Sphinx water erosion hypothesis
Fringe theory on the age of the Great Sphinx of Giza
The Sphinx water erosion hypothesis is a fringe claim, contending that the Great Sphinx of Giza and its enclosing walls show erosion consistent with precipitation. Its proponents believe this dates the construction of the Sphinx to Predynastic Egypt or earlier. The hypothesis is inspired by the myth of Atlantis and it contradicts the mainstream view that the Sphinx was constructed contemporaneously with the Giza pyramid complex. Major proponents of the hypothesis include alternative Egyptologist John Anthony West, and geologist Robert Schoch.
Most archeologists and egyptologists have rejected the idea of an earlier construction of the Sphinx, instead attributing it to pharaoh Khafre. Those critical of the hypothesis draw attention to problems with Schoch and West's methodology, point out that the Sphinx enclosure fits into the overall layout of the Giza complex, and cite geological evidence that limestone from the Sphinx enclosure was used in the construction of nearby buildings. The hypothesis has also faced scrutiny from geologists who attribute the erosion to Nile flooding and occasional heavy rains that persisted into the Dynastic period.
History
Readings by Edgar Cayce said that Atlantis was destroyed around 10,500 BC and that Atlantean refugees brought civilization to Egypt, constructing the Great Pyramid of Giza and the sphinx within the century or so that followed.
In the 1950s, French mystic and alternative Egyptologist Schwaller de Lubicz speculated the body of the Sphinx to be eroded by deluges and that therefore the Sphinx must predate them, further claiming that ancient Egyptian knowledge originated from colonists or refugees of Plato's sunken continent of Atlantis.
In 1979, author and alternative Egyptologist John Anthony West, inspired by Schwaller's ideas, attributed the erosion to Nile floods between 15,000 and 10,000 BC. By denying the existence of any evidence for the development of Egyptian civilization prior to the first dynasty, West created room to inject the idea of a lost, advanced civilization of Atlanteans who created the Sphinx and passed on their knowledge to the dynastic Egyptians.
The public source identifies “Sphinx water erosion hypothesis” as fringe theory on the age of the Great Sphinx of Giza. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Sphinx, water and erosion.
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