sphinx

Examples of sphinx in the following topics:

• Sculpture of the Old Kingdom

  • The Great Sphinx, located among the Pyramids of Giza, is the largest monolith statue in the world, standing 241 feet long, 63 feet wide, and 66.34 feet high.
  • Carved out of limestone, it represents a mythical creature known as a sphinx, with a lion's body and a human head.
  • It is commonly believed that the head of the Great Sphinx is that of the Fourth Dynasty (2680-2565 BCE) pharaoh Khafre, whose pyramid stands directly behind the giant sculpture.
  • The Great Sphinx, located among the Pyramids of Giza, is the largest monolith statue in the world.

• The Etruscan Culture

  • Patterning and depictions of animals, especially lions, leopards, and mythological composite creatures such as sphinxes and griffins were common.
  • The sphinxes on the lid and on the bottom register, as well as the frieze of animals at the op, reflect the Eastern theme.
  • Pyxis with sphinx-shaped handle lid.

• The Pyramids of the Old Kingdom

  • The Necropolis also includes several cemeteries, a workers' village, an industrial complex, and a massive sculpture known as the Great Sphinx.
  • The Great Sphinx is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx—a mythical creature with a lion's body and a human head.
  • Albumen print of the Sphinx of Giza, partially excavated, with two pyramids in background
  • The Great Sphinx of Giza is the largest monolith statue in the world and was believed to have been built for King Khafra during the 4th Dynasty.

• Diocletian's Palace

  • Diocletian adorned his new home with numerous 3500-year-old granite sphinxes, originating from the site of Egyptian Pharaoh Thutmose III.

• Humans and Their Deities

  • In some cases, this included a fusion of animal form with the face of the king or queen (as in the Hatshepsut-Sphinx, ) or as the god-king victors of an epic battle, as in the stele of Naran-Sin of Akkad (the first Mesopotamian king to claim divinity for himself, ).
  • Sphinx of Hatshepsut, the ancient Egyptian female pharaoh, with unusual rounded ears and ruff that stress the lioness features of the statue

• Artistic Conventions in Painting

  • Examples of his work include the paintings "Virgil reading to Augustus," and "Oedipus and the Sphinx. " Both David and Ingres make use of the highly organized imagery, straight lines and clearly defined forms that are typical of Neoclassical painting during the 18th century.

• Vase Painting in the Orientalizing Period

  • Animals such as lions, griffins, sphinxes, and sirens were depicted instead.

• Mycenaean Ceramics

  • A painted plaster head of a female -- perhaps depicting a priestess, goddess, or sphinx -- is one of the few examples of large scale sculptural work.
  • Female head of a priestess, goddess, or sphinx.

• Temple Architecture in the Greek Orientalizing Period

  • Atop the entablature sat sculptures of two winged female creatures resembling the sphinx or the lamassu of the ancient Assyrian and Babylonian cultures.

• Neoclassical Paintings

  • Examples of his Neoclassical work include the paintings Virgil Reading to Augustus (1812), and Oedipus and the Sphinx (1864).