Digital Giza

One of the courses I took at University was a course on Computing and Archaeology. By the time the course was finished virtually everything I had been taught was out of date, that's just the way it goes with the pace of computer technology. And I can't help but feel the same about Digital Giza, the webpage of the Giza Project at Harvard University . It is a good resource but it does feel dated, although it was probably cutting edge when it was first conceived. They have an incredibly rich library of books and articles related to Giza which can be downloaded for free at this link.

Here is a link to their dedicated Sphinx page, with a 3D model of the Sphinx that you can "walk" around using your keyboard and mouse. It's probably the closest any of us will ever get to the real thing! Unfortunately, if you already have Assassin's Creed Origins on the Xbox or Playstation (that allows you to run around a pretty accurate recreation of the Giza plateau in game) I can guarantee you that you will be totally unimpressed by this.

One thing to watch out for is that the 3D model of the Sphinx will grind older computers to a halt. But if this is the case you can still access a small library of photographs and videos.

A valuable bonus on the Sphinx page is a link to Mark Lehner's 1994 PHD dissertation "Archaeology of An Image" which was the first really thorough and detailed modern archaeological study of the Great Sphinx.


Title Image from New York Public Library Digital Collection, from Voyage dans la Basse et la Haute Egypte, Vivant Denon (1829)