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Monday, April 4, 2016

The Great Sphinx of Shijiazhuang gets beheaded following complaints from Egypt: Shanghaiist


http://shanghaiist.com/2016/04/04/sphinx_gone.php

The Great Sphinx of Shijiazhuang gets beheaded following complaints from Egypt


The Great Sphinx of Giza has stood for more than 4,500 years; it's counterpart in Shijiazhuang only made it three.

The copy-Sphinx first suddenly appeared in a field outside of Shijiazhuang city, Hebei province in May 2014. It was built by a movie production company in a locale that would also come to host replicas of the Temple of Heaven and Louvre Pyramid (all for just 10 RMB!)

However, it turned out that Egypt wasn't a fan of the life-sized homage to one of its signature national treasures. The Egyptian Ministry of State Antiquities quickly filed a complaint with UNESCO, arguing that the 30-meter-high and 60-meter-long replica was not only inaccurate (being made of steel bars and cement), but it would also have a negative effect on Egypt's tourism industry.

Well, it may have taken three years, but the shanzhai Sphinx has finally been ripped down, though the movie studio has not revealed exactly why.

Just like Mega Mao, it seems that nothing so beautiful can ever last on this cruel Earth for long.

"You're next."

Now, if Chinese tourists want to go see the Sphinx, they will have to travel all the way to Anhui.

[Images via Sina]

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