

SO THIS IS ONE OF YOUR
FRONT LIMBS AND THE PAW.

WE'VE GOT WHAT APPEARS TO BE A
COMPLETE CAT SKELETON IN THERE.

Narrator: LIDIJA ALSO SEARCHES
FOR THIN, CLEAR LINES

THAT RUN HORIZONTALLY
ACROSS THE TOP OF THE LEG BONES.

THIS WILL TELL HER HOW OLD
THE CAT WAS WHEN IT DIED.

THESE LINES ARE GROWTH PLATES

AND THEY'RE ONLY FOUND
IN JUVENILE ANIMALS.

THE PROMINENT GROWTH PLATES
ON THIS SPECIMEN

CAN MEAN ONLY ONE THING.

McKnight: SO, IT WAS
AN IMMATURE KITTEN

AT THE TIME OF DEATH.

Narrator: THE FACT THAT
THIS KITTEN DIED

BEFORE THE END
OF ITS NATURAL LIFE

SUGGESTS IT WAS NOT
A BELOVED PET.

IT WAS AN ANIMAL BRED
IN CAPTIVITY FOR ONE PURPOSE --

TO BE SLAUGHTERED AND MUMMIFIED

AS AN OFFERING TO THE CAT GODS.

McKnight: RESEARCH ESTIMATES
THAT AROUND 10 MILLION CATS

WOULD'VE BEEN MUMMIFIED
AS VOTIVE OFFERINGS

DURING THIS 1,000-YEAR
TIME PERIOD,

SO WE REALLY ARE LOOKING
AT A MASSIVE SCALE INDUSTRY.

Narrator: THE EGYPTIAN PEOPLE
CLEARLY THOUGHT CATS WERE

AN IMPORTANT LINK TO THEIR GODS

AND BY PUTTING HIS IMAGE
ON THE BODY OF A LION,

KHAFRE MIGHT HAVE
FOUND MANY ADMIRERS.

BUT LIDIJA THINKS THAT
THE PHARAOH'S MOTIVATION

STRETCHED FAR BEYOND
MERE POPULARITY.

WE BELIEVE THAT THE PHARAOHS
LIKED TO IMPLY THAT

THEY WERE ALMOST GODS ON EARTH,

THAT THEY HAD
THE POWER OF A GOD,

BUT IN LIVING HUMAN FORM.

Narrator: DID KHAFRE WANT
TO BE SEEN AS A GOD?

IS THAT WHY HE PUT HIS HEAD
ON ONE OF THE ANIMALS

HIS SUBJECTS
CONSIDERED MOST HOLY?

KHAFRE WANTED TO SHOW
HIS DOMINANCE AND POWER,

OVER NOT ONLY
THE PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE

IN WHICH THE STATUE STANDS,

BUT ALSO OVER THE PEOPLE
OF EGYPT DURING HIS REIGN.

Narrator: TO IMPRESS HIS PEOPLE,
KHAFRE ORDERED THE CONSTRUCTION

OF THE BIGGEST STATUE
IN EGYPTIAN HISTORY.

BUT THERE WAS A PROBLEM.

NO ANIMAL CARVING THIS BIG
HAD EVER BEEN ATTEMPTED BEFORE.

TO ACHIEVE IT, MARK LEHNER
THINKS THE EGYPTIAN CRAFTSMEN

MUST'VE LEARNED HOW TO EXPLOIT
THE NATURAL LAYERS OF THE ROCK.

WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT THE LAYERS
IN THE SPHINX QUARRY

WHERE THEY CUT THE BLOCK.

BUT IT ALL TELLS YOU
THAT THE EGYPTIANS

WERE GOOD GEOLOGISTS
IN THEIR OWN RIGHT.

THEY USED THE GEOLOGY
AND THE LAYERS

TO THEIR ADVANTAGE,
THAT'S FOR SURE.

Narrator: MARK'S INVESTIGATION
SUGGESTS THAT THE EGYPTIANS

WOULD POUND TRENCHES
INTO THE BEDROCK

TO FORM A GRID OF DEEP CHANNELS

AND EXPOSE
THE LAYERS OF LIMESTONE.

THEY DROVE WOODEN WEDGES
BETWEEN THE LAYERS

TO SPLIT THEM WITH EASE

AND LIFT OUT PERFECT
BUILDING BLOCKS.

AS THEY EXCAVATED THE ROCKS,

THEY CARVED OUT THE ROUGH
SHAPE OF THE SPHINX

AND RECYCLED THE SPOIL
TO BUILD THE TEMPLES.

