4500 years BP at around 2500 BC while the Sphinx is thought to have been constructed at a later
date, presumably within Khufu’s son Khafre’s life time. Therefore the Pyramid is presumed to be
slightly older than the Sphinx. We are told that the smaller pyramid of three found at the Giza
complex was built by the Pharaoh Menkara.
These are the mostly accepted theories and indeed are widely taught as fact by Egyptologists
and in schools throughout the world.
Some of the main reasons given for coming to these conclusions and believing that the timeline
of 2500 BC is correct are as follows:
There exists in the Giza valley near to the Great Pyramid, a Stele that mentions the name of
Khufu. The Pyramid is said to be the final rest resting place for Khufu, though no remains have
ever been reported to have been found inside. There is also an inscription within the Pyramid
itself, located on a wall in a small ante chamber in a roof section above the Kings Chamber
appearing in a manner similar to graffiti which also bears the name Khufu.
There was a Mummy retrieved from the smaller pyramid in 1837 that was reported to be the
remains of Menkara that is also widely believed to validate the theories.
But there are serious problems with this reasoning.
The Sphinx
The Sphinx (fig.74). located in the Giza complex close to the Great Pyramid, is perhaps the
most controversial structure in all Egypt. It is carved directly out of the surrounding stone of the
plateau and many large blocks have been excavated around it to clear the area. The removed
blocks were later used to build the Sphinx Temple that sits nearby. The Sphinx raises a number of
interesting questions that beg for explanations but for the purpose of this work the only questions
we really need to answers are: Who really built it? And; when was it done?
Fig.74The Sphinx is believed by Academics to have been built by Khafre who was a son of Khufu
and to have been constructed around 2450 BC. This is because in between the paws of the Sphinx
there is a stele that bears the inscription ‘Khaf’. The theory is also said to be corroborated by
several statues of Khafre that were found in the temple next to the sphinx and mainly because one
of the statues was in the form of a sphinx. It is also said by many scholars that verification of who
built the Sphinx is quite simple as the face depicted on the Statue is clearly that of Khafre and that
this can be verified by a simple examination of the many statues, busts and carvings of Khafre
that still exist today. But there are also serious and very obvious flaws with this theory.