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Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF EGYPT,
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MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS OLD,
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00:00:10,433 --> 00:00:14,400
AND PERHAPS THE MOST
ICONIC STATUE IN THE WORLD.
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00:00:14,433 --> 00:00:20,300
NEVER HAD EGYPT SEEN
SCULPTURE ON SUCH A SCALE.
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00:00:20,333 --> 00:00:23,733
Narrator: THIS HUMAN-HEADED LION
HAS PUZZLED ARCHAEOLOGISTS
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FOR GENERATIONS.
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WHAT WAS THE SPHINX FOR?
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THE EGYPTIANS ACTUALLY THOUGHT
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THAT THESE STATUES DID THINGS.
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THEY HAD POWER.
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Narrator: TODAY,
PIONEERING TECHNOLOGIES...
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REVEAL NEW TRUTHS.
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THERE'S NO SMOKING GUN.
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THERE'S NO SIGNATURE
LEFT ON THE SPHINX,
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BUT THERE ARE CLUES.
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Narrator: TO UNRAVEL
THE MYSTERY OF THE SPHINX,
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WE WILL VENTURE DEEP INSIDE
THIS ASTONISHING MONUMENT.
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WE WILL EXPLORE
ITS EXTRAORDINARY TEMPLES
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AND INVESTIGATE
ITS ABANDONED WATERWAYS
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TO REVEAL THE HIDDEN SECRETS
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AT THE HEART
OF THIS ANCIENT WONDER.
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*
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-- Captions by VITAC --
www.vitac.com
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CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY
DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS
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THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA SITS
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IN THE OUTSKIRTS
OF MODERN-DAY CAIRO.
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IT APPEARS TO GUARD
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AN ANCIENT COMPLEX
OF TEMPLES AND PYRAMIDS.
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THESE TOWERING MONUMENTS
WERE BUILT AS TOMBS
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FOR THE GREAT KINGS OF EGYPT.
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WE KNOW WHICH PHARAOH
EACH PYRAMID WAS BUILT FOR,
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BECAUSE THE EGYPTIANS LEFT
PLENTY OF CLUES BEHIND.
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THE PYRAMIDS ARE MORE OBVIOUS.
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THEY SEEM TO BE
COLOSSAL, GIGANTIC TOMBS
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TO THE DECEASED PHARAOH.
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WE KNOW THAT FROM TEXTS.
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WE DON'T HAVE THOSE TEXTS
FOR THE SPHINX,
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SO WE HAVE TO GO ON CONTEXT
INSTEAD OF HIEROGLYPHICS.
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Narrator: THE IDENTITY
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OF THE PHARAOH
THAT BUILT THE SPHINX
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IS ONE OF THE MOST ENDURING
MYSTERIES IN EGYPTOLOGY.
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TODAY, INVESTIGATORS USE
NEW FORENSIC TECHNIQUES...
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AND MAPPING TECHNOLOGY
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TO SEE THE SPHINX
AS THEY NEVER HAVE BEFORE.
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THE HEAD OF THE SPHINX IS BIGGER
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THAN THE HEAD
OF THE STATUE OF LIBERTY.
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IT'S CARVED FROM LAYERS
OF ANCIENT LIMESTONE
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AND TOWERS 65 FEET
ABOVE THE DESERT SAND.
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IT HAS A MASSIVE BODY,
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AS LONG AS A JUMBO JET.
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AND UNDER HUNDREDS
OF PROTECTIVE LIMESTONE TILES...
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...ITS GIGANTIC PAWS STRETCH OUT
LONGER THAN A CITY BUS.
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BUT SURPRISINGLY,
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THE STEEP-SIDED HOLLOW THAT
THE SPHINX SITS IN
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OFFERS THE BEST CLUE
TO WHO BUILT IT.
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EGYPTOLOGIST MARK LEHNER
BELIEVES THE EGYPTIANS DUG DOWN
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TO CREATE THE SPHINX,
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REMOVING THOUSANDS
OF TONS OF STONE
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TO SHAPE THE STATUE'S
MASSIVE BODY.
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TODAY, THE STEEP-SIDED PIT WALLS
THAT SURROUND THE SPHINX
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STILL BEAR THE ANCIENT SCARS
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OF THIS MAMMOTH EXCAVATION.
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Lehner: YOU HAVE TO IMAGINE
WHAT IT LOOKED LIKE.
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THIS ENTIRE VOLUME OF QUARRY
WAS BEING WORKED.
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BLOCKS WERE BEING TAKEN AWAY
IN THE FORM OF, YOU KNOW,
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MASSIVE STONES,
100 TONS IN WEIGHT.
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Narrator: MARK BELIEVES
FINDING THESE QUARRIED STONES
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IS THE KEY TO REVEALING
WHO BUILT THE SPHINX.
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HE SUSPECTS THE BLOCKS
DIDN'T GO FAR.
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THESE RUINS THAT SIT
AT THE PAWS OF THE SPHINX
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WERE ONCE LAVISH TEMPLES
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BUILT BY THE GREAT
PHARAOH KHAFRE.
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MARK IS CONVINCED
THE SAME PHARAOH
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CREATED BOTH THE SPHINX
AND THE TEMPLES
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AT THE SAME TIME.
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I THINK THEY MUST'VE TAKEN
THE STONE FROM THE QUARRY
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THAT MADE THE SPHINX
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AND MOVED THEM DIRECTLY
TO THE FRONT
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FOR MAKING THE TEMPLE.
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Narrator: TO PROVE HIS THEORY,
MARK NEEDS HARD EVIDENCE.
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HE COMPARES THE DISTINCT LAYERS
THAT RUN THROUGH BOTH
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THE TEMPLE STONES
AND THE CHEST OF THE SPHINX,
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HOPING TO FIND A PERFECT MATCH.
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Lehner: IF YOU LOOK AT
THE BEDROCK BODY OF THE SPHINX,
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FOR EXAMPLE, ITS CHEST,
YOU SEE THE SAME LAYERING,
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THE SAME SOFT, HARD, SOFT,
HARD SEQUENCE
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THAT WE SEE RUNNING THROUGH
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THE MASSIVE STONES
OF THE SPHINX TEMPLE.
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Narrator: THESE
DISTINCTIVE BENDS
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THAT RUN THROUGH BOTH STRUCTURES
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ARE NATURAL LAYERS,
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FORMED LONG BEFORE
THE EGYPTIANS CAME TO POWER.
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MORE THAN 50 MILLION YEARS AGO,
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GIZA WAS A WARM, TROPICAL LAGOON
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TEEMING WITH LIFE.
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DEAD CREATURES COLLECTED
ON THE SEAFLOOR...
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AND TRANSFORMED INTO
DISTINCT LAYERS OF LIMESTONE.
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AS EARTH'S CLIMATE CHANGED,
THE SEAS RETREATED,
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LEAVING BEHIND AN OPEN SPACE
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WITHOUT CROPS OF LIMESTONE.
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MARK BELIEVES THAT
MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO,
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THE EGYPTIANS CUT AWAY
THIS LAYERED ROCK
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TO FORM THE SPHINX.
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MARK WORKS WITH FOSSIL EXPERT
RICHARD REDDING
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TO SEARCH
FOR GEOLOGICAL SIGNATURES
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HIDDEN WITHIN THE STONE BLOCKS.
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THE THICKNESS OF THE
DIFFERENT COLORED LAYERS
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AND THE TYPES OF FOSSILS
THEY CONTAIN
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GIVE EACH BLOCK
A UNIQUE FINGERPRINT.
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WHAT DO YOU SEE
IN THERE, RICHARD,
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IN THIS YELLOW MARLY BAND?
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Redding: WELL,
IT'S A LOT OF FOSSILS.
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YOU DO HAVE A NUMBER HERE.
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HERE. OH, RIGHT HERE.
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THAT'S A SPINY OYSTER SHELL,
RIGHT THERE.
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AND WE'VE GOT BUNCH
OF NUMMULITES,
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THESE COIN-SHAPED THINGS.
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THERE'S...
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Narrator: AFTER YEARS OF WORK,
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MARK NOW HAS
A UNIQUE FINGERPRINT
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FOR EVERY BLOCK
IN THIS TEMPLE.
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TO SHOW THE TEMPLE
AND THE SPHINX WERE BUILT
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AT THE SAME TIME,
BY THE SAME PHARAOH,
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HE HOPES TO MATCH
THE TEMPLE STONES
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BACK TO THE LOCATIONS
THEY WERE CUT FROM
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AROUND THE SPHINX.
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FIRST, MARK COMPARES
THE THICKNESS OF THE LAYERS
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TO SEE IF HE CAN FIND
A PERFECT MATCH
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WITH ANY OF THE TEMPLE BLOCKS.
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YEAH, 15.75.
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Narrator:
THE LAYERS ARE A GOOD MATCH,
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BUT TO SEAL THE DEAL,
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RICHARD LOOKS TO SEE
IF THE FOSSILS MATCH, TOO.
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Redding: THAT IS ANOTHER
SPINY OYSTER.
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SPINY OYSTER, WHICH MATCHES
PERFECTLY OUR BLOCK DOWN THERE.
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00:07:33,067 --> 00:07:35,533
YOU'VE GOT A LOT
OF THE SMALL NUMMULITES,
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HARDLY ANY OF
THE LARGE NUMMULITES.
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SO, YEAH, THIS IS A --
THIS FOSSIL COMMUNITY IS VERY,
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VERY SIMILAR TO WHAT
WE WERE LOOKING AT DOWN
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00:07:42,067 --> 00:07:43,267
AT THE SPHINX TEMPLE.
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SO IT'S
A GOOD MATCH.
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Narrator:
THERE IS STILL WORK TO DO,
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BUT THESE FINDINGS SUGGEST
THAT MARK'S THEORY IS CORRECT.
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EVERY STONE IN THE TEMPLE
WAS ORIGINALLY QUARRIED
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FROM THE SIDES
OF THE GIANT LION.
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USING THIS MYTHOLOGICAL
APPROACH,
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MARK BELIEVES HE CAN MATCH EACH
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00:08:04,800 --> 00:08:07,167
AND EVERY BLOCK IN THE TEMPLES
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TO THEIR ORIGINAL POSITION
INSIDE THE SPHINX ENCLOSURE.
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TWO BLOCKS FROM THE FRONT WALL
OF THE TEMPLE
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MATCH THE MID-CHEST
OF THE SPHINX.
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THE GEOLOGICAL LAYERS
AND THE FOSSILS INSIDE THEM
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ARE THE SAME.
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MORE BLOCKS FROM THE TEMPLE
PERFECTLY ALIGN
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WITH THE FLOOR
OF THE SPHINX ENCLOSURE.