FINALLY, AN ARMY OF STONE MASONS
USED COPPER CHISELS...

TO ADD THE DETAIL
OF THE PHARAOH'S FACE

AND LION'S BODY.

Lehner: THE COMBINATION
OF THE HUMAN HEAD

WITH THE LION BODY SYMBOLIZES
SUPREME STRENGTH AND POWER.

AS IN MANY CULTURES,
THE LION IS THE SYMBOL,

IS THE KING OF THE BEASTS.

AND YET, THE BEAST IS CONTROLLED
BY HUMAN INTELLIGENCE,

INDEED, THE INTELLIGENCE
OF PHARAOH HIMSELF.

Narrator: BUT WAS THE SPHINX
SIMPLY DESIGNED

TO INSPIRE RELIGIOUS AWE
IN THE KING'S SUBJECTS

OR DID IT HAVE AN EVEN MORE
ELABORATE PURPOSE?

SOME HISTORIANS NOW BELIEVE
THE SPHINX MAY HAVE BEEN PART

OF A SUPERNATURAL MACHINE,

A MACHINE
TO RESURRECT THE DEAD.

Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX --

AN EGYPTIAN CARVING
MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS OLD.

IT'S POSSIBLE
THIS HUGE STONE ANIMAL

WAS BUILT TO IMPRESS

THE PHARAOH'S
CAT-OBSESSED PEOPLE.

BUT EGYPTOLOGIST MARK LEHNER
SUSPECTS THAT THE SPHINX

WAS ALSO PART OF SOMETHING
MORE MYSTERIOUS --

THE GROWTH
OF A STRANGE NEW CULT.

HE SEARCHES FOR EVIDENCE OF THIS

IN THE TEMPLE
AT THE FRONT OF THE SPHINX.

THE SPHINX TEMPLE
IS A BIT OF A MYSTERY,

BECAUSE IT WAS STRIPPED
OF ALL ITS OUTER CLADDING,

YOU KNOW, THE CASING
OF THE WALLS, THE PILLARS,

EVERYTHING THAT WOULD'VE
HAD AN INSCRIPTION,

THAT MIGHT HAVE SAID
SOMETHING DIRECTLY

ABOUT WHAT THE TEMPLE WAS FOR.

Narrator: BUT DESPITE BEING
PILFERED AND VANDALIZED,

THERE ARE JUST ENOUGH CLUES

TO SHOW HOW THIS TEMPLE
COULD'VE LOOKED

4,500 YEARS AGO.

ON THE OUTSIDE,

A FACADE OF EXQUISITE GRANITE

SHIPPED IN FROM ASWAN.

IN THE HALLWAYS STOOD
24 MASSIVE PILLARS

TO MARK THE HOURS
OF THE EGYPTIAN DAY.

AT THE HEART OF THE TEMPLE
WERE TWO SANCTUARIES

ALIGNED TO THE EAST AND WEST

AND A GLEAMING COURTYARD
OF ALABASTER TILES

SURROUNDED
BY 10 MYSTERIOUS STATUES.

WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE
OF THIS LOST TEMPLE?

THE SPHINX TEMPLE IS OFFLINE
WITH THE SPHINX,

SHIFTED SLIGHTLY TO THE LEFT.

MARK BELIEVES THAT
THIS APPARENT MISTAKE

WAS ACTUALLY DELIBERATE.

COULD IT BE THE KEY
TO DECODING THE SECRETS

OF THIS STRANGE RUIN?

THE CURIOUS THING IS
THAT THE AXIS OF THE TEMPLE

DOES NOT AIM
DIRECTLY AT THE SPHINX.

IT'S AS THOUGH THE SPHINX
IS SHOVED TO THE NORTH

AND THE AXIS OF THE TEMPLE
POINTS PAST IT,

UP THE WESTERN HORIZON.

Narrator: ONE OTHER FEATURE
OF THE TEMPLE LAYOUT

MIGHT BE A CLUE TO WHAT
THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS

WERE AIMING THE AXIS TOWARDS.

Lehner: THESE TWO SANCTUARIES,

WHICH ARE
IN THE FORM OF RECESSED BAYS

AND SMALL NICHES,
DEFINE THE TEMPLE AXIS.

IT'S VERY COMPELLING
TO THINK THAT

THAT'S FOR THE RISING SUN
ON THE EAST

AND THE SETTING SUN ON THE WEST.

Narrator: MARK BELIEVES
THE EGYPTIAN MASTER BUILDERS

WOULD NOT HAVE DONE
THIS ACCIDENTALLY.

