Case file · Folklore / legend
The sands avenge the Sphinx
The historian al-Maqrizi wrote that in 1378 a Sufi, Muhammad Sa'im al-Dahr, damaged the face of the Sphinx in protest at people making offerings to it, and that locals blamed the sand blowing over Giza on his act.
1378 CE · 29.98, 31.14 · status: legend
The account
He was lynched by the villagers, according to al-Maqrizi. The Sphinx, called Abu al-Hol ('father of terror'), was believed to guard the fields against the sand.
The sceptical view
Who removed the nose is debated, but the sand storms obviously had natural causes.