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00:08:30,967 --> 00:08:33,633
AND THE MATCHES
KEEP ON COMING --
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LAYER AFTER LAYER OF STONE...
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COMPLETELY FILLING THE QUARRY.
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00:08:43,933 --> 00:08:46,367
IDENTIFYING THE SOURCE
OF THESE TEMPLE BLOCKS
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PROVIDES IRREFUTABLE EVIDENCE
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OF WHICH PHARAOH
BUILT THIS MONUMENT.
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Lehner: SO IF KHAFRE BUILT
THE SPHINX TEMPLE,
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IT HAD TO HAVE BEEN KHAFRE
WHO MADE THE SPHINX,
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BECAUSE THEY WERE PART
OF THE SAME PROCESS.
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00:09:04,467 --> 00:09:06,533
Narrator: INSPIRED
BY THE COLOSSAL PYRAMIDS
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OF HIS PREDECESSORS,
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00:09:08,233 --> 00:09:12,200
KHAFRE SEEMED DETERMINED
TO GO ONE BETTER.
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HE NOT ONLY BUILT
A HUGE PYRAMID,
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00:09:15,667 --> 00:09:18,133
BUT A GIANT STATUE
THAT HISTORIANS BELIEVED
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00:09:18,167 --> 00:09:22,967
WAS CARVED WITH AN IMAGE
OF HIS OWN FACE.
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00:09:23,067 --> 00:09:26,333
BUT WHY DID THE GREAT
PHARAOH KHAFRE DECIDE
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TO PLACE HIS LIKENESS
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ON THE BODY OF A GIANT LION?
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00:09:31,867 --> 00:09:34,800
NEW TECHNOLOGIES MAY BE
ABOUT TO REVEAL...
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THE ASTONISHING TRUTH.
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*
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Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA --
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THIS ANCIENT SCULPTURE
IS UNSURPASSED
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00:09:50,300 --> 00:09:52,567
IN ITS SCALE AND AMBITION.
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00:09:52,600 --> 00:09:54,900
Lehner: NEVER BEFORE HAD
ANYTHING LIKE THIS
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00:09:54,933 --> 00:09:56,467
BEEN SEEN IN EGYPT.
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00:09:56,500 --> 00:09:59,800
NO COLOSSAL STATUE THIS SIZE,
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00:09:59,833 --> 00:10:02,567
THIS SCALE EXISTED.
184
00:10:02,600 --> 00:10:03,967
Narrator: EGYPTIAN STONE MASONS
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00:10:04,000 --> 00:10:06,300
CUT THE SPHINX
FROM LIMESTONE BEDROCK
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00:10:06,333 --> 00:10:09,333
MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS AGO,
187
00:10:09,367 --> 00:10:14,067
MOST LIKELY TO HONOR
THE GREAT PHARAOH KHAFRE.
188
00:10:14,100 --> 00:10:17,167
HISTORIANS BELIEVE THE HUMAN
FEATURES OF THE SPHINX
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00:10:17,200 --> 00:10:21,933
ARE A DIRECT LIKENESS
OF THE PHARAOH HIMSELF.
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00:10:21,967 --> 00:10:25,100
BUT OVER THOUSANDS OF YEARS,
THE HARSH DESERT WIND
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00:10:25,133 --> 00:10:29,033
HAS SANDBLASTED KHAFRE'S
CARVED FEATURES AWAY,
192
00:10:29,067 --> 00:10:31,667
LEAVING JUST A FEW
TANTALIZING CLUES
193
00:10:31,700 --> 00:10:34,467
AS TO HOW THE SCULPTURE
ORIGINALLY LOOKED.
194
00:10:38,733 --> 00:10:43,233
THE DEEP CUTS IN THE FACE
ARE CHISEL MARKS LEFT BY VANDALS
195
00:10:43,267 --> 00:10:45,767
WHO CHOPPED OFF THE NOSE.
196
00:10:45,800 --> 00:10:48,000
BASED ON OTHER STATUES
OF THE TIME,
197
00:10:48,033 --> 00:10:51,867
THIS IS WHAT THE NOSE
MAY HAVE LOOKED LIKE.
198
00:10:51,900 --> 00:10:56,000
STONE FRAGMENTS FOUND
BETWEEN THE PAWS ARE CLUES
199
00:10:56,033 --> 00:11:00,333
THAT THE SPHINX HAD A BEARD.
200
00:11:00,367 --> 00:11:03,067
TRACES OF PAINT BEHIND THE EARS
201
00:11:03,067 --> 00:11:06,667
COULD MEAN THAT IT USED
TO WEAR HEAVY MAKEUP
202
00:11:06,700 --> 00:11:08,733
AND WHAT LOOKS LIKE HAIR
203
00:11:08,767 --> 00:11:12,633
IS ACTUALLY A REGAL HEADDRESS...
204
00:11:12,667 --> 00:11:14,400
FRAMING THE IMMORTAL FACE
205
00:11:14,433 --> 00:11:17,267
OF THE GOD KING KHAFRE HIMSELF.
206
00:11:21,367 --> 00:11:25,267
BUT ONE BIG QUESTION
REMAINS UNANSWERED.
207
00:11:25,300 --> 00:11:29,333
WHY DID KHAFRE PUT HIS FACE
ON THE BODY OF A LION?
208
00:11:31,400 --> 00:11:33,333
THE ANCIENT WORLD HAD NEVER SEEN
209
00:11:33,367 --> 00:11:37,100
AN ANIMAL-HUMAN HYBRID
QUITE LIKE IT BEFORE.
210
00:11:37,133 --> 00:11:39,700
USUALLY STATUES
IN ANCIENT EGYPT ARE
211
00:11:39,733 --> 00:11:42,267
COMPRISING A HUMAN BODY
WITH AN ANIMAL HEAD,
212
00:11:42,300 --> 00:11:43,700
SO THEY'RE USUALLY
THAT WAY ROUND,
213
00:11:43,733 --> 00:11:45,567
RATHER THAN IN THE CASE
OF THE SPHINX,
214
00:11:45,600 --> 00:11:47,467
WHERE WE'VE GOT A LION'S BODY
215
00:11:47,500 --> 00:11:50,900
WITH KHAFRE'S HUMAN HEAD ON TOP.
216
00:11:50,933 --> 00:11:54,500
EGYPTOLOGIST LIDIJA McKNIGHT
BELIEVES CATS HAD
217
00:11:54,533 --> 00:11:57,233
SPECIAL RELIGIOUS MEANING
TO THE EGYPTIANS
218
00:11:57,267 --> 00:12:00,867
AND THAT PERHAPS
KHAFRE PUT HIS HEAD ON A LION
219
00:12:00,900 --> 00:12:05,133
TO IMPRESS HIS CAT-MAD PEOPLE.
220
00:12:05,167 --> 00:12:08,533
LIDIJA LOOKS FOR EVIDENCE
OF THIS CAT OBSESSION
221
00:12:08,567 --> 00:12:10,767
IN TINY MUMMIES LIKE THIS,
222
00:12:10,800 --> 00:12:14,667
COMMONLY UNEARTHED
IN EGYPTIAN DIGS.
223
00:12:14,700 --> 00:12:16,367
WE'VE BROUGHT
A MUMMIFIED ANIMAL
224
00:12:16,400 --> 00:12:18,333
FROM MANCHESTER
MUSEUM'S COLLECTIONS,
225
00:12:18,367 --> 00:12:22,233
BECAUSE WE BELIEVE IT
TO BE THE MUMMY OF A CAT.
226
00:12:22,267 --> 00:12:25,067
Narrator: TODAY, LIDIJA WANTS
TO CONFIRM THE CONTENTS
227
00:12:25,067 --> 00:12:28,133
OF THIS TIGHTLY WRAPPED PACKAGE
228
00:12:28,167 --> 00:12:32,067
AND GET SOME IDEA
OF HOW THE ANIMAL DIED.
229
00:12:32,100 --> 00:12:34,733
SHE WANTS TO KNOW
IF THE DEATH WAS NATURAL
230
00:12:34,767 --> 00:12:39,300
OR IF THE EGYPTIANS WERE
KILLING ANIMALS TO ORDER.
231
00:12:39,333 --> 00:12:41,767
WE BROUGHT IT HERE TODAY
TO USE NONINVASIVE,
232
00:12:41,800 --> 00:12:43,167
RADIOGRAPHIC METHODS,
233
00:12:43,200 --> 00:12:46,067
WHICH ARE USUALLY USED
TO SCAN LIVING PATIENTS,
234
00:12:46,067 --> 00:12:48,600
JUST TO CHECK WHAT'S
GOING ON ON THE INSIDE
235
00:12:48,633 --> 00:12:51,267
IN A NONDESTRUCTIVE WAY.
236
00:12:51,300 --> 00:12:54,867
Narrator: FIRST, LIDIJA NEEDS
TO CHECK IF IT REALLY IS A CAT
237
00:12:54,900 --> 00:12:57,100
INSIDE THE ANCIENT DRESSINGS.
238
00:12:57,133 --> 00:13:01,833
SHE HUNTS FOR TELL-TALE SIGNS
THAT THE SKELETON IS FELINE.
239
00:13:01,867 --> 00:13:05,833
USUALLY, WE IDENTIFY A CAT
FROM THE SKULL AND THE TEETH,
240
00:13:05,867 --> 00:13:08,067
SO THE SHAPE OF THE SCULL,
THE TEETH,
241
00:13:08,067 --> 00:13:10,233
AND THE LIMB BONES
TO THE LEGS.
242
00:13:10,267 --> 00:13:14,633
BUT WE'VE GOT WHAT APPEARS TO BE
FOUR LIMBS IN THE POSITION
243
00:13:14,667 --> 00:13:17,067
WE WOULD EXPECT TO FIND THEM.
244
00:13:17,067 --> 00:13:19,233
Narrator: THE ANCIENT SKULL
OF THIS SPECIMEN
245
00:13:19,267 --> 00:13:21,067
IS BADLY DAMAGED,
246
00:13:21,067 --> 00:13:22,433
BUT THE LEGS ARE INTACT
247
00:13:22,467 --> 00:13:25,567
AND FOLDED UP
UNDERNEATH THE BODY.
248
00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:28,067
YOU CAN SEE QUITE NICELY
THE PAWS HERE,
249
00:13:28,067 --> 00:13:30,667
SO THIS IS ONE OF YOUR
FRONT LIMBS AND THE PAW.
250
00:13:30,700 --> 00:13:34,967
WE'VE GOT WHAT APPEARS TO BE A
COMPLETE CAT SKELETON IN THERE.
251
00:13:35,067 --> 00:13:38,067
Narrator: LIDIJA ALSO SEARCHES
FOR THIN, CLEAR LINES
252
00:13:38,100 --> 00:13:41,433
THAT RUN HORIZONTALLY
ACROSS THE TOP OF THE LEG BONES.
