Sphinx_Tucker

=__**The Sphinx**__= The Sphinx is a mythical creature that exists in both Egyptian and Greek mythology. For this reason, this article is divided into two sections, one expressing the Egyptian tradition, and another evaluating the Greek stories.

__Egypt__
The Egyptian Sphinx was a benevolent, male deity that guarded the entrances to temples. Traditionally, the head of an Egyptian Sphinx was carved to resemble some important figure, often a Pharaoh. The head of the great Sphinx of Giza is thought to have been built to resemble the head of the Pharaoh Khafra. The Egyptian references to the Sphinx came well before the Greek tradition, and therefore are notable as the first references to the Sphinx ever.

__Greece__
The Greek Sphinx was very different than the earlier Egyptian Sphinx. In Greek tradition, the Sphinx was a ruthless creature that was very fond of riddles. Physically, the Greek Sphinx varied slightly from the Egyptian version. She was female, with the body of a lion, the wings of a giant bird, and the head of a human woman. The parentage of the Sphinx is not entirely clear, but it is most often claimed that she is the daughter of Orthus, a two headed dog, and Echidna, who was half woman, half snake.

__The Riddle of the Sphinx__
In Greek mythology, the Sphinx plagued travelers near the city of Thebes. She would ask her victims a riddle, which they were required to answer to pass. If they answered incorrectly (which they almost invariably did), the Sphinx would devour them. The riddle the Sphinx asked was this: " Which creature in the morning goes on four legs, at mid-day on two, and in the evening upon three, and the more legs it has, the weaker it be?"

The riddle of the Sphinx was only answered correctly once, by Oedipus. He answered, "Man—who crawls on all fours as a baby, then walks on two feet as an adult, and then walks with a cane in old age." After being defeated, the Sphinx threw herself from the top of the acropolis and died, as she could not tolerate the defeat.

__ Modern References __
In the __The Battle of the Labyrinth__, the fourth book in the popular young adult book series, //Percy Jackson and the Olympians//, the main characters encounter a Sphinx, and while they are required to answer questions, they do not at all resemble the mythological riddles the Sphinx is said to have asked.

__In Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire__, Harry is faced with a Sphinx in a gigantic hedge maze, and has to supply the proper answer of a spider before he may continue through the maze.

__Citations__
Atsma, Aaron. "SPHINX." // The Theoi Project //. N.p., 2011. Web. 6 Jan 2012. .

"Sphinx." // Camp Half-blood Wiki //. 2011. Web. 6 Jan 2012. .

Winston, Allen. "THE MEANING OF THE GREAT SPHINX OF GIZA." // Tour Egypt //. 2011: n. page. Web. 6 Jan. 2012. .

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