Pair of colossal sphinxes lost to history found in ancient Egypt

Two massive limestone statues of an ancient Egyptian ruler made to look like sphinxes have been unearthed.

Pieces of the colossal structure were made for King Amenhotep III, the grandson of King Tutankhamun.

Archaeologists found two sphinx-like statues in total, which they believe stood around eight metres back in the day.

That would make them taller than the stones at Stonehenge, the average giraffe and even a double decker bus.

King Amenhotep III ruled over Egypt from around 1386 B.C. until his death at the age of 50.

The pieces were found in his mortuary temple which people at the time called the ‘Temple of Millions of Years’.

It’s located in the ancient capital of Thebes, known today as Luxor.

The temple was destroyed after a devastating earthquake ripped through the country during ancient times.

An Egyptian-German archaeological team, headed up by Dr. Horig Sorosian, also discovered columns and walls decorated with ceremonial and ritual scenes which were part of a festival.

“This is one of the most important feasts for ancient Egyptians that celebrates the end of the 30th year of the king’s ascension to the throne,” said Abdel Rahim Rihan, from the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities.

“The depictions of this festival show the king on his throne in full strength, with the crowds around him happy and excited, waiting for his speech promising them another 30-year reign full of prosperity and opulence.

“On this occasion, the king would also make offerings to the gods.”

The recovery mission was launched by archaeologists back in 1998.

In that time, they’ve already dug up several massive artefacts, including statues of a goddess called Sekhmet.

Experts are hoping to rebuild the remains and temple back to their former glory.

This story originally appeared on The Sun and was reproduced here with permission.