253
00:13:41,467 --> 00:13:46,300
THIS WILL TELL HER HOW OLD
THE CAT WAS WHEN IT DIED.
254
00:13:46,333 --> 00:13:48,567
THESE LINES ARE GROWTH PLATES
255
00:13:48,600 --> 00:13:52,833
AND THEY'RE ONLY FOUND
IN JUVENILE ANIMALS.
256
00:13:52,867 --> 00:13:55,067
THE PROMINENT GROWTH PLATES
ON THIS SPECIMEN
257
00:13:55,100 --> 00:13:56,900
CAN MEAN ONLY ONE THING.
258
00:13:58,600 --> 00:14:01,467
McKnight: SO, IT WAS
AN IMMATURE KITTEN
259
00:14:01,500 --> 00:14:04,067
AT THE TIME OF DEATH.
260
00:14:04,100 --> 00:14:06,067
Narrator: THE FACT THAT
THIS KITTEN DIED
261
00:14:06,067 --> 00:14:08,067
BEFORE THE END
OF ITS NATURAL LIFE
262
00:14:08,100 --> 00:14:11,200
SUGGESTS IT WAS NOT
A BELOVED PET.
263
00:14:11,233 --> 00:14:15,400
IT WAS AN ANIMAL BRED
IN CAPTIVITY FOR ONE PURPOSE --
264
00:14:15,433 --> 00:14:18,967
TO BE SLAUGHTERED AND MUMMIFIED
265
00:14:19,067 --> 00:14:21,733
AS AN OFFERING TO THE CAT GODS.
266
00:14:21,767 --> 00:14:25,367
McKnight: RESEARCH ESTIMATES
THAT AROUND 10 MILLION CATS
267
00:14:25,400 --> 00:14:27,500
WOULD'VE BEEN MUMMIFIED
AS VOTIVE OFFERINGS
268
00:14:27,533 --> 00:14:29,333
DURING THIS 1,000-YEAR
TIME PERIOD,
269
00:14:29,367 --> 00:14:32,400
SO WE REALLY ARE LOOKING
AT A MASSIVE SCALE INDUSTRY.
270
00:14:35,433 --> 00:14:38,067
Narrator: THE EGYPTIAN PEOPLE
CLEARLY THOUGHT CATS WERE
271
00:14:38,100 --> 00:14:41,233
AN IMPORTANT LINK TO THEIR GODS
272
00:14:41,267 --> 00:14:44,200
AND BY PUTTING HIS IMAGE
ON THE BODY OF A LION,
273
00:14:44,233 --> 00:14:48,200
KHAFRE MIGHT HAVE
FOUND MANY ADMIRERS.
274
00:14:48,233 --> 00:14:50,600
BUT LIDIJA THINKS THAT
THE PHARAOH'S MOTIVATION
275
00:14:50,633 --> 00:14:53,833
STRETCHED FAR BEYOND
MERE POPULARITY.
276
00:14:53,867 --> 00:14:56,767
WE BELIEVE THAT THE PHARAOHS
LIKED TO IMPLY THAT
277
00:14:56,800 --> 00:14:58,700
THEY WERE ALMOST GODS ON EARTH,
278
00:14:58,733 --> 00:15:00,867
THAT THEY HAD
THE POWER OF A GOD,
279
00:15:00,900 --> 00:15:03,767
BUT IN LIVING HUMAN FORM.
280
00:15:03,800 --> 00:15:07,267
Narrator: DID KHAFRE WANT
TO BE SEEN AS A GOD?
281
00:15:07,300 --> 00:15:10,200
IS THAT WHY HE PUT HIS HEAD
ON ONE OF THE ANIMALS
282
00:15:10,233 --> 00:15:13,867
HIS SUBJECTS
CONSIDERED MOST HOLY?
283
00:15:13,900 --> 00:15:16,867
KHAFRE WANTED TO SHOW
HIS DOMINANCE AND POWER,
284
00:15:16,900 --> 00:15:18,933
OVER NOT ONLY
THE PHYSICAL LANDSCAPE
285
00:15:18,967 --> 00:15:20,400
IN WHICH THE STATUE STANDS,
286
00:15:20,433 --> 00:15:24,633
BUT ALSO OVER THE PEOPLE
OF EGYPT DURING HIS REIGN.
287
00:15:24,667 --> 00:15:27,900
Narrator: TO IMPRESS HIS PEOPLE,
KHAFRE ORDERED THE CONSTRUCTION
288
00:15:27,933 --> 00:15:30,500
OF THE BIGGEST STATUE
IN EGYPTIAN HISTORY.
289
00:15:30,533 --> 00:15:32,867
BUT THERE WAS A PROBLEM.
290
00:15:32,900 --> 00:15:37,967
NO ANIMAL CARVING THIS BIG
HAD EVER BEEN ATTEMPTED BEFORE.
291
00:15:38,067 --> 00:15:41,900
TO ACHIEVE IT, MARK LEHNER
THINKS THE EGYPTIAN CRAFTSMEN
292
00:15:41,933 --> 00:15:47,233
MUST'VE LEARNED HOW TO EXPLOIT
THE NATURAL LAYERS OF THE ROCK.
293
00:15:47,267 --> 00:15:50,533
WE'VE BEEN LOOKING AT THE LAYERS
IN THE SPHINX QUARRY
294
00:15:50,567 --> 00:15:52,100
WHERE THEY CUT THE BLOCK.
295
00:15:52,133 --> 00:15:55,133
BUT IT ALL TELLS YOU
THAT THE EGYPTIANS
296
00:15:55,167 --> 00:15:57,500
WERE GOOD GEOLOGISTS
IN THEIR OWN RIGHT.
297
00:15:57,533 --> 00:15:59,567
THEY USED THE GEOLOGY
AND THE LAYERS
298
00:15:59,600 --> 00:16:01,633
TO THEIR ADVANTAGE,
THAT'S FOR SURE.
299
00:16:04,333 --> 00:16:07,233
Narrator: MARK'S INVESTIGATION
SUGGESTS THAT THE EGYPTIANS
300
00:16:07,267 --> 00:16:10,067
WOULD POUND TRENCHES
INTO THE BEDROCK
301
00:16:10,067 --> 00:16:12,833
TO FORM A GRID OF DEEP CHANNELS
302
00:16:12,867 --> 00:16:15,400
AND EXPOSE
THE LAYERS OF LIMESTONE.
303
00:16:16,667 --> 00:16:19,233
THEY DROVE WOODEN WEDGES
BETWEEN THE LAYERS
304
00:16:19,267 --> 00:16:22,867
TO SPLIT THEM WITH EASE
305
00:16:22,900 --> 00:16:25,567
AND LIFT OUT PERFECT
BUILDING BLOCKS.
306
00:16:27,500 --> 00:16:29,367
AS THEY EXCAVATED THE ROCKS,
307
00:16:29,400 --> 00:16:32,533
THEY CARVED OUT THE ROUGH
SHAPE OF THE SPHINX
308
00:16:32,567 --> 00:16:35,700
AND RECYCLED THE SPOIL
TO BUILD THE TEMPLES.
309
00:16:38,200 --> 00:16:43,467
FINALLY, AN ARMY OF STONE MASONS
USED COPPER CHISELS...
310
00:16:43,500 --> 00:16:45,900
TO ADD THE DETAIL
OF THE PHARAOH'S FACE
311
00:16:45,933 --> 00:16:47,400
AND LION'S BODY.
312
00:16:49,900 --> 00:16:51,967
Lehner: THE COMBINATION
OF THE HUMAN HEAD
313
00:16:52,067 --> 00:16:56,200
WITH THE LION BODY SYMBOLIZES
SUPREME STRENGTH AND POWER.
314
00:16:56,233 --> 00:16:59,100
AS IN MANY CULTURES,
THE LION IS THE SYMBOL,
315
00:16:59,133 --> 00:17:00,900
IS THE KING OF THE BEASTS.
316
00:17:00,933 --> 00:17:05,467
AND YET, THE BEAST IS CONTROLLED
BY HUMAN INTELLIGENCE,
317
00:17:05,500 --> 00:17:09,400
INDEED, THE INTELLIGENCE
OF PHARAOH HIMSELF.
318
00:17:09,433 --> 00:17:11,633
Narrator: BUT WAS THE SPHINX
SIMPLY DESIGNED
319
00:17:11,667 --> 00:17:14,933
TO INSPIRE RELIGIOUS AWE
IN THE KING'S SUBJECTS
320
00:17:14,967 --> 00:17:19,767
OR DID IT HAVE AN EVEN MORE
ELABORATE PURPOSE?
321
00:17:19,800 --> 00:17:23,067
SOME HISTORIANS NOW BELIEVE
THE SPHINX MAY HAVE BEEN PART
322
00:17:23,067 --> 00:17:25,733
OF A SUPERNATURAL MACHINE,
323
00:17:25,767 --> 00:17:28,667
A MACHINE
TO RESURRECT THE DEAD.
324
00:17:38,400 --> 00:17:40,700
Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX --
325
00:17:40,733 --> 00:17:45,700
AN EGYPTIAN CARVING
MORE THAN 4,000 YEARS OLD.
326
00:17:45,733 --> 00:17:47,933
IT'S POSSIBLE
THIS HUGE STONE ANIMAL
327
00:17:47,967 --> 00:17:49,133
WAS BUILT TO IMPRESS
328
00:17:49,167 --> 00:17:52,467
THE PHARAOH'S
CAT-OBSESSED PEOPLE.
329
00:17:52,500 --> 00:17:56,267
BUT EGYPTOLOGIST MARK LEHNER
SUSPECTS THAT THE SPHINX
330
00:17:56,300 --> 00:17:59,833
WAS ALSO PART OF SOMETHING
MORE MYSTERIOUS --
331
00:17:59,867 --> 00:18:02,633
THE GROWTH
OF A STRANGE NEW CULT.
332
00:18:04,433 --> 00:18:06,067
HE SEARCHES FOR EVIDENCE OF THIS
333
00:18:06,067 --> 00:18:09,733
IN THE TEMPLE
AT THE FRONT OF THE SPHINX.
334
00:18:09,767 --> 00:18:12,067
THE SPHINX TEMPLE
IS A BIT OF A MYSTERY,
335
00:18:12,100 --> 00:18:16,400
BECAUSE IT WAS STRIPPED
OF ALL ITS OUTER CLADDING,
336
00:18:16,433 --> 00:18:18,700
YOU KNOW, THE CASING
OF THE WALLS, THE PILLARS,
337
00:18:18,733 --> 00:18:20,900
EVERYTHING THAT WOULD'VE
HAD AN INSCRIPTION,
338
00:18:20,933 --> 00:18:23,400
THAT MIGHT HAVE SAID
SOMETHING DIRECTLY
339
00:18:23,433 --> 00:18:26,100
ABOUT WHAT THE TEMPLE WAS FOR.