HE THINKS THEY DELIBERATELY
POINTED THE TEMPLE AXIS

AT THE SPOT ON THE HORIZON

WHERE THE SUN WOULD SET
AT A SPECIAL TIME OF YEAR.

THE SPHINX TEMPLE
IS ORIENTED ON THIS AXIS

SO THAT IT IS ALIGNED
TO THE SETTING OF THE SUN

AND THE RISING OF THE SUN
AT THE EQUINOXES.

Narrator: AS THE SUN SET
ON THE EQUINOX,

IT DROPPED DIRECTLY BEHIND
THE SHOULDER OF THE SPHINX

AND THE SOUTH SIDE
OF KHAFRE'S PYRAMID.

THE SHAPES OF KHAFRE'S PYRAMID
AND HIS SPHINX

WOULD MERGE TO BECOME
ONE PERFECT SILHOUETTE.

Lehner: KHAFRE
AND HIS BUILDERS WERE

TRYING TO HARNESS
THE POWER OF THE SUN.

AND AFTER KHAFRE DIED,
HE HOPED THAT THIS ALIGNMENT

WOULD BE A KIND
OF RESURRECTION MACHINE.

HE WAS, IN EFFECT,
HITCHING HIMSELF

TO THE ETERNAL CYCLE OF THE SUN,

SO THAT HE, TOO,
WOULD RISE IN THE AFTERLIFE.

Narrator:
MARK BELIEVES THE TEMPLE

WAS PART OF A NEW CULT IN EGYPT

THAT WORSHIPPED THE SUN
AS A CENTRAL DEITY.

THIS IDEOLOGY WAS SET
TO DOMINATE EGYPTIAN RELIGION

FOR THE NEXT 2,000 YEARS.

MARK ALSO BELIEVES THAT

THE PRECISE POSITIONING
OF THE SPHINX TEMPLE

ALLOWED IT TO HARNESS THE POWER

OF ANOTHER
DIFFERENT SOLAR EVENT.

IF HE'S CORRECT,

ON THE YEAR'S LONGEST DAY,

THE SUMMER SOLSTICE,

AN OBSERVER
AT THE TEMPLE LOCATION

WOULD HAVE WITNESSED ANOTHER
AMAZING VISUAL EFFECT.

SETTING DIRECTLY BETWEEN
THE TWO GREAT PYRAMIDS,

THE SUN FORMED
AN ANCIENT HIEROGLYPH

REPRESENTING
THE ETERNAL CYCLE OF REBIRTH.

WITH THIS MONUMENTAL
ARCHITECTURE,

THEY WERE TRYING
TO HITCH THEMSELVES

TO THE POWER OF THE SUN.

WHY?

BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED THE KING

WAS LITERALLY
THE SON OF THE SUN.

AND HE NEEDED THE POWER
OF THE SUN FOR EFFECTIVE RULE

OVER ALL OF EGYPT

AND ALL ITS INHABITANTS.

Narrator: KHAFRE CHANGED
THE FACE OF EGYPTIAN HISTORY.

IN BUILDING THE SPHINX
AND THE TEMPLES AT ITS FEET,

HE HELPED ADVANCE AN ERA
OF SUN WORSHIP IN EGYPT

THAT WOULD LAST
FOR THE NEXT TWO MILLENNIA.

IT IS INCREDIBLE TO THINK
HOW THE FOURTH DYNASTY EGYPTIANS

ALIGNED THESE
MASSIVE MONUMENTS --

THE TEMPLES, THE SPHINX,

AND THE GIGANTIC PYRAMIDS
OF THEIR TIME.

Narrator: ALTHOUGH
INVESTIGATORS HAVE SOLVED

THE MYSTERY OF THE TEMPLES,

SOME OTHER FEATURES
OF THE SPHINX COMPLEX

ARE HARDER TO EXPLAIN.

AT THE FRONT OF THE TEMPLES
ARE TWO STONE PATHWAYS

THAT LOOK JUST LIKE
A MODERN DOCKSIDE SLIPWAY.

WHAT ARE THESE
WATERSIDE FEATURES

DOING HERE,
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT?

Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX
AND ITS TEMPLES --

PART OF AN EGYPTIAN
BURIAL COMPLEX

COVERING 500 ACRES.

THIS ANCIENT MULTIPLEX
SLOPES GENTLY DOWNHILL

TOWARDS THE SPHINX,

WHERE IT ABRUPTLY ENDS

WITH TWO MYSTERIOUS
STONE PATHWAYS.

