Page images
PDF
EPUB

ESNEH.

Esneh, or Asneh, 484 miles from Cairo, on the west bank of the river, was called in Egyptian Senet; it

marks the site of the ancient Latopolis, and was so called by the Greeks, because its inhabitants worshipped the Latus fish. Thothmes III. founded a temple here, but the interesting building which now stands almost in the middle of the modern town is of late date, and bears the names of several

of the Roman emperors. The portico is supported by twenty-four columns, each of which is inscribed; their capitals are handsome. The Zodiac here, like that at Denderah, belongs to a late period, but is interesting.

EL-KAB.

El-Kâb, 502 miles from Cairo, on the east bank of the river, was called in Egyptian Necheb; it marks the site of the ancient Eileithyias. There was a city here in very ancient days, and ruins of temples built by Thothmes IV., Amenḥetep III., Seti I., Rameses II., Rameses III., Ptolemy IX. Euergetes II. are still visible. A little distance from the town, in the mountain, is the tomb of Aḥmes (Amãsis), the son of Abana, an officer born in the reign of Seqenen Rā, who fought against the Hyksos, and who served under Amasis I., Amenophis I., and Thothmes I. The inscription on the walls of his tomb. gives an account of the campaign against some Mesopota mian enemies of Egypt and of the siege of their city. Amāsