Giles papers, 9 May 1914-13 May 1919 / Arthur Clyde Giles - Page 76
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[Page 76]
cost another couple of Piastres well off I started. I was always under the Impression the Pyramids & Spinx were alongside each other. The Sphinx is about half a mile away. Well there were some tombs along the way went to see them. All these places have their watchman. They arent very deep only two small chambers. The watchman lights a candle for you to see where the coffin used to lay. Also the carving on the wall. Well it was an eye opener to me these carvings always thought they were something a school youngster would draw on a slate. They are very different they are really very well done. Of course the watchman had to have his palm greased. There are quite a number of these tombs all along the face of the hill or rise. There are a number of natives living in some of them. If I hadint seen them sitting outside & also known the smell of them I would have thought there was something freshly dead inside. Well we reached the Sphinx at last. This is a fine piece of work there isint any doubt. Standing about twenty feet high I should say & is very large. The nose has been knocked off that spoilt the look a bit. I was pestered here again to have my photo taken but decided fund's werint too plentiful so didn't have it. Just a little way over from the Sphinx are what are called the Sphinx chambers. These consist of very fine granite pillers as far as I could see didint go down saw a number of Arab youngsters below so didn't feel up to getting too close to the smell of them.