ANCIENT RAMPS SIMILAR TO THESE

HAVE BEEN FOUND AT THE EDGE
OF OLD EGYPTIAN HARBORS,

BUT WHAT ARE THESE RAMPS
DOING FIVE MILES AWAY

FROM THE NEAREST WATER?

EGYPTOLOGISTS BELIEVE THAT
CLUES TO THIS MYSTERY

LIE HIDDEN
IN AN UNUSUAL LAYER OF MUD

DEEP BELOW THE PATHWAYS.

LIFTING THESE STRANGE
STONE STRUCTURES

OUT OF THE SAND

REVEALS THAT THEY STRETCH

100 FEET FROM THE TEMPLE.

THEY SLOPE DOWNHILL,

HUGGING THE TERRAIN PRECISELY.

TOWARDS THE END,
THE GROUND THEY SIT IN CHANGES.

HIDDEN IN THE SAND IS
A MYSTERIOUS LAYER

OF BLACK SLUDGE

NOT PRESENT ANYWHERE ELSE
AROUND THE TEMPLES.

THIS IS A CLUE THAT THESE RAMPS

ONCE SERVED A PURPOSE

WE CAN NO LONGER SEE TODAY.

EGYPTOLOGISTS BELIEVE
THAT THE DARK LAYER OF MUD

FOUND UNDER THE SPHINX SITE
COULD BE EVIDENCE

THAT THESE RAMPS WERE ONCE PART
OF A MAN-MADE HARBOR

FED BY THE RIVER NILE

LESS THAN TWO MILES TO THE EAST.

SO WE HAVE THESE RAMPS
AND THE QUESTION IS,

WHAT DO THEY LEAD TO?

WHERE ARE THEY GOING?

WELL, ONE OF THE MOST
REASONABLE EXPLANATIONS

IS THEY LEAD DOWN,
PROBABLY INTO MAYBE A HARBOR.

Narrator: TODAY, RICHARD REDDING
IS ON THE MODERN-DAY RIVER NILE.

HE WANTS TO LOOK
FOR THE SAME MUD

THAT ENDED UP BY THE SPHINX.

HE BELIEVES THIS MUD IS
CARRIED BY THE WATER

WHEN IT'S FLOWING...

BUT THEN SINKS TO THE BOTTOM
WHEN IT'S CALM.

Redding: WHAT WE'RE GOING
TO TRY AND DO HERE

IS LOOK OUT ON THE CALM AREAS
AROUND THE NILE,

FIND SOME SILT
IN THESE CALM AREAS

WHERE IT FALLS OUT NATURALLY

AND THAT WOULD BE
VERY SIMILAR TO THE PROCESS

OF FORMING A SILT LAYER

ON THE BOTTOM OF THIS HARBOR.

Narrator: RICHARD AIMS HIS BOAT

TOWARDS A CALM SECTION
OF THE NILE

TO PUT THIS THEORY TO THE TEST.

IF WE HEAD OVER TO
THE SHALLOWS OVER HERE,

WE CAN TAKE SOME SAMPLES

OF THE SILT
THAT LIE IN THE BOTTOM.

THERE'S NOT MUCH WATER MOVEMENT
OVER HERE.

IT'S FAIRLY CALM.

Narrator: HE USES
A HAND-OPERATED DRILLING TOOL

CALLED AN AUGER,

TO LIFT OUT SAMPLES OF MUD
FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER.

Redding: THIS IS ALMOST EXACTLY
WHAT I'D EXPECT

IN A GOOD NILE SILT
IN A CALM AREA.

SEE, THAT'LL -- THAT'LL --
RUBS ON MY FINGER HERE.

Narrator: THIS TYPE OF SILT
IS UNIQUE TO THE NILE,

BECAUSE OF THE RIVER'S SOURCE

MILES UPSTREAM
IN CENTRAL AFRICA.

Redding: THE SILT CAME DOWN
FROM THE ETHIOPIAN HIGHLANDS.

AND THAT SILT WAS BLACK.

IT WAS RICH IN MINERALS

THAT ARE DARK,
VOLCANIC MINERALS,

SO IT'S EXACTLY
WHAT I WOULD EXPECT.

Narrator: RICHARD BELIEVES

THE NILE MUD
AT THE BASE OF THE SPHINX

IS PROOF THAT THE EGYPTIANS

CONSTRUCTED
A SHELTERED HARBOR HERE.

IT GETS INTO THAT HARBOR,
WHICH IS KIND OF A CUL-DE-SAC,

YOU KNOW, A BAG AT THE END.

AND THE WATER HITS THERE,
RISES UP,

AND THEN STOPS,
AND IT CALMS DOWN.

