The Riddle of the Sphinx

[Boci]

Whilst I am sure most of us know the answer to this, I am wondering how many of us know the origional wording. So to conduct a very unformal experiment, please tell me, in a spoiler, the wording of the the Sphinx's riddle as close as you can recall. If you intend to post, please do not read what others have said until you have posted your own.

I'll start:

What walks on four legs at dawn, two legs during the day and three legs at dusk?

[AsteriskAmp]

What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?

[Serpentine]

Well... It's certainly not the original wording, as I don't know Greek, but:What stands on 4 legs in the morning, 2 legs in the afternoon, and 3 legs at evening?

But, I suspect it's more like: I walk on 4 legs at dawn, 2 legs by day, and 3 legs at sunset?

[Symmys]

What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs in the afternoon, and three legs in the evening?

[Lillith]

What being walks on four legs in the morning, on two legs in the afternoon and on three legs in the evening.
Answer: Man. As a child on hands and legs at the dawn of it's life. Walking on two feet as an adult. And walking with a cane at the dusk of it's life.

[arguskos]

For comparison, I have here the actual riddle, translated from the Greek. Once you've posted yours, please feel free to compare.

I would have posted my own memory, but I actually was reading about said topic earlier today, so it's kind of cheating. >_>


The translated Riddle of the Sphinx, from the Greek:
Which creature in the morning goes on four legs, at mid-day on two, and in the evening upon three, and the more legs it has, the weaker it be?

Also, in some accounts (though very rare), there is a second riddle: There are two sisters: one gives birth to the other and she, in turn, gives birth to the first.

Can you guess the answer? :smallamused:

[Serpentine]

Second riddle:Sun and moon? Or just night and day?

There's another one I know as pretty old: Two legs sits on three legs, no legs sits on one leg, four legs gets some.

[Telonius]

What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?

Alternately, "So where do baby Criosphinxes come from?"

[factotum]

There's another one I know as pretty old: Two legs sits on three legs, no legs sits on one leg, four legs gets some.

Are you sure that's old? Pretty sure Tolkien invented it for "The Hobbit".

Answer:

Man sitting on a stool, roast chicken on a table, the dog gets the leftovers.

[Asta Kask]

Are you sure that's old? Pretty sure Tolkien invented it for "The Hobbit".

Well, she's only 24... :smallwink:

[grimbold]

What walks on four legs at dawn, two legs during the day and three legs at dusk?
this is the one that ithink is most accurate

[factotum]

Well, she's only 24... :smallwink:

And I'm only 40 yet I still don't consider a book written in 1930 to be old in the same way that the Riddle of the Sphinx is...there's a bit of a difference between 80-odd years and 3000+! :smallwink:

[Serpentine]

Considering there's a lot of really, really old stuff in Tolkein's work, I don't really find the fact it appeared there all that much in the way of evidence. That isn't to say I don't believe you, but I'll need a bit more than that to be convinced.
Also,Isn't it a fish? I mean, chicken has two legs.

[Coidzor]

Considering there's a lot of really, really old stuff in Tolkein's work, I don't really find the fact it appeared there all that much in the way of evidence. That isn't to say I don't believe you, but I'll need a bit more than that to be convinced.
Also,Isn't it a fish? I mean, chicken has two legs.

Yeah, I believe it was fish on the table and the cat gets some too.

[Katana_Geldar]

What walks on four feet in the morning, two feet at noon and three feet at night?

And why is it feet, not legs? Another way of translating Oediupus is "the man who knows about feet".

[AsteriskAmp]

What walks on four feet in the morning, two feet at noon and three feet at night?

And why is it feet, not legs? Another way of translating Oediupus is "the man who knows about feet".

It IS legs, not feet if arguskos info source was right.

[Glass Mouse]

What has four legs in the morning, two at noon and three in the evening?

[mucat]

My memory of the orginal question is something along the lines of "What walks on four legs in the morning, two legs at noon, and three legs in the evening?"
And the answer, of course, is "This really weird goat I found (http://www.smbc-comics.com/index.php?db=comics&id=1308#comic)".

[Popertop]

Second Riddle
Is it life and death? I know a really predictable answer... can you pm me the answer if that isn't right?

[Combat Reflexes]

Second Riddle:
It's Day and Night! But how they give birth to each other I don't know ... I mean, there is just daylight and the absence of daylight. Weird Egyptians.

[The_Ditto]

Riddle me this, Riddle me thee,
What walks on four legs, two, then three?


I don't know though, sounds more like Riddler from Batman, than the Sphinx .. :smallwink:

[Dr.Epic]

What goes on four legs in the morning, on two legs at noon, and on three legs in the evening?

HA! HA! HA! I don't get it.