Great Sphinx of Giza (Abū al Hūl) Giza, Egypt

The Great Sphinx of Giza (Arabic: Abū al Hūl, English: The Terrifying One), commonly referred to as the Sphinx, is a limestone statue of a reclining or couchant sphinx (a mythical creature with a body of lion and a human head) that stands on the Giza Plateau on the west bank of the Nile in Giza, Egypt. It is the largest monolith statue in the world, standing 73.5 meters long, 19.3 meters wide, and 20.22 m high.

It is the oldest known monumental sculpture, and is commonly believed to have been built by ancient Egyptians of the Old Kingdom during the reign of the Pharaoh Khafra (c. 2558–2532 BC). The Great Sphinx is one of the largest and oldest statues in the world but basic facts about it, such as when it was built, and by whom, are still debated. The commonly used name Sphinx was given to it in classical antiquity, about 2000 years after the accepted date of its construction, by reference to a Greek mythological beast with a body of lion, a head of a woman and the wings of an eagle (although, like most Egyptian sphinxes, the Great Sphinx has a head of a man and no wings). The modern Egyptian Arabic name is Abū al Hūl, English: The Terrifying One.

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