AND AS IT CALMS,

ALL THAT SILT
THAT IT WAS CARRYING,

ALL THAT BLACK SILT,

ALL THAT NILE SILT
WILL JUST FALL TO THE BOTTOM

AND CREATE A COATING
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE HARBOR.

Narrator: RICHARD IS CONVINCED,

BUT WHY DID THE EGYPTIANS
GO TO ALL THIS TROUBLE

AND DIG SUCH A HUGE
ARTIFICIAL HARBOR?

ONE THEORY IS
THAT THE SPHINX'S RAMPS

WERE JUST ONE PART
OF A HUGE WATERFRONT COMPLEX,

SUPPLYING GOODS AND MATERIAL

FOR THE WHOLE
GIZA CONSTRUCTION SITE.

BOATS BROUGHT IN GRANITE BLOCKS
TO DECORATE THE PYRAMIDS,

TIMBER FOR BUILDING,

AND LIVE CATTLE
TO FEED THE ARMY OF LABORERS

WHO LIVED ON THE PLATEAU.

WHEN PHARAOH KHAFRE DIED,

THE WOODEN COFFIN
HOLDING HIS DEAD BODY

WOULD CROSS THESE WATERS
TO BEGIN HIS BURIAL CEREMONY

AND THE EGYPTIANS BELIEVED
THIS DIVINE PORT

ALLOWED THE GODS,
ON THEIR CELESTIAL BARGES,

TO VISIT THE SACRED TEMPLES
OF THE DECEASED PHARAOHS.

YOU COULD NOT HAVE BUILT
THE PYRAMIDS

WITHOUT WATER ACCESS.

YOU COULD NOT HAVE MOVED
THESE LARGE STONES

FROM WAYS ACROSS THE NILE,
OVER TO THE PYRAMIDS,

FROM ASWAN, THE RED GRANITE,

ALL THE WAY UP HERE.

ALL THESE MATERIALS HAD TO HAVE
BEEN MOVED BY WATER.

THEY COULD NOT HAVE BEEN
MOVED BY LAND.

IT WAS JUST CRITICAL THAT YOU
HAD THIS WATER TRANSPORT,

THIS WATER SYSTEM,

THIS WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
TO BUILD THE PYRAMIDS.

Narrator: THIS STONE GUARDIAN

ONCE STARED OUT
OVER GIZA'S BUSTLING HARBOR.

YET TODAY, KHAFRE'S FACE HAS ALL
BUT CRUMBLED TO THE FLOOR.

THIS COULD BE
NATURAL LEVELS OF EROSION,

BUT BIZARRELY,
THE SPHINX APPEARS

TO BE AGING FASTER

THAN THE PYRAMIDS
THAT SURROUND IT.

WHY?

AND HOW LONG DO HISTORIANS HAVE

BEFORE THERE'S NOTHING LEFT
TO STUDY?

Narrator: THE SPHINX
WATCHES OVER

THE MODERN EGYPTIAN LANDSCAPE.

IT HAS WITNESSED THE BIRTH
OF A MODERN AFRICAN COUNTRY,

SEEN CAIRO EXPAND ALL AROUND IT,

AND BECOME ONE OF THE WORLD'S

MOST VISITED
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS.

FOR MOST OF ITS LIFE,

THIS ANCIENT BEAST
HAS BEEN UNDER REPAIR.

THE SPHINX IS BEING EATEN AWAY
BY A MYSTERIOUS FORM

OF ACCELERATED EROSION

THAT DOESN'T SEEM
TO AFFECT THE NEARBY PYRAMIDS.

THE TILES THAT PROTECT
THE LOWER BODY

HAVE BEEN ADDED, REPAIRED,

AND REPLACED
FOR THE LAST 3,000 YEARS.

FROM THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS,
THROUGH THE ROMANS,

RIGHT UP TO MODERN TIMES.

IN THE 1920s,

FRENCH ENGINEERS REPAIRED

A HUGE CRACK IN THE BODY...

...PLUGGED UP A HOLE
IN ITS SCALP...

...AND FEARING THAT THE SPHINX
MIGHT LOSE ITS HEAD,

THEY PLASTERED HUGE CEMENT
BUTTRESSES AROUND THE NECK.

SAVING THE SPHINX IS
A BATTLE WITH TIME

THAT CONTINUES TO THIS VERY DAY.

WHY IS THE SPHINX
ERODING AWAY SO QUICKLY,

WHILE THE NEARBY PYRAMIDS
SIT UNAFFECTED?

MARK AND RICHARD WANT
TO FIND OUT.

