►Greek Mythology: “The Sphinx and her Riddle”.-

►Greek Mythology: “The Sphinx and her Riddle”:

“Oedipus and the Sphinx” by Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres (1808).

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The Sphinx  (from the greek word Σφίγξ,  meaning “to squeeze”, “to tighten up”) was a female mythical creature with the body of a lion, the breast and head of a woman, eagle’s wings and, according to some, a serpent-headed tail.

According to Hesiod, the Sphinx was daughter of Orthus and Chimaera, born in the country of the Arimi (Theog. 326).

According to Sophocles, when King Laius of Thebes was murdered, by an unknown in a Phocian road, the king’s brother-in-law Creon came to power.

It was during his regency that the Sphinx came to  Thebes, as a punishment, sent by Hera, or, according to other accounts, by Hades, and  and gobbling up people

The Sphinx guarded the entrance to the Greek city of Thebes, and to have asked a riddle, which allowed people come into the city.

On the other hand, she started ravaging the fields and threatening people as she declared that she would not depart unless anyone interpreted her riddle

King Creon in accordance with an oracle, issued a proclamation promising that he would give the kingdom of Thebes and his sister Jocasta in marriage to the person solving the riddle of the Sphinx.

The riddle of the sphinx was:

“What is it that has one voice and yet becomes four-footed and two-footed and three-footed?”.

Finally, Oedipus gave the proper answer: man, who crawls on all fours in infancy, walks on two feet when grown, and leans on a staff in old age. The sphinx thereupon killed herself. From this tale apparently grew the legend that the sphinx was omniscient, and even today the wisdom of the sphinx is proverbial.

Sphinxes were popular in ancient art, especially as sculptural grave stele set upon the tombs of men who died in youth.

Decorative sphinxes also appear in animal processions on archaic Greek vases, often alongside lions and bird-bodies sirens.

The Sphinx was originally Egyptian or Ethiopian; but after her incorporation with Grecian story, her figure was variously modified.

The Egyptian Sphinx is the figure of an unwinged lion in a lying attitude, but the upper part of the body is human.

Unlike the Greek sphinx which was a woman, the Egyptian sphinx is typically shown as a man (anandrosphinx).

And the most well known among the Egyptian representations of Sphinxes is that of Ghizeh. Although the date of its construction is uncertain, the head of the Great Sphinx now is believed to be that of the pharaoh Khafra (2558 BC -2532 BC)

The common idea of a Greek Sphinx, on the other hand, is that of a monster with a head of a woman, a body of a lion, the wings of an eagle and a serpent-headed tail. Greek Sphinxes, moreover, are not always represented in a lying attitude.

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Egyptian sphinx with a human head. (Museo Egizio, Turin). 1300 BC.

Sphinx. The upper decorative element from grave stele in Kerameikos Museum in Athens. (550 BC).

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 ►Gallery: Sphinxs:

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“Oedipus and the Sphinx”, by Gustave Moreau, (1864).

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►Links Post:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sphinx

http://www.theoi.com/Ther/Sphinx.html

http://www.maicar.com/GML/Sphinx.html

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/559722/sphinx

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►Last but not Least: Real Neat Blog Award:

Real Neat Blog Award.

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I want to thank my friend Christy Birmingham from Poetic Parfait for nominating me for a Real Neat Blog Award.Please, If you still haven’t done so, visit Poetic Parfait to read some beautiful poems by Christy. 

Here are the Award Rules:

1) The nominee shall display the respective logo on her/his blog and link to the blogger that has nominated her/him.

2) The nominee has to answer the seven (seven) questions asked by the blogger who nominated her/him.

3) The nominee shall nominate ten (10) bloggers or less, by linking to their blogs and informing them about the nomination.

The seven questions and my answers are:

I) Where do most visits to your blog come from?: 1) Argentina, 2) Mexico, 3) Colombia, 4) Spain and 5) United States.

II) What is your favorite sport?: Swimming.

III) What has been a special moment for you in 2014?: My birthday!…

IV) What is your favorite quote?: “Experience is simply the name we give to our mistakes” (Oscar Wilde).

V) What was your favourite class when still at school?: Literature and History of Art, special class during my last two years of High School.

VI) Anything you had wished to have learnt earlier?: To take things easily, I guess… (I am still learning, though). 

VII) What musical instrument have you tried to play?: Guitar, but that was a long time ago…

Finally, these are my  nominees for the Real Neat Blog Award, which I picked up among new followers and commenters. 

1. Tassy Bakes 2. D Blaine’s Space 3. Chica del Panda 4.Cedric Ced 5. Unchained Emporium 6. El Lirismo del Alfabeto 7. El Cuaderno de Clara 8. Con mucho Garbo 9. Perfume de Mujer 10. Marisa Mortes escribe

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