Sphinxes with a Human Head and with a Ram Head at Point Y. Karnak (Thebes)
Medium
salted paper print from calotype negative
Dimensions
image: 23.8 × 31.1 cm · matted: 50.8 × 61 cm
Classification
Photograph
Department
Photography
Museum
Cleveland Museum of Art
Credit
Gift of Betty and Max Ratner in honor of Arielle Kozloff
Accession Number
1992.331
Tags
male
About this artwork
The monumental sphinx at Giza, which has the head of a man and the body of a lion, is one of the most iconic symbols of ancient Egypt. The country contains other, humbler versions of this mythical creature. The one here with the head of a ram is only nine feet long and held a statue of a human between its paws.