Lehner: IT'S NOT JUST
THE RECENT TIME,

IT'S BEEN HERE
FOR 4,500 YEARS, SO...

Narrator: THEY CANNOT INSPECT
THE BODY OF THE MONUMENT,

BECAUSE MOST OF IT
IS NOW COVERED

IN A PROTECTIVE LAYER
OF LIMESTONE CLAY

AND NATURAL STONE TILES.

BUT ON THE QUARRY WALL
THAT SURROUNDS THE SPHINX,

THEY FIND EVIDENCE OF A UNIQUE

TYPE OF EROSION
THAT ATTACKS LIMESTONE.

WHAT YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND
IS THAT THIS PROCESS

AFFECTING THE QUARRY WALL

IS EXACTLY THE PROCESS

THAT IS STILL GOING ON
IN THE LION BODY OF THE SPHINX.

AND YOU CAN SEE THE FLAKES
ALL AROUND HERE

AND, BASICALLY,
WHAT THIS IS,

IS DISINTEGRATED BEDROCK.

YOU HAVE FLAKES
COMING OFF.

YOU GOT SOME CHUNKS
COMING OFF HERE.

YEAH.

Narrator: GEOLOGY EXPERT RICHARD

THINKS THAT WATER CARRIES SALT

TO THE SURFACE OF THE ROCK,

WHICH THEN HAS
A DEVASTATING EFFECT.

THE SALTS GET INTO EVERY PORE,
EVERY CRACK,

WHERE IT CRYSTALLIZES
AND THE EXPANDING CRYSTALS

HAVE A GREAT FORCE TO THEM,
AND IT ACTUALLY BREAKS THE ROCK

AND FORCES PIECES
TO COME OFF.

BUT IN A COUNTRY
WHERE IT OFTEN DOESN'T RAIN

FOR MONTHS AT A TIME,

WHERE IS THIS WATER COMING FROM?

AND WHY IS IT NOT AFFECTING
THE GREAT PYRAMIDS

IN THE SAME WAY?

CARVING THE SPHINX
OUT OF THE GROUND

MEANS IT SITS 130 FEET LOWER

THAN THE BOTTOM OF THE PYRAMIDS.

ITS BASE IS CLOSE
TO A LAYER OF UNDERGROUND WATER

THAT PUSHES MOISTURE UPWARDS.

THE POROUS LIMESTONE
IN THE SPHINX BODY

SUCKS UP THIS LIQUID,
LIKE A SPONGE,

WHICH THEN TURNS
THE SPHINX'S SKIN TO DUST.

UNLIKE THE PYRAMIDS,

THE SPHINX IS ALSO

DIRECTLY CONNECTED

TO THE ROCK BELOW.

Lehner: THE SPHINX IS NOT
A STATUE SITTING SEPARATE

OR EVEN A TEMPLE BUILT OUT
OF SEPARATE BLOCKS,

BUT THE SPHINX IS LITERALLY
PART OF THE ENVIRONMENT,

IT'S PART OF THE LIVING ROCK.

ALL THE NATURAL PROCESSES
THAT AFFECT THIS WALL HERE

ARE AFFECTING
THE SPHINX STATUE ITSELF.

Narrator: CARVING THE SPHINX
DIRECTLY OUT

OF THE LIMESTONE BEDROCK

MADE THIS GIANT STATUE POSSIBLE,

BUT MAY ALSO HAVE BEEN
ITS UNDOING.

ONE SOLUTION
TO STEM THE RISING DAM

WOULD BE TO CUT THE SPHINX
AWAY FROM THE BEDROCK.

HOWEVER, THE MONUMENT WEIGHS
THOUSANDS OF TONS

AND COULD BE TOO FRAGILE
FOR THIS SCHEME TO SUCCEED.

SO TODAY, ENGINEERS ARE APPLYING

A LAYER OF SPECIAL
LIMESTONE CLAY

CALLED CONSOLIDANT,

TO TRY AND SLOW DOWN
THE EROSION.

EVEN THESE DAYS,

THEY ARE HERE ON A REGULAR BASIS

TO TRY TO ARREST THIS PROCESS

AND SAVE THE FORM OF THE SPHINX.

Narrator: FOR CONSERVATORS,
IT IS A RACE AGAINST TIME

TO PROTECT THE SPHINX

BEFORE ITS ANCIENT STONE
IS LOST TO THE DESERT.

