Sphinx Connections

I was watching Guy Ritchie's first SHerlock Holmes film recently, and someone said that the sphinx is believed to be a portal to another dimension.

Giant red sphinx goes into retreat

The largest sphinx in the western hemisphere is a red granite specimen in the Penn Museum in Philadelphia.

A huge renovation project that will last for many years has just begun, and the sphinx will not be on display during the gallery makeover.

It weighs around 13 tons and was excavated in 1913 from the great temple at Memphis.

Rameses II’s sculptors obliterated the original inscriptions so the identity of the pharaoh it was originally created for is unknown. Weathering is responsible for the eradication of the features. What a pity:

Another Egyptian sphinx is found

But this one is not in the same league as the Great Sphinx:

“Egyptian archaeologists have discovered a statue of a lion's body and a human head in the southern city of Aswan.

The Antiquities Ministry says the sphinx, made of sandstone, was found in the Temple of Kom Ombo during work to protect the site from groundwater.

Mostafa Waziri, secretary general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities, says the statue probably dates back to the Ptolemaic time.”

www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-6173331/Archaeologists-discover-sandstone-Sphinx-statue-work-protect-ancient-Egyptian-temple.html

As found, and all cleaned up:

Two winged sphinxes in Bavaria

Bavaria has become a place of interest on here. It has a few sphinxes, including a weird wall sculpture in Munich, possibly part of the cathedral, and a modern mixed-style one in Hochfeld in Augsburg:

Two more Bavarian sphinxes

Another ornate sphinx from the Rococo Gardens, Schloss Veitshoechheim and a more traditional one from the town memorial in Coburg:

Sphinxes from The Never-Ending Story

The Never-Ending Story film was based on a book by Bavarian writer Michael Ende. It was made by Bavaria Film Studio and filmed in Bavaria.

One of the hazards is a Riddle Gate that is guarded by two giant sphinxes with death-ray eyes:

Sphinx on a wall in Wales

Sphinx head carving set within a wall in Caerwys in Flintshire:

The Brunswig sphinx

Lucien Brunswig is said to have come to the US from his hometown of Munich in Bavaria in 1871.

This fine marble specimen is part of the Egyptian-revival style Brunswig Family Mausoleum in the Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans. It was created around 1943.

David Lindsay’s novel Sphinx

David Lindsay is best known for Voyage to Arcturus.

He also wrote Sphinx. It is slightly disappointing because the sphinx in the title just refers to a piece of music. This cover is good though:

Soho House Museum Sphinxes

Soho House Museum in Birmingham is nothing to do with the Soho House members’ clubs. It is a historic Georgian house that was owned by 18th Century industrialist Matthew Boulton.

The Museum has been refurbished, and two stone Greek-style sphinx statues that were originally part of the ‘Sphinx Walk’ in the gardens and were later sold off have been returned.

“We’re going back to the garden!”




“Be careful there boys!”

Louis XVI clock with sphinxes

This decorative mantelpiece clock made from white marble and gilt is an early example of Egyptomania in the France of Louis XVI. However, the sphinxes look like Egyptian/Greek hybrids:

Not a good idea - I don't know how to drive!

Sphinx cakes

Just like Alice in Wonderland, sphinxes have inspired creators and designers in many different areas of life, including makers of custom cakes.

The sphinx cakes are not quite in the same league of the Alice ones, but some are works of art.

A plain one and a fancy one:

Sphinx toys

A moneybox and a collection of Playmobil plastic people::