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Chèvmère dans Bourgogne

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This subject contains information from the Mythos Adjacent Works, and while share similar themes and features of the Mythos are not based on his work, or generally considered a part of the Mythos proper. This subject contains information from the "Lovecraft Circle" Myth Cycles, and while guided by HPL are not based on his work alone. The Sphinx was an ancient entity known, among other places, in Egypt.

Description[]

The famous Great Sphinx of Giza was patterned after the true Sphinx, but the face was later replaced with the human one of the Pharoh Khephren. It seems that it was something close to life-size, for the real Sphinx's paws were the size of hippopotami.(HPL: Imprisoned with the Pharaohs)

The Sphinx's paws were covered in yellow fur, and each "toe" was a head which extended tentacles to consume food. (HPL: Imprisoned with the Pharaohs)

The Sphinx-statues of Sarkomand resembled vast winged lions. (HPL: The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath) However, the Great Sphinx of Giza has no wings.

Nature[]

The Sphinx was kin to cats, such as The Cats of Ulthar, and they spoke her language, although the Sphinx was not as old as cat-kind. (HPL: The Cats of Ulthar)

The hybrid creatures which worshipped her were known as the Children of the Sphinx. (EXP: Call of Cthulhu RPG)

The Sphinx may have been an avatar of Nyarlathotep; or at least, he was sometimes represented as a faceless sphinx statue.(CIRCLE: The Faceless God, EXP: Call of Cthulhu - Day of the Beast)

History[]

Sphinx statues adorned Sarkomand a million years before humanity was born. (HPL: The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath) However, it is unclear whether these were patterned after the true Sphinx or not.

The famous Great Sphinx of Giza was patterned after the true Sphinx. At some point, the Sphinx took up residence in a tomb deep beneath the Great Sphinx, where she was worshipped and fed by creatures resembling animal-human hybrids and the undead pharaohs Khephren and Nitocris.

In 1910, Harry Houdini glimpsed the creature while escaping from the tomb, having been kidnapped. (HPL: Imprisoned with the Pharaohs)

The Brotherhood of the Black Pharaoh also made use of the shallowest tunnels beneath the Great Sphinx. (EXP: Call of Cthulhu - Masks of Nyarlathotep)

Trivia[]

In real life, the Pharaoh Khephren (also transliterated Khafra, Khafre, Chephren etc) is credited by mainstream academia with constructing the Sphinx from scratch - although this attribution is quite speculative - rather than merely re-carving the face. There are indeed tales of tunnels beneath the Sphinx going back a long time. To date only one subterranean passage has been found, leading to or from a nearby ancient well and not containing anything very remarkable.

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