THE SPHINX AND ITS TEMPLES
WERE MOST LIKELY DESIGNED

TO KEEP THE GREAT PHARAOH'S
MEMORY ALIVE

THROUGH SUN-POWERED
RELIGIOUS RITUALS,

BUT THERE ARE PARTS
OF THE COMPLEX

THAT LOOK INCOMPLETE.

COMPELLING NEW EVIDENCE

SUGGESTS KHAFRE'S
GREAT RESURRECTION MACHINE...

MAY NEVER HAVE BEEN SWITCHED ON.

Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX
AND ITS TEMPLES

ARE SLOWLY GIVING UP
THEIR SECRETS.

THE EGYPTIANS BUILT THESE
MONUMENTAL STRUCTURES

FOR THE GREAT PHARAOH KHAFRE...

...DESIGNED TO ENSURE
HE WAS WORSHIPPED

AFTER HIS DEATH.

BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM.

SOME PARTS OF THE COMPLEX
AROUND THE SPHINX

APPEAR INCOMPLETE.

Lehner: THIS LEDGE TELLS ME

THEY NEVER
REALLY FINISHED THE JOB,

OF THE SPHINX
AND THE SPHINX TEMPLE.

Narrator: EGYPTOLOGIST
MARK LEHNER SUSPECTS

THE MEN CUTTING THIS WALL

ABANDONED THEIR WORK.

SEEN FROM THE AIR,

THE WALL
ON THE LEFT OF THE SPHINX

IS A STRAIGHT EDGE,

BUT THE WALL TO THE RIGHT

HAS A SUSPICIOUS
PROTRUDING LEDGE.

Lehner: SUDDENLY,
WE HAVE THIS HUGE SHELF

OF BEDROCK STICKING OUT.

THIS IS EXACTLY
WHERE THEY STOPPED.

AND THIS SUGGESTS TO ME

THAT THEY NEVER REALLY FINISHED

CUTTING THE SPHINX DITCH.

Narrator: MARK
AND FELLOW INVESTIGATOR RICHARD

HUNT FOR EVIDENCE
THAT THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS

HAD STARTED TO CUT
THIS PART OF THE WALL AWAY.

Lehner: PROBABLY THIS PATCH WAS
ONE PERSON'S ALLOTMENT

AND PROBABLY HE WAS
SQUATTED HERE.

MM-HMM.

AND HE'S POUNDING
WITH A HAMMERSTONE,

POSSIBLY A CHISEL,
NOW AND THEN.

AS MARK AND RICHARD
CLEAN THE AREA,

THEY FIND WHAT
THEY'RE LOOKING FOR --

EVIDENCE THAT THIS ROCKFACE
WAS STILL BEING WORKED ON

WHEN IT WAS ABANDONED.

THESE THREE CHANNELS
CUT INTO THE ROCK

COULD'VE BEEN CHISELED OUT
BY LABORERS --

PART OF A TECHNIQUE

FOR REMOVING THE STONE
MOST EFFICIENTLY.

Lehner: YOU CAN SEE THAT
HE CUT THESE CHANNELS,

PROBABLY WITH A PICK,

LEAVING THE GREAT HUMPS

THAT HE WOULD THEN WASTE AWAY
WITH A HEAVY HAMMERSTONE.

THERE MUST'VE BEEN
THREE DOZEN SUCH WORKERS,

EACH WITH THEIR OWN PATCH,

CLINK-A-CHENK, CLINK-A-CHENK,
WITH THEIR PICKS

AND THEN BLASTING THE HUMPS AWAY

WITH THEIR HAMMERSTONES

TO BRING THE LEDGE DOWN

TO THE LEVEL
OF THE SPHINX'S FLOOR.

IT MUST'VE BEEN QUITE A SCENE.

Narrator: BUT MARK IS CONVINCED
THESE EGYPTIAN WORKMEN

SUDDENLY WALKED OFF THE JOB
AND LEFT.

WHY?

Lehner: AND OUR BEST GUESS,
THAT THE REASON THEY STOPPED,

IS THAT KHAFRE DIED

AND A NEW KING CAME
TO THE THRONE

AND THEY HAD
TO START IMMEDIATELY

ON HIS PYRAMID COMPLEX.

THE RESURRECTION MACHINE
THAT KHAFRE PLANNED

WITH THE SPHINX
AND SPHINX TEMPLE

WAS NEVER FINISHED.

Narrator:
CONSTRUCTION AT GIZA CARRIED ON

FOR ABOUT ANOTHER 350 YEARS,

BUT THEN,
CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP.

INVESTIGATORS NOW BELIEVE THAT
A CATACLYSMIC NATURAL EVENT

MADE THE EGYPTIANS ABANDON GIZA.