340
00:18:26,133 --> 00:18:29,200
Narrator: BUT DESPITE BEING
PILFERED AND VANDALIZED,
341
00:18:29,233 --> 00:18:30,867
THERE ARE JUST ENOUGH CLUES
342
00:18:30,900 --> 00:18:33,067
TO SHOW HOW THIS TEMPLE
COULD'VE LOOKED
343
00:18:33,100 --> 00:18:35,800
4,500 YEARS AGO.
344
00:18:39,367 --> 00:18:40,833
ON THE OUTSIDE,
345
00:18:40,867 --> 00:18:43,867
A FACADE OF EXQUISITE GRANITE
346
00:18:43,900 --> 00:18:46,267
SHIPPED IN FROM ASWAN.
347
00:18:49,467 --> 00:18:54,167
IN THE HALLWAYS STOOD
24 MASSIVE PILLARS
348
00:18:54,200 --> 00:18:57,067
TO MARK THE HOURS
OF THE EGYPTIAN DAY.
349
00:18:58,700 --> 00:19:01,567
AT THE HEART OF THE TEMPLE
WERE TWO SANCTUARIES
350
00:19:01,600 --> 00:19:04,733
ALIGNED TO THE EAST AND WEST
351
00:19:04,767 --> 00:19:08,933
AND A GLEAMING COURTYARD
OF ALABASTER TILES
352
00:19:08,967 --> 00:19:12,167
SURROUNDED
BY 10 MYSTERIOUS STATUES.
353
00:19:14,867 --> 00:19:17,900
WHAT WAS THE PURPOSE
OF THIS LOST TEMPLE?
354
00:19:22,933 --> 00:19:26,067
THE SPHINX TEMPLE IS OFFLINE
WITH THE SPHINX,
355
00:19:26,067 --> 00:19:28,133
SHIFTED SLIGHTLY TO THE LEFT.
356
00:19:30,100 --> 00:19:32,500
MARK BELIEVES THAT
THIS APPARENT MISTAKE
357
00:19:32,533 --> 00:19:35,067
WAS ACTUALLY DELIBERATE.
358
00:19:35,100 --> 00:19:37,667
COULD IT BE THE KEY
TO DECODING THE SECRETS
359
00:19:37,700 --> 00:19:39,900
OF THIS STRANGE RUIN?
360
00:19:39,933 --> 00:19:42,133
THE CURIOUS THING IS
THAT THE AXIS OF THE TEMPLE
361
00:19:42,167 --> 00:19:45,067
DOES NOT AIM
DIRECTLY AT THE SPHINX.
362
00:19:45,100 --> 00:19:47,867
IT'S AS THOUGH THE SPHINX
IS SHOVED TO THE NORTH
363
00:19:47,900 --> 00:19:50,867
AND THE AXIS OF THE TEMPLE
POINTS PAST IT,
364
00:19:50,900 --> 00:19:54,133
UP THE WESTERN HORIZON.
365
00:19:54,167 --> 00:19:57,133
Narrator: ONE OTHER FEATURE
OF THE TEMPLE LAYOUT
366
00:19:57,167 --> 00:19:59,800
MIGHT BE A CLUE TO WHAT
THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS
367
00:19:59,833 --> 00:20:02,933
WERE AIMING THE AXIS TOWARDS.
368
00:20:02,967 --> 00:20:04,533
Lehner: THESE TWO SANCTUARIES,
369
00:20:04,567 --> 00:20:06,467
WHICH ARE
IN THE FORM OF RECESSED BAYS
370
00:20:06,500 --> 00:20:09,900
AND SMALL NICHES,
DEFINE THE TEMPLE AXIS.
371
00:20:09,933 --> 00:20:11,167
IT'S VERY COMPELLING
TO THINK THAT
372
00:20:11,200 --> 00:20:13,100
THAT'S FOR THE RISING SUN
ON THE EAST
373
00:20:13,133 --> 00:20:16,233
AND THE SETTING SUN ON THE WEST.
374
00:20:16,267 --> 00:20:18,933
Narrator: MARK BELIEVES
THE EGYPTIAN MASTER BUILDERS
375
00:20:18,967 --> 00:20:22,600
WOULD NOT HAVE DONE
THIS ACCIDENTALLY.
376
00:20:22,633 --> 00:20:26,167
HE THINKS THEY DELIBERATELY
POINTED THE TEMPLE AXIS
377
00:20:26,200 --> 00:20:27,667
AT THE SPOT ON THE HORIZON
378
00:20:27,700 --> 00:20:31,233
WHERE THE SUN WOULD SET
AT A SPECIAL TIME OF YEAR.
379
00:20:33,433 --> 00:20:37,833
THE SPHINX TEMPLE
IS ORIENTED ON THIS AXIS
380
00:20:37,867 --> 00:20:40,933
SO THAT IT IS ALIGNED
TO THE SETTING OF THE SUN
381
00:20:40,967 --> 00:20:43,667
AND THE RISING OF THE SUN
AT THE EQUINOXES.
382
00:20:49,000 --> 00:20:52,300
Narrator: AS THE SUN SET
ON THE EQUINOX,
383
00:20:52,333 --> 00:20:56,400
IT DROPPED DIRECTLY BEHIND
THE SHOULDER OF THE SPHINX
384
00:20:56,433 --> 00:20:59,133
AND THE SOUTH SIDE
OF KHAFRE'S PYRAMID.
385
00:21:00,833 --> 00:21:04,300
THE SHAPES OF KHAFRE'S PYRAMID
AND HIS SPHINX
386
00:21:04,333 --> 00:21:10,733
WOULD MERGE TO BECOME
ONE PERFECT SILHOUETTE.
387
00:21:10,767 --> 00:21:12,333
Lehner: KHAFRE
AND HIS BUILDERS WERE
388
00:21:12,367 --> 00:21:15,300
TRYING TO HARNESS
THE POWER OF THE SUN.
389
00:21:15,333 --> 00:21:19,600
AND AFTER KHAFRE DIED,
HE HOPED THAT THIS ALIGNMENT
390
00:21:19,633 --> 00:21:22,133
WOULD BE A KIND
OF RESURRECTION MACHINE.
391
00:21:22,167 --> 00:21:24,800
HE WAS, IN EFFECT,
HITCHING HIMSELF
392
00:21:24,833 --> 00:21:26,967
TO THE ETERNAL CYCLE OF THE SUN,
393
00:21:27,067 --> 00:21:30,633
SO THAT HE, TOO,
WOULD RISE IN THE AFTERLIFE.
394
00:21:32,600 --> 00:21:33,900
Narrator:
MARK BELIEVES THE TEMPLE
395
00:21:33,933 --> 00:21:36,433
WAS PART OF A NEW CULT IN EGYPT
396
00:21:36,467 --> 00:21:39,233
THAT WORSHIPPED THE SUN
AS A CENTRAL DEITY.
397
00:21:41,700 --> 00:21:45,167
THIS IDEOLOGY WAS SET
TO DOMINATE EGYPTIAN RELIGION
398
00:21:45,200 --> 00:21:47,733
FOR THE NEXT 2,000 YEARS.
399
00:21:50,400 --> 00:21:51,833
MARK ALSO BELIEVES THAT
400
00:21:51,867 --> 00:21:54,333
THE PRECISE POSITIONING
OF THE SPHINX TEMPLE
401
00:21:54,367 --> 00:21:56,167
ALLOWED IT TO HARNESS THE POWER
402
00:21:56,200 --> 00:22:00,433
OF ANOTHER
DIFFERENT SOLAR EVENT.
403
00:22:00,467 --> 00:22:02,267
IF HE'S CORRECT,
404
00:22:02,300 --> 00:22:04,100
ON THE YEAR'S LONGEST DAY,
405
00:22:04,133 --> 00:22:06,067
THE SUMMER SOLSTICE,
406
00:22:06,067 --> 00:22:08,400
AN OBSERVER
AT THE TEMPLE LOCATION
407
00:22:08,433 --> 00:22:13,067
WOULD HAVE WITNESSED ANOTHER
AMAZING VISUAL EFFECT.
408
00:22:13,067 --> 00:22:16,200
SETTING DIRECTLY BETWEEN
THE TWO GREAT PYRAMIDS,
409
00:22:16,233 --> 00:22:19,600
THE SUN FORMED
AN ANCIENT HIEROGLYPH
410
00:22:19,633 --> 00:22:23,967
REPRESENTING
THE ETERNAL CYCLE OF REBIRTH.
411
00:22:24,067 --> 00:22:26,067
WITH THIS MONUMENTAL
ARCHITECTURE,
412
00:22:26,100 --> 00:22:28,667
THEY WERE TRYING
TO HITCH THEMSELVES
413
00:22:28,700 --> 00:22:31,133
TO THE POWER OF THE SUN.
414
00:22:31,167 --> 00:22:32,400
WHY?
415
00:22:32,433 --> 00:22:35,367
BECAUSE THEY BELIEVED THE KING
416
00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:38,400
WAS LITERALLY
THE SON OF THE SUN.
417
00:22:38,433 --> 00:22:42,067
AND HE NEEDED THE POWER
OF THE SUN FOR EFFECTIVE RULE
418
00:22:42,067 --> 00:22:44,067
OVER ALL OF EGYPT
419
00:22:44,067 --> 00:22:47,133
AND ALL ITS INHABITANTS.
420
00:22:47,167 --> 00:22:51,533
Narrator: KHAFRE CHANGED
THE FACE OF EGYPTIAN HISTORY.
421
00:22:51,567 --> 00:22:54,800
IN BUILDING THE SPHINX
AND THE TEMPLES AT ITS FEET,
422
00:22:54,833 --> 00:22:58,967
HE HELPED ADVANCE AN ERA
OF SUN WORSHIP IN EGYPT
423
00:22:59,067 --> 00:23:01,767
THAT WOULD LAST
FOR THE NEXT TWO MILLENNIA.
424
00:23:03,267 --> 00:23:07,767
IT IS INCREDIBLE TO THINK
HOW THE FOURTH DYNASTY EGYPTIANS
425
00:23:07,800 --> 00:23:10,433
ALIGNED THESE
MASSIVE MONUMENTS --
426
00:23:10,467 --> 00:23:13,300
THE TEMPLES, THE SPHINX,
427
00:23:13,333 --> 00:23:16,233
AND THE GIGANTIC PYRAMIDS
OF THEIR TIME.
