New research and evidence that the Sphinx is thousands of years older than previously thought

• Contrasts what Egyptologists claim about the Sphinx with historical accounts and new research including reanalysis of seismic studies and updates to Schoch’s water weathering research and Bauval’s Orion Correlation Theory

• Examines how the Sphinx is contemporaneous with Göbekli Tepe, aligned with the constellation Leo, and was recarved during the Old Kingdom era of Egypt

• Reveals that the Sphinx was built during the actual historical Golden Age of ancient Egypt, the period known in legend as Zep Tepi

No other monument in the world evokes mystery like the Great Sphinx of Giza. It has survived the harsh climate of Egypt for thousands of years and will remain long after our own civilization is gone. According to orthodox Egyptology, the Sphinx was built around 2500 BCE as a memorial to the pharaoh Khafre. Yet this “fact” has scant to no supportive evidence. When was the Sphinx really built and, most importantly, why?

In this provocative collaboration from two Egyptology outsiders, Robert M. Schoch, Ph.D., and Robert Bauval combine their decades of research to show how the Sphinx is thousands of years older than the conventional Egyptological timeline and was built by a long forgotten pre-Pharaonic civilization. They examine the known history of the Sphinx, contrasting what Egyptologists claim with prominent historical accounts and new research, including updates to Schoch’s geological water weathering research and reanalysis of seismic studies. Building on Bauval’s Orion Correlation Theory, they investigate the archaeoastronomical alignments of the monuments of the Giza Plateau and reveal how the pyramids and Sphinx were built to align with the constellations of Orion and Leo. Analyzing the evidence for a significantly older construction phase at Giza and the restoration and recarving of the Sphinx during the Old Kingdom era, they assert that the Sphinx was first built by an advanced pre-Pharaonic civilization that existed circa 12,000 years ago on the Giza Plateau, contemporaneous with the sophisticated Göbekli Tepe complex.

The authors examine how the monuments at Giza memorialize Zep Tepi, the Golden Age of legend shown here to be an actual historical time period from roughly 10,500 BCE through 9700 BCE. Moving us closer to an understanding of the true age and purpose of the Great Sphinx, Schoch and Bauval provide evidence of an early high civilization witnessed by the Great Sphinx before the end of the last ice age.

Robert M. Schoch, Ph.D., a tenured faculty member at Boston University, earned his doctorate in geology and geophysics at Yale University. Known for his research on the Sphinx, he is the author of several books, including Forgotten Civilization. Egyptian-born Robert Bauval began studying Egyptology in 1983. The author of numerous books, including The Orion Mystery and Black Genesis, he lives in Torremolinos, Spain.

Acknowledgments

Preface
Robert M. Schoch

ONE
The Great Paradox
Robert Bauval

TWO
The Sands of Time
Robert M. Schoch

THREE
Khafre: To Be or Not To Be?
Robert Bauval

FOUR
A Case of Mistaken Identity?
Robert Bauval

FIVE
Horus Who Dwells in the Horizon
Robert Bauval

SIX
The Place Where the Gods Are Born
Robert Bauval

SEVEN
The Writing on the Wall
Robert M. Schoch

Epilogue
Robert M. Schoch

Appendix 1
The “Paradigm Police” and the Upside-Down Worldview of an Authoritative “Expert”
Robert Bauval

Appendix 2
The Orion Correlation Theory: Can It Be Falsified?
Robert Bauval

Appendix 3
The Ancient Egyptians and the Zodiacal Constellation of Leo
Robert Bauval

Appendix 4
The Sacred Mounds of the Memphite Region
Robert Bauval

Appendix 5
Text of the Dream Stela
Translation by J. H. Breasted, 1906

Appendix 6
Redating the Great Sphinx of Giza: The Original 1992 Paper
Robert M. Schoch

Appendix 7
Geological Evidence Pertaining to the Age of the Great Sphinx, Including Replies to the Critics
Robert M. Schoch

Appendix 8
Was the Great Sphinx Surrounded by a Moat? Was the Sphinx Originally Anubis?
Robert M. Schoch

Appendix 9
Controversies concerning the End of the Last Ice Age
Robert M. Schoch

Bibliography

About the Authors

Index