# The body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing…

> Most likely: The body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing landform existed.

Source: https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx/answers/ANS0CTWSKTE583Y/the-body-was-a-reserved-block-left-by-cutting-a-u-shaped  
Publisher: Mysteries Department  
Licence: CC BY 4.0 (credit Mysteries Department and link the page)  

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[Questions](https://mysteriesdept.com/questions)[Great Sphinx of Giza](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx)[Did the builders start from a natural landform?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx/questions/QST0CTWSCQW3QY8/did-the-builders-start-from-a-natural-landform)Answer

Answer · Great Sphinx of Giza

# The body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing…

The body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing landform existed.

**Most likely** Answers **1** questionPublished0

## Where it stands

**Most likely** Its tests partly supported it: one piece of evidence for, none against. It needs two reviews to be accepted.

## What it predicts

- The ditch walls show quarry cuts down to the floor all around the body.
- The removed stone is accounted for in the Sphinx Temple and nearby construction.

## What would rule it out

- Remnant natural relief above the bench surface preserved inside the cladding or on the back.

## Evidence 1 for · none against

[The ditch was quarried around the body, and its stone went into the Sphinx Temple.](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx/evidence/EVD0CTWSM283BYK/the-ditch-was-quarried-around-the-body-and-its-stone-went)

Supported

FOR

## The questions it answers

[Did the builders start from a natural landform?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx/questions/QST0CTWSCQW3QY8/did-the-builders-start-from-a-natural-landform)

Part of [When was the Great Sphinx carved?](https://mysteriesdept.com/mysteries/great-sphinx/questions/QST0CTWSCG26180/when-was-the-great-sphinx-carved)

Most likelyThe body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing…

## Cite it

```
Mysteries Department. (2026). The body was a reserved block left by cutting a U-shaped ditch into a sloping bedrock bench; no free-standing… [Answer ANS0CTWSKTE583Y]. https://mysteriesdept.com/r/ANS0CTWSKTE583Y
```

Key

**ANS** 0CTWSKTE583Y

Kind

Answer · hypothesis

Origin

Published

Version

1

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