428
00:23:20,167 --> 00:23:22,233
Narrator: ALTHOUGH
INVESTIGATORS HAVE SOLVED
429
00:23:22,267 --> 00:23:24,833
THE MYSTERY OF THE TEMPLES,
430
00:23:24,867 --> 00:23:27,267
SOME OTHER FEATURES
OF THE SPHINX COMPLEX
431
00:23:27,300 --> 00:23:29,100
ARE HARDER TO EXPLAIN.
432
00:23:30,633 --> 00:23:33,700
AT THE FRONT OF THE TEMPLES
ARE TWO STONE PATHWAYS
433
00:23:33,733 --> 00:23:37,233
THAT LOOK JUST LIKE
A MODERN DOCKSIDE SLIPWAY.
434
00:23:39,100 --> 00:23:41,167
WHAT ARE THESE
WATERSIDE FEATURES
435
00:23:41,200 --> 00:23:45,067
DOING HERE,
IN THE MIDDLE OF THE DESERT?
436
00:23:55,100 --> 00:23:58,733
Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX
AND ITS TEMPLES --
437
00:23:58,767 --> 00:24:01,633
PART OF AN EGYPTIAN
BURIAL COMPLEX
438
00:24:01,667 --> 00:24:04,200
COVERING 500 ACRES.
439
00:24:06,067 --> 00:24:09,267
THIS ANCIENT MULTIPLEX
SLOPES GENTLY DOWNHILL
440
00:24:09,300 --> 00:24:12,067
TOWARDS THE SPHINX,
441
00:24:12,100 --> 00:24:13,533
WHERE IT ABRUPTLY ENDS
442
00:24:13,567 --> 00:24:17,967
WITH TWO MYSTERIOUS
STONE PATHWAYS.
443
00:24:18,067 --> 00:24:19,967
ANCIENT RAMPS SIMILAR TO THESE
444
00:24:20,067 --> 00:24:24,600
HAVE BEEN FOUND AT THE EDGE
OF OLD EGYPTIAN HARBORS,
445
00:24:24,633 --> 00:24:27,900
BUT WHAT ARE THESE RAMPS
DOING FIVE MILES AWAY
446
00:24:27,933 --> 00:24:30,733
FROM THE NEAREST WATER?
447
00:24:30,767 --> 00:24:33,333
EGYPTOLOGISTS BELIEVE THAT
CLUES TO THIS MYSTERY
448
00:24:33,367 --> 00:24:36,167
LIE HIDDEN
IN AN UNUSUAL LAYER OF MUD
449
00:24:36,200 --> 00:24:38,300
DEEP BELOW THE PATHWAYS.
450
00:24:40,133 --> 00:24:42,467
LIFTING THESE STRANGE
STONE STRUCTURES
451
00:24:42,500 --> 00:24:44,233
OUT OF THE SAND
452
00:24:44,267 --> 00:24:45,767
REVEALS THAT THEY STRETCH
453
00:24:45,800 --> 00:24:49,300
100 FEET FROM THE TEMPLE.
454
00:24:49,333 --> 00:24:50,967
THEY SLOPE DOWNHILL,
455
00:24:51,067 --> 00:24:52,967
HUGGING THE TERRAIN PRECISELY.
456
00:24:54,667 --> 00:24:57,800
TOWARDS THE END,
THE GROUND THEY SIT IN CHANGES.
457
00:24:59,767 --> 00:25:02,067
HIDDEN IN THE SAND IS
A MYSTERIOUS LAYER
458
00:25:02,100 --> 00:25:03,733
OF BLACK SLUDGE
459
00:25:03,767 --> 00:25:06,633
NOT PRESENT ANYWHERE ELSE
AROUND THE TEMPLES.
460
00:25:08,333 --> 00:25:11,100
THIS IS A CLUE THAT THESE RAMPS
461
00:25:11,133 --> 00:25:12,533
ONCE SERVED A PURPOSE
462
00:25:12,567 --> 00:25:14,967
WE CAN NO LONGER SEE TODAY.
463
00:25:19,233 --> 00:25:22,067
EGYPTOLOGISTS BELIEVE
THAT THE DARK LAYER OF MUD
464
00:25:22,100 --> 00:25:25,433
FOUND UNDER THE SPHINX SITE
COULD BE EVIDENCE
465
00:25:25,467 --> 00:25:28,667
THAT THESE RAMPS WERE ONCE PART
OF A MAN-MADE HARBOR
466
00:25:28,700 --> 00:25:30,067
FED BY THE RIVER NILE
467
00:25:30,100 --> 00:25:32,800
LESS THAN TWO MILES TO THE EAST.
468
00:25:32,833 --> 00:25:34,367
SO WE HAVE THESE RAMPS
AND THE QUESTION IS,
469
00:25:34,400 --> 00:25:35,800
WHAT DO THEY LEAD TO?
470
00:25:35,833 --> 00:25:37,200
WHERE ARE THEY GOING?
471
00:25:37,233 --> 00:25:39,267
WELL, ONE OF THE MOST
REASONABLE EXPLANATIONS
472
00:25:39,300 --> 00:25:43,767
IS THEY LEAD DOWN,
PROBABLY INTO MAYBE A HARBOR.
473
00:25:43,800 --> 00:25:48,133
Narrator: TODAY, RICHARD REDDING
IS ON THE MODERN-DAY RIVER NILE.
474
00:25:48,167 --> 00:25:49,867
HE WANTS TO LOOK
FOR THE SAME MUD
475
00:25:49,900 --> 00:25:51,833
THAT ENDED UP BY THE SPHINX.
476
00:25:54,167 --> 00:25:56,533
HE BELIEVES THIS MUD IS
CARRIED BY THE WATER
477
00:25:56,567 --> 00:25:59,067
WHEN IT'S FLOWING...
478
00:25:59,100 --> 00:26:02,067
BUT THEN SINKS TO THE BOTTOM
WHEN IT'S CALM.
479
00:26:04,100 --> 00:26:05,467
Redding: WHAT WE'RE GOING
TO TRY AND DO HERE
480
00:26:05,500 --> 00:26:08,133
IS LOOK OUT ON THE CALM AREAS
AROUND THE NILE,
481
00:26:08,167 --> 00:26:10,700
FIND SOME SILT
IN THESE CALM AREAS
482
00:26:10,733 --> 00:26:12,567
WHERE IT FALLS OUT NATURALLY
483
00:26:12,600 --> 00:26:14,600
AND THAT WOULD BE
VERY SIMILAR TO THE PROCESS
484
00:26:14,633 --> 00:26:16,367
OF FORMING A SILT LAYER
485
00:26:16,400 --> 00:26:18,467
ON THE BOTTOM OF THIS HARBOR.
486
00:26:21,667 --> 00:26:23,067
Narrator: RICHARD AIMS HIS BOAT
487
00:26:23,067 --> 00:26:24,800
TOWARDS A CALM SECTION
OF THE NILE
488
00:26:24,833 --> 00:26:27,700
TO PUT THIS THEORY TO THE TEST.
489
00:26:27,733 --> 00:26:30,800
IF WE HEAD OVER TO
THE SHALLOWS OVER HERE,
490
00:26:30,833 --> 00:26:32,067
WE CAN TAKE SOME SAMPLES
491
00:26:32,067 --> 00:26:34,067
OF THE SILT
THAT LIE IN THE BOTTOM.
492
00:26:34,067 --> 00:26:35,633
THERE'S NOT MUCH WATER MOVEMENT
OVER HERE.
493
00:26:35,667 --> 00:26:39,433
IT'S FAIRLY CALM.
494
00:26:39,467 --> 00:26:41,967
Narrator: HE USES
A HAND-OPERATED DRILLING TOOL
495
00:26:42,067 --> 00:26:45,067
CALLED AN AUGER,
496
00:26:45,067 --> 00:26:48,433
TO LIFT OUT SAMPLES OF MUD
FROM THE BOTTOM OF THE RIVER.
497
00:26:53,733 --> 00:26:57,200
Redding: THIS IS ALMOST EXACTLY
WHAT I'D EXPECT
498
00:26:57,233 --> 00:27:00,267
IN A GOOD NILE SILT
IN A CALM AREA.
499
00:27:00,300 --> 00:27:03,700
SEE, THAT'LL -- THAT'LL --
RUBS ON MY FINGER HERE.
500
00:27:03,733 --> 00:27:06,933
Narrator: THIS TYPE OF SILT
IS UNIQUE TO THE NILE,
501
00:27:06,967 --> 00:27:08,633
BECAUSE OF THE RIVER'S SOURCE
502
00:27:08,667 --> 00:27:11,333
MILES UPSTREAM
IN CENTRAL AFRICA.
503
00:27:11,367 --> 00:27:14,367
Redding: THE SILT CAME DOWN
FROM THE ETHIOPIAN HIGHLANDS.
504
00:27:14,400 --> 00:27:16,133
AND THAT SILT WAS BLACK.
505
00:27:16,167 --> 00:27:17,567
IT WAS RICH IN MINERALS
506
00:27:17,600 --> 00:27:19,300
THAT ARE DARK,
VOLCANIC MINERALS,
507
00:27:19,333 --> 00:27:21,367
SO IT'S EXACTLY
WHAT I WOULD EXPECT.
508
00:27:23,600 --> 00:27:24,633
Narrator: RICHARD BELIEVES
509
00:27:24,667 --> 00:27:27,867
THE NILE MUD
AT THE BASE OF THE SPHINX
510
00:27:27,900 --> 00:27:29,433
IS PROOF THAT THE EGYPTIANS
511
00:27:29,467 --> 00:27:32,467
CONSTRUCTED
A SHELTERED HARBOR HERE.
512
00:27:32,500 --> 00:27:35,567
IT GETS INTO THAT HARBOR,
WHICH IS KIND OF A CUL-DE-SAC,
513
00:27:35,600 --> 00:27:37,767
YOU KNOW, A BAG AT THE END.
514
00:27:37,800 --> 00:27:40,100
AND THE WATER HITS THERE,
RISES UP,
515
00:27:40,133 --> 00:27:42,633
AND THEN STOPS,
AND IT CALMS DOWN.
516
00:27:42,667 --> 00:27:43,733
AND AS IT CALMS,
517
00:27:43,767 --> 00:27:45,433
ALL THAT SILT
THAT IT WAS CARRYING,
518
00:27:45,467 --> 00:27:47,067
ALL THAT BLACK SILT,
519
00:27:47,067 --> 00:27:49,833
ALL THAT NILE SILT
WILL JUST FALL TO THE BOTTOM
520
00:27:49,867 --> 00:27:52,333
AND CREATE A COATING
ON THE BOTTOM OF THE HARBOR.
521
00:27:55,533 --> 00:27:57,200
Narrator: RICHARD IS CONVINCED,
522
00:27:57,233 --> 00:28:00,300
BUT WHY DID THE EGYPTIANS
GO TO ALL THIS TROUBLE
523
00:28:00,333 --> 00:28:03,533
AND DIG SUCH A HUGE
ARTIFICIAL HARBOR?
524
00:28:03,567 --> 00:28:06,833
ONE THEORY IS
THAT THE SPHINX'S RAMPS
525
00:28:06,867 --> 00:28:10,167
WERE JUST ONE PART
OF A HUGE WATERFRONT COMPLEX,
526
00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:12,567
SUPPLYING GOODS AND MATERIAL
527
00:28:12,600 --> 00:28:16,633
FOR THE WHOLE
GIZA CONSTRUCTION SITE.
528
00:28:16,667 --> 00:28:20,733
BOATS BROUGHT IN GRANITE BLOCKS
TO DECORATE THE PYRAMIDS,
529
00:28:20,767 --> 00:28:22,900
TIMBER FOR BUILDING,
530
00:28:22,933 --> 00:28:25,600
AND LIVE CATTLE
TO FEED THE ARMY OF LABORERS
531
00:28:25,633 --> 00:28:28,567
WHO LIVED ON THE PLATEAU.
532
00:28:28,600 --> 00:28:30,567
WHEN PHARAOH KHAFRE DIED,
533
00:28:30,600 --> 00:28:33,733
THE WOODEN COFFIN
HOLDING HIS DEAD BODY
534
00:28:33,767 --> 00:28:38,700
WOULD CROSS THESE WATERS
TO BEGIN HIS BURIAL CEREMONY
535
00:28:38,733 --> 00:28:41,567
AND THE EGYPTIANS BELIEVED
THIS DIVINE PORT
536
00:28:41,600 --> 00:28:44,633
ALLOWED THE GODS,
ON THEIR CELESTIAL BARGES,
537
00:28:44,667 --> 00:28:48,133
TO VISIT THE SACRED TEMPLES
OF THE DECEASED PHARAOHS.
538
00:28:52,367 --> 00:28:53,867
YOU COULD NOT HAVE BUILT
THE PYRAMIDS
539
00:28:53,900 --> 00:28:55,233
WITHOUT WATER ACCESS.
540
00:28:55,267 --> 00:28:57,167
YOU COULD NOT HAVE MOVED
THESE LARGE STONES
541
00:28:57,200 --> 00:29:00,700
FROM WAYS ACROSS THE NILE,
OVER TO THE PYRAMIDS,
542
00:29:00,733 --> 00:29:02,533
FROM ASWAN, THE RED GRANITE,
543
00:29:02,567 --> 00:29:03,933
ALL THE WAY UP HERE.
544
00:29:03,967 --> 00:29:06,467
ALL THESE MATERIALS HAD TO HAVE
BEEN MOVED BY WATER.
545
00:29:06,500 --> 00:29:08,100
THEY COULD NOT HAVE BEEN
MOVED BY LAND.
546
00:29:08,133 --> 00:29:11,067
IT WAS JUST CRITICAL THAT YOU
HAD THIS WATER TRANSPORT,
547
00:29:11,067 --> 00:29:12,300
THIS WATER SYSTEM,
548
00:29:12,333 --> 00:29:15,667
THIS WATER INFRASTRUCTURE
TO BUILD THE PYRAMIDS.
549
00:29:19,800 --> 00:29:21,300
Narrator: THIS STONE GUARDIAN
550
00:29:21,333 --> 00:29:24,400
ONCE STARED OUT
OVER GIZA'S BUSTLING HARBOR.
551
00:29:26,400 --> 00:29:30,767
YET TODAY, KHAFRE'S FACE HAS ALL
BUT CRUMBLED TO THE FLOOR.
552
00:29:31,633 --> 00:29:34,733
THIS COULD BE
NATURAL LEVELS OF EROSION,
553
00:29:34,767 --> 00:29:37,067
BUT BIZARRELY,
THE SPHINX APPEARS
554
00:29:37,067 --> 00:29:38,367
TO BE AGING FASTER
555
00:29:38,400 --> 00:29:40,733
THAN THE PYRAMIDS
THAT SURROUND IT.
556
00:29:40,767 --> 00:29:42,400
WHY?
557
00:29:42,433 --> 00:29:44,267
AND HOW LONG DO HISTORIANS HAVE
558
00:29:44,300 --> 00:29:46,667
BEFORE THERE'S NOTHING LEFT
TO STUDY?
559
00:29:56,300 --> 00:29:57,933
Narrator: THE SPHINX
WATCHES OVER
560
00:29:57,967 --> 00:30:00,900
THE MODERN EGYPTIAN LANDSCAPE.
561
00:30:00,933 --> 00:30:04,567
IT HAS WITNESSED THE BIRTH
OF A MODERN AFRICAN COUNTRY,
562
00:30:04,600 --> 00:30:07,900
SEEN CAIRO EXPAND ALL AROUND IT,
563
00:30:07,933 --> 00:30:09,267
AND BECOME ONE OF THE WORLD'S
564
00:30:09,300 --> 00:30:12,400
MOST VISITED
TOURIST ATTRACTIONS.
565
00:30:12,433 --> 00:30:14,367
FOR MOST OF ITS LIFE,
566
00:30:14,400 --> 00:30:17,600
THIS ANCIENT BEAST
HAS BEEN UNDER REPAIR.
567
00:30:17,633 --> 00:30:20,933
THE SPHINX IS BEING EATEN AWAY
BY A MYSTERIOUS FORM
568
00:30:20,967 --> 00:30:22,700
OF ACCELERATED EROSION
569
00:30:22,733 --> 00:30:25,567
THAT DOESN'T SEEM
TO AFFECT THE NEARBY PYRAMIDS.
570
00:30:28,567 --> 00:30:31,233
THE TILES THAT PROTECT
THE LOWER BODY
571
00:30:31,267 --> 00:30:33,233
HAVE BEEN ADDED, REPAIRED,
572
00:30:33,267 --> 00:30:37,367
AND REPLACED
FOR THE LAST 3,000 YEARS.
573
00:30:37,400 --> 00:30:40,000
FROM THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS,
THROUGH THE ROMANS,
574
00:30:40,033 --> 00:30:43,167
RIGHT UP TO MODERN TIMES.
575
00:30:43,200 --> 00:30:44,667
IN THE 1920s,
576
00:30:44,700 --> 00:30:46,367
FRENCH ENGINEERS REPAIRED
577
00:30:46,400 --> 00:30:48,333
A HUGE CRACK IN THE BODY...
578
00:30:50,533 --> 00:30:52,867
...PLUGGED UP A HOLE
IN ITS SCALP...
579
00:30:54,800 --> 00:30:58,433
...AND FEARING THAT THE SPHINX
MIGHT LOSE ITS HEAD,
580
00:30:58,467 --> 00:31:02,933
THEY PLASTERED HUGE CEMENT
BUTTRESSES AROUND THE NECK.
581
00:31:02,967 --> 00:31:05,967
SAVING THE SPHINX IS
A BATTLE WITH TIME
582
00:31:06,067 --> 00:31:08,567
THAT CONTINUES TO THIS VERY DAY.
583
00:31:11,467 --> 00:31:14,933
WHY IS THE SPHINX
ERODING AWAY SO QUICKLY,
584
00:31:14,967 --> 00:31:18,667
WHILE THE NEARBY PYRAMIDS
SIT UNAFFECTED?
585
00:31:18,700 --> 00:31:20,667
MARK AND RICHARD WANT
TO FIND OUT.
586
00:31:20,700 --> 00:31:21,933
Lehner: IT'S NOT JUST
THE RECENT TIME,
587
00:31:21,967 --> 00:31:23,967
IT'S BEEN HERE
FOR 4,500 YEARS, SO...
588
00:31:24,067 --> 00:31:27,267
Narrator: THEY CANNOT INSPECT
THE BODY OF THE MONUMENT,
589
00:31:27,300 --> 00:31:29,067
BECAUSE MOST OF IT
IS NOW COVERED
590
00:31:29,067 --> 00:31:31,500
IN A PROTECTIVE LAYER
OF LIMESTONE CLAY
591
00:31:31,533 --> 00:31:34,933
AND NATURAL STONE TILES.
592
00:31:34,967 --> 00:31:38,233
BUT ON THE QUARRY WALL
THAT SURROUNDS THE SPHINX,
593
00:31:38,267 --> 00:31:39,933
THEY FIND EVIDENCE OF A UNIQUE
594
00:31:39,967 --> 00:31:42,167
TYPE OF EROSION
THAT ATTACKS LIMESTONE.
595
00:31:42,200 --> 00:31:46,067
WHAT YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN MIND
IS THAT THIS PROCESS
596
00:31:46,067 --> 00:31:48,100
AFFECTING THE QUARRY WALL
597
00:31:48,133 --> 00:31:49,900
IS EXACTLY THE PROCESS
598
00:31:49,933 --> 00:31:54,467
THAT IS STILL GOING ON
IN THE LION BODY OF THE SPHINX.
599
00:31:54,500 --> 00:31:57,067
AND YOU CAN SEE THE FLAKES
ALL AROUND HERE
600
00:31:57,067 --> 00:31:58,567
AND, BASICALLY,
WHAT THIS IS,
601
00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:01,067
IS DISINTEGRATED BEDROCK.
602
00:32:01,067 --> 00:32:02,800
YOU HAVE FLAKES
COMING OFF.
603
00:32:02,833 --> 00:32:04,067
YOU GOT SOME CHUNKS
COMING OFF HERE.
604
00:32:04,100 --> 00:32:05,067
YEAH.
605
00:32:08,067 --> 00:32:09,633
Narrator: GEOLOGY EXPERT RICHARD
606
00:32:09,667 --> 00:32:11,500
THINKS THAT WATER CARRIES SALT
607
00:32:11,533 --> 00:32:13,100
TO THE SURFACE OF THE ROCK,
608
00:32:13,133 --> 00:32:16,933
WHICH THEN HAS
A DEVASTATING EFFECT.
609
00:32:16,967 --> 00:32:19,267
THE SALTS GET INTO EVERY PORE,
EVERY CRACK,
610
00:32:19,300 --> 00:32:21,600
WHERE IT CRYSTALLIZES
AND THE EXPANDING CRYSTALS
611
00:32:21,633 --> 00:32:25,233
HAVE A GREAT FORCE TO THEM,
AND IT ACTUALLY BREAKS THE ROCK
612
00:32:25,267 --> 00:32:27,700
AND FORCES PIECES
TO COME OFF.
613
00:32:27,733 --> 00:32:30,100
BUT IN A COUNTRY
WHERE IT OFTEN DOESN'T RAIN
614
00:32:30,133 --> 00:32:31,700
FOR MONTHS AT A TIME,
615
00:32:31,733 --> 00:32:35,733
WHERE IS THIS WATER COMING FROM?
616
00:32:35,767 --> 00:32:38,233
AND WHY IS IT NOT AFFECTING
THE GREAT PYRAMIDS
617
00:32:38,267 --> 00:32:39,633
IN THE SAME WAY?
618
00:32:42,333 --> 00:32:44,600
CARVING THE SPHINX
OUT OF THE GROUND
619
00:32:44,633 --> 00:32:47,500
MEANS IT SITS 130 FEET LOWER
620
00:32:47,533 --> 00:32:49,467
THAN THE BOTTOM OF THE PYRAMIDS.
621
00:32:52,067 --> 00:32:55,867
ITS BASE IS CLOSE
TO A LAYER OF UNDERGROUND WATER
622
00:32:55,900 --> 00:32:57,967
THAT PUSHES MOISTURE UPWARDS.
623
00:33:01,600 --> 00:33:04,100
THE POROUS LIMESTONE
IN THE SPHINX BODY
624
00:33:04,133 --> 00:33:07,700
SUCKS UP THIS LIQUID,
LIKE A SPONGE,
625
00:33:07,733 --> 00:33:11,100
WHICH THEN TURNS
THE SPHINX'S SKIN TO DUST.
626
00:33:13,367 --> 00:33:14,733
UNLIKE THE PYRAMIDS,
627
00:33:14,767 --> 00:33:16,067
THE SPHINX IS ALSO
628
00:33:16,067 --> 00:33:17,333
DIRECTLY CONNECTED
629
00:33:17,367 --> 00:33:19,333
TO THE ROCK BELOW.
630
00:33:19,367 --> 00:33:21,633
Lehner: THE SPHINX IS NOT
A STATUE SITTING SEPARATE
631
00:33:21,667 --> 00:33:25,067
OR EVEN A TEMPLE BUILT OUT
OF SEPARATE BLOCKS,
632
00:33:25,067 --> 00:33:28,067
BUT THE SPHINX IS LITERALLY
PART OF THE ENVIRONMENT,
633
00:33:28,100 --> 00:33:30,200
IT'S PART OF THE LIVING ROCK.
634
00:33:30,233 --> 00:33:33,733
ALL THE NATURAL PROCESSES
THAT AFFECT THIS WALL HERE
635
00:33:33,767 --> 00:33:36,600
ARE AFFECTING
THE SPHINX STATUE ITSELF.
636
00:33:37,733 --> 00:33:39,233
Narrator: CARVING THE SPHINX
DIRECTLY OUT
637
00:33:39,267 --> 00:33:40,733
OF THE LIMESTONE BEDROCK
638
00:33:40,767 --> 00:33:43,633
MADE THIS GIANT STATUE POSSIBLE,
639
00:33:43,667 --> 00:33:46,233
BUT MAY ALSO HAVE BEEN
ITS UNDOING.
640
00:33:49,067 --> 00:33:52,067
ONE SOLUTION
TO STEM THE RISING DAM
641
00:33:52,067 --> 00:33:55,867
WOULD BE TO CUT THE SPHINX
AWAY FROM THE BEDROCK.
642
00:33:55,900 --> 00:33:58,933
HOWEVER, THE MONUMENT WEIGHS
THOUSANDS OF TONS
643
00:33:58,967 --> 00:34:02,233
AND COULD BE TOO FRAGILE
FOR THIS SCHEME TO SUCCEED.
644
00:34:04,633 --> 00:34:06,967
SO TODAY, ENGINEERS ARE APPLYING
645
00:34:07,067 --> 00:34:09,367
A LAYER OF SPECIAL
LIMESTONE CLAY
646
00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:11,267
CALLED CONSOLIDANT,
647
00:34:11,300 --> 00:34:13,500
TO TRY AND SLOW DOWN
THE EROSION.
648
00:34:14,700 --> 00:34:16,200
EVEN THESE DAYS,
649
00:34:16,233 --> 00:34:19,300
THEY ARE HERE ON A REGULAR BASIS
650
00:34:19,333 --> 00:34:22,267
TO TRY TO ARREST THIS PROCESS
651
00:34:22,300 --> 00:34:25,733
AND SAVE THE FORM OF THE SPHINX.
652
00:34:25,767 --> 00:34:28,867
Narrator: FOR CONSERVATORS,
IT IS A RACE AGAINST TIME
653
00:34:28,900 --> 00:34:31,900
TO PROTECT THE SPHINX
654
00:34:31,933 --> 00:34:35,533
BEFORE ITS ANCIENT STONE
IS LOST TO THE DESERT.
655
00:34:36,533 --> 00:34:40,067
THE SPHINX AND ITS TEMPLES
WERE MOST LIKELY DESIGNED
656
00:34:40,067 --> 00:34:42,800
TO KEEP THE GREAT PHARAOH'S
MEMORY ALIVE
657
00:34:42,833 --> 00:34:45,633
THROUGH SUN-POWERED
RELIGIOUS RITUALS,
658
00:34:47,267 --> 00:34:48,800
BUT THERE ARE PARTS
OF THE COMPLEX
659
00:34:48,833 --> 00:34:51,567
THAT LOOK INCOMPLETE.
660
00:34:51,600 --> 00:34:53,067
COMPELLING NEW EVIDENCE
661
00:34:53,067 --> 00:34:57,167
SUGGESTS KHAFRE'S
GREAT RESURRECTION MACHINE...
662
00:34:57,200 --> 00:34:59,533
MAY NEVER HAVE BEEN SWITCHED ON.
663
00:35:09,800 --> 00:35:12,067
Narrator: THE GREAT SPHINX
AND ITS TEMPLES
664
00:35:12,067 --> 00:35:14,300
ARE SLOWLY GIVING UP
THEIR SECRETS.
665
00:35:15,767 --> 00:35:18,233
THE EGYPTIANS BUILT THESE
MONUMENTAL STRUCTURES
666
00:35:18,267 --> 00:35:20,133
FOR THE GREAT PHARAOH KHAFRE...
667
00:35:21,800 --> 00:35:24,100
...DESIGNED TO ENSURE
HE WAS WORSHIPPED
668
00:35:24,133 --> 00:35:25,333
AFTER HIS DEATH.
669
00:35:27,633 --> 00:35:30,100
BUT THERE'S A PROBLEM.
670
00:35:30,133 --> 00:35:32,467
SOME PARTS OF THE COMPLEX
AROUND THE SPHINX
671
00:35:32,500 --> 00:35:34,200
APPEAR INCOMPLETE.
672
00:35:36,200 --> 00:35:37,667
Lehner: THIS LEDGE TELLS ME
673
00:35:37,700 --> 00:35:39,100
THEY NEVER
REALLY FINISHED THE JOB,
674
00:35:39,133 --> 00:35:42,967
OF THE SPHINX
AND THE SPHINX TEMPLE.
675
00:35:43,067 --> 00:35:45,167
Narrator: EGYPTOLOGIST
MARK LEHNER SUSPECTS
676
00:35:45,200 --> 00:35:46,733
THE MEN CUTTING THIS WALL
677
00:35:46,767 --> 00:35:48,567
ABANDONED THEIR WORK.
678
00:35:51,900 --> 00:35:53,167
SEEN FROM THE AIR,
679
00:35:53,200 --> 00:35:55,100
THE WALL
ON THE LEFT OF THE SPHINX
680
00:35:55,133 --> 00:35:56,567
IS A STRAIGHT EDGE,
681
00:35:56,600 --> 00:35:58,067
BUT THE WALL TO THE RIGHT
682
00:35:58,067 --> 00:36:01,900
HAS A SUSPICIOUS
PROTRUDING LEDGE.
683
00:36:01,933 --> 00:36:04,067
Lehner: SUDDENLY,
WE HAVE THIS HUGE SHELF
684
00:36:04,067 --> 00:36:06,900
OF BEDROCK STICKING OUT.
685
00:36:06,933 --> 00:36:08,633
THIS IS EXACTLY
WHERE THEY STOPPED.
686
00:36:08,667 --> 00:36:10,067
AND THIS SUGGESTS TO ME
687
00:36:10,100 --> 00:36:11,900
THAT THEY NEVER REALLY FINISHED
688
00:36:11,933 --> 00:36:15,100
CUTTING THE SPHINX DITCH.
689
00:36:15,133 --> 00:36:17,500
Narrator: MARK
AND FELLOW INVESTIGATOR RICHARD
690
00:36:17,533 --> 00:36:19,567
HUNT FOR EVIDENCE
THAT THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS
691
00:36:19,600 --> 00:36:22,900
HAD STARTED TO CUT
THIS PART OF THE WALL AWAY.
692
00:36:23,767 --> 00:36:27,767
Lehner: PROBABLY THIS PATCH WAS
ONE PERSON'S ALLOTMENT
693
00:36:27,800 --> 00:36:31,733
AND PROBABLY HE WAS
SQUATTED HERE.
694
00:36:31,767 --> 00:36:32,900
MM-HMM.
695
00:36:32,933 --> 00:36:35,300
AND HE'S POUNDING
WITH A HAMMERSTONE,
696
00:36:35,333 --> 00:36:39,633
POSSIBLY A CHISEL,
NOW AND THEN.
697
00:36:39,667 --> 00:36:42,067
AS MARK AND RICHARD
CLEAN THE AREA,
698
00:36:42,067 --> 00:36:44,433
THEY FIND WHAT
THEY'RE LOOKING FOR --
699
00:36:44,467 --> 00:36:47,300
EVIDENCE THAT THIS ROCKFACE
WAS STILL BEING WORKED ON
700
00:36:47,333 --> 00:36:50,467
WHEN IT WAS ABANDONED.
701
00:36:50,500 --> 00:36:52,667
THESE THREE CHANNELS
CUT INTO THE ROCK
702
00:36:52,700 --> 00:36:55,200
COULD'VE BEEN CHISELED OUT
BY LABORERS --
703
00:36:55,233 --> 00:36:56,300
PART OF A TECHNIQUE
704
00:36:56,333 --> 00:37:00,100
FOR REMOVING THE STONE
MOST EFFICIENTLY.
705
00:37:00,133 --> 00:37:01,900
Lehner: YOU CAN SEE THAT
HE CUT THESE CHANNELS,
706
00:37:01,933 --> 00:37:03,400
PROBABLY WITH A PICK,
707
00:37:03,433 --> 00:37:05,233
LEAVING THE GREAT HUMPS
708
00:37:05,267 --> 00:37:08,700
THAT HE WOULD THEN WASTE AWAY
WITH A HEAVY HAMMERSTONE.
709
00:37:08,733 --> 00:37:11,567
THERE MUST'VE BEEN
THREE DOZEN SUCH WORKERS,
710
00:37:11,600 --> 00:37:13,200
EACH WITH THEIR OWN PATCH,
711
00:37:13,233 --> 00:37:15,500
CLINK-A-CHENK, CLINK-A-CHENK,
WITH THEIR PICKS
712
00:37:15,533 --> 00:37:17,267
AND THEN BLASTING THE HUMPS AWAY
713
00:37:17,300 --> 00:37:19,267
WITH THEIR HAMMERSTONES
714
00:37:19,300 --> 00:37:20,500
TO BRING THE LEDGE DOWN
715
00:37:20,533 --> 00:37:22,400
TO THE LEVEL
OF THE SPHINX'S FLOOR.
716
00:37:22,433 --> 00:37:24,600
IT MUST'VE BEEN QUITE A SCENE.
717
00:37:24,633 --> 00:37:27,500
Narrator: BUT MARK IS CONVINCED
THESE EGYPTIAN WORKMEN
718
00:37:27,533 --> 00:37:30,300
SUDDENLY WALKED OFF THE JOB
AND LEFT.
719
00:37:30,333 --> 00:37:31,733
WHY?
720
00:37:31,767 --> 00:37:33,833
Lehner: AND OUR BEST GUESS,
THAT THE REASON THEY STOPPED,
721
00:37:33,867 --> 00:37:35,733
IS THAT KHAFRE DIED
722
00:37:35,767 --> 00:37:37,367
AND A NEW KING CAME
TO THE THRONE
723
00:37:37,400 --> 00:37:38,733
AND THEY HAD
TO START IMMEDIATELY
724
00:37:38,767 --> 00:37:40,833
ON HIS PYRAMID COMPLEX.
725
00:37:40,867 --> 00:37:44,233
THE RESURRECTION MACHINE
THAT KHAFRE PLANNED
726
00:37:44,267 --> 00:37:46,333
WITH THE SPHINX
AND SPHINX TEMPLE
727
00:37:46,367 --> 00:37:48,400
WAS NEVER FINISHED.
728
00:37:51,067 --> 00:37:52,867
Narrator:
CONSTRUCTION AT GIZA CARRIED ON
729
00:37:52,900 --> 00:37:56,400
FOR ABOUT ANOTHER 350 YEARS,
730
00:37:56,433 --> 00:37:59,533
BUT THEN,
CAME TO A COMPLETE STOP.
731
00:38:00,900 --> 00:38:04,433
INVESTIGATORS NOW BELIEVE THAT
A CATACLYSMIC NATURAL EVENT
732
00:38:04,467 --> 00:38:07,500
MADE THE EGYPTIANS ABANDON GIZA.
733
00:38:07,533 --> 00:38:10,567
THE NILE WAS CHANGING COURSE.
734
00:38:12,867 --> 00:38:16,633
AS THE FERTILE WATERS
OF THE NILE DRIFTED EAST,
735
00:38:16,667 --> 00:38:19,233
THE GIZA PLATEAU DRIED UP,
736
00:38:19,267 --> 00:38:23,867
AND THE SPHINX BECAME LOST
TO THE SANDS OF TIME.
737
00:38:23,900 --> 00:38:26,067
WITHOUT ANYONE ON GUARD,
738
00:38:26,100 --> 00:38:30,100
THIS SACRED SITE WAS LEFT
FOR THIEVES TO STRIP IT BARE,
739
00:38:30,133 --> 00:38:33,700
THE VALUABLE STONE
AND STATUES LOST FOREVER.
740
00:38:35,733 --> 00:38:37,833
COVERED OVER BY DESERT SANDS,
741
00:38:37,867 --> 00:38:41,433
THE SPHINX COULD'VE BEEN
GONE FOR GOOD.
742
00:38:41,467 --> 00:38:45,100
BUT MARK BELIEVES THERE
IS EVIDENCE THAT MUCH LATER,
743
00:38:45,133 --> 00:38:47,333
IT WAS REDISCOVERED
AND REPURPOSED
744
00:38:47,367 --> 00:38:50,067
BY FUTURE GENERATIONS
OF EGYPTIAN PHARAOHS.
745
00:38:51,967 --> 00:38:54,267
HE FINDS THIS EVIDENCE
IN A STRANGE PANEL
746
00:38:54,300 --> 00:38:55,833
CALLED A STELE,
747
00:38:55,867 --> 00:38:58,967
WHICH WAS WRITTEN 1,000 YEARS
AFTER KHAFRE DEATH
748
00:38:59,067 --> 00:39:01,667
BY PHARAOH THUTMOSE IV.
749
00:39:01,700 --> 00:39:04,267
IT'S ABUNDANTLY CLEAR
THAT IT'S THUTMOSE.
750
00:39:04,300 --> 00:39:05,433
IT'S ALL ABOUT THUTMOSE.
751
00:39:05,467 --> 00:39:09,400
HIS NAME IS ALL OVER
THE TOP OF THE STELE.
752
00:39:09,433 --> 00:39:11,233
Narrator: MARK DECIPHERS
THE HIEROGLYPHS
753
00:39:11,267 --> 00:39:14,067
TO REVEAL THE STORY OF THUTMOSE,
754
00:39:14,100 --> 00:39:16,100
A ROYAL PRINCE WHO CAME TO GIZA
755
00:39:16,133 --> 00:39:19,433
ON A HUNTING TRIP
FROM THE CAPITAL MEMPHIS.
756
00:39:19,467 --> 00:39:22,700
AND HE SAYS, HE SLEPT IN
THE SHADOW OF THE SPHINX'S HEAD.
757
00:39:22,733 --> 00:39:24,733
THE SPHINX CAME TO HIM
IN A DREAM.
758
00:39:24,767 --> 00:39:26,333
SAYS, "THUTMOSE, MY SON,
759
00:39:26,367 --> 00:39:28,767
LOOK HOW THE SAND
HAS ENGULFED MY BODY.
760
00:39:28,800 --> 00:39:31,833
CLEAR THE SAND AWAY FROM ME,
AND I WILL MAKE YOU THE KING
761
00:39:31,867 --> 00:39:34,600
OF UPPER AND LOWER EGYPT."
762
00:39:34,633 --> 00:39:36,067
Narrator: IT SEEMS
THAT THE SPHINX
763
00:39:36,067 --> 00:39:38,300
MADE GOOD ON ITS PROMISE.
764
00:39:38,333 --> 00:39:40,200
THUTMOSE BECAME KING OF EGYPT
765
00:39:40,233 --> 00:39:43,967
DESPITE NOT BEING DIRECTLY
IN LINE TO THE THRONE.
766
00:39:44,067 --> 00:39:45,533
Lehner:
THUTMOSE PUT UP THIS STELE
767
00:39:45,567 --> 00:39:47,333
IN THE FIRST YEAR OF HIS REIGN.
768
00:39:47,367 --> 00:39:49,533
A COUPLE OTHER KINGS CAME
AND PUT UP STELE
769
00:39:49,567 --> 00:39:51,333
IN THE FIRST YEARS
OF THEIR REIGNS.
770
00:39:51,367 --> 00:39:54,500
THE SPHINX BECAME LIKE --
IN A WAY, LIKE THE VATICAN,
771
00:39:54,533 --> 00:39:56,433
THE PLACE OF ORDINATION,
772
00:39:56,467 --> 00:39:59,800
THE PLACE WHERE THIS ANCIENT
IMAGE OF THE SUN GOD,
773
00:39:59,833 --> 00:40:01,867
THE PROGENITOR OF ALL KINGS,
774
00:40:01,900 --> 00:40:04,700
BESTOWED KINGSHIP ON THOSE
775
00:40:04,733 --> 00:40:06,633
WHO WERE NEWLY ASCENDED
TO THE THRONE.
776
00:40:08,867 --> 00:40:11,733
BUILT TO IDOLIZE A PHARAOH,
777
00:40:11,767 --> 00:40:14,067
THE SYMBOL OF A KING
778
00:40:14,100 --> 00:40:18,500
THAT INSPIRED
A NEW BREED OF STATUE.
779
00:40:18,533 --> 00:40:20,367
THAT ICONIC IMAGE,
THE COMBINATION
780
00:40:20,400 --> 00:40:22,200
OF THE PHARAOH'S HEAD
AND THE LION BODY,
781
00:40:22,233 --> 00:40:24,133
THE SPHINX, WAS REPLICATED
782
00:40:24,167 --> 00:40:25,800
PROBABLY HUNDRED OF TIMES
783
00:40:25,833 --> 00:40:28,400
THROUGH THE LATER DYNASTIES
OF EGYPT.
784
00:40:28,433 --> 00:40:30,733
THE LEGACY OF THE SPHINX
HAS GONE WAY BEYOND
785
00:40:30,767 --> 00:40:33,033
WHAT KHAFRE COULD'VE IMAGINED.
786
00:40:33,067 --> 00:40:34,667
Narrator: THE SPHINX
HAS SURVIVED
787
00:40:34,700 --> 00:40:36,867
FOR MORE THAN FOUR MILLENNIA,
788
00:40:36,900 --> 00:40:39,600
GUARDING THE ANCIENT PYRAMIDS
OF GIZA.
789
00:40:40,733 --> 00:40:42,933
NOTHING, NO PIECE OF ART,
790
00:40:42,967 --> 00:40:44,300
NO SCULPTURE,
791
00:40:44,333 --> 00:40:49,533
NO STATUE ON THIS SCALE
HAD EXISTED BEFORE
792
00:40:49,567 --> 00:40:51,933
AND, IN FACT, NO STATUE,
793
00:40:51,967 --> 00:40:53,300
ON THIS SCALE,
794
00:40:53,333 --> 00:40:56,567
WOULD EXIST AGAIN
FOR ANOTHER MILLENNIUM.
795
00:40:59,533 --> 00:41:02,867
Narrator:
THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA --
796
00:41:02,900 --> 00:41:05,567
ONE OF THE MOST
ICONIC AND MYSTERIOUS
797
00:41:05,600 --> 00:41:07,300
STRUCTURES IN THE WORLD.
798
00:41:08,933 --> 00:41:13,233
AS INVESTIGATORS WORK
ON THIS GIANT FELINE,
799
00:41:13,267 --> 00:41:17,600
THEY ARE SLOWLY STARTING
TO UNEARTH ITS SECRETS.
800
00:41:17,633 --> 00:41:20,633
FROM ITS MYSTIFYING,
DISFIGURED FACE,
801
00:41:20,667 --> 00:41:23,300
TO ITS RUINED TEMPLES,
802
00:41:23,333 --> 00:41:25,700
THEY ARE
GRADUALLY UNDERSTANDING MORE
803
00:41:25,733 --> 00:41:28,533
ABOUT THIS GREAT STRUCTURE
804
00:41:28,567 --> 00:41:30,600
AND THE KING WHO BUILT IT.
805
00:41:36,600 --> 00:41:40,500
*
61785
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