THE NILE WAS CHANGING COURSE.

AS THE FERTILE WATERS
OF THE NILE DRIFTED EAST,

THE GIZA PLATEAU DRIED UP,

AND THE SPHINX BECAME LOST
TO THE SANDS OF TIME.

WITHOUT ANYONE ON GUARD,

THIS SACRED SITE WAS LEFT
FOR THIEVES TO STRIP IT BARE,

THE VALUABLE STONE
AND STATUES LOST FOREVER.

COVERED OVER BY DESERT SANDS,

THE SPHINX COULD'VE BEEN
GONE FOR GOOD.

BUT MARK BELIEVES THERE
IS EVIDENCE THAT MUCH LATER,

IT WAS REDISCOVERED
AND REPURPOSED

BY FUTURE GENERATIONS
OF EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS.

HE FINDS THIS EVIDENCE
IN A STRANGE PANEL

CALLED A STELE,

WHICH WAS WRITTEN 1,000 YEARS
AFTER KHAFRE DEATH

BY PHARAOH THUTMOSE IV.

IT'S ABUNDANTLY CLEAR
THAT IT'S THUTMOSE.

IT'S ALL ABOUT THUTMOSE.

HIS NAME IS ALL OVER
THE TOP OF THE STELE.

Narrator: MARK DECIPHERS
THE HIEROGLYPHS

TO REVEAL THE STORY OF THUTMOSE,

A ROYAL PRINCE WHO CAME TO GIZA

ON A HUNTING TRIP
FROM THE CAPITAL MEMPHIS.

AND HE SAYS, HE SLEPT IN
THE SHADOW OF THE SPHINX'S HEAD.

THE SPHINX CAME TO HIM
IN A DREAM.

SAYS, "THUTMOSE, MY SON,

LOOK HOW THE SAND
HAS ENGULFED MY BODY.

CLEAR THE SAND AWAY FROM ME,
AND I WILL MAKE YOU THE KING

OF UPPER AND LOWER EGYPT."

Narrator: IT SEEMS
THAT THE SPHINX

MADE GOOD ON ITS PROMISE.

THUTMOSE BECAME KING OF EGYPT

DESPITE NOT BEING DIRECTLY
IN LINE TO THE THRONE.

Lehner:
THUTMOSE PUT UP THIS STELE

IN THE FIRST YEAR OF HIS REIGN.

A COUPLE OTHER KINGS CAME
AND PUT UP STELE

IN THE FIRST YEARS
OF THEIR REIGNS.

THE SPHINX BECAME LIKE --
IN A WAY, LIKE THE VATICAN,

THE PLACE OF ORDINATION,

THE PLACE WHERE THIS ANCIENT
IMAGE OF THE SUN GOD,

THE PROGENITOR OF ALL KINGS,

BESTOWED KINGSHIP ON THOSE

WHO WERE NEWLY ASCENDED
TO THE THRONE.

BUILT TO IDOLIZE A PHARAOH,

THE SYMBOL OF A KING

THAT INSPIRED
A NEW BREED OF STATUE.

THAT ICONIC IMAGE,
THE COMBINATION

OF THE PHARAOH'S HEAD
AND THE LION BODY,

THE SPHINX, WAS REPLICATED

PROBABLY HUNDRED OF TIMES

THROUGH THE LATER DYNASTIES
OF EGYPT.

THE LEGACY OF THE SPHINX
HAS GONE WAY BEYOND

WHAT KHAFRE COULD'VE IMAGINED.

Narrator: THE SPHINX
HAS SURVIVED

FOR MORE THAN FOUR MILLENNIA,

GUARDING THE ANCIENT PYRAMIDS
OF GIZA.

NOTHING, NO PIECE OF ART,

NO SCULPTURE,

NO STATUE ON THIS SCALE
HAD EXISTED BEFORE

AND, IN FACT, NO STATUE,

ON THIS SCALE,

WOULD EXIST AGAIN
FOR ANOTHER MILLENNIUM.

Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA --

ONE OF THE MOST
ICONIC AND MYSTERIOUS

STRUCTURES IN THE WORLD.

AS INVESTIGATORS WORK
ON THIS GIANT FELINE,

THEY ARE SLOWLY STARTING
TO UNEARTH ITS SECRETS.

FROM ITS MYSTIFYING,
DISFIGURED FACE,

TO ITS RUINED TEMPLES,

THEY ARE
GRADUALLY UNDERSTANDING MORE

ABOUT THIS GREAT STRUCTURE

AND THE KING WHO BUILT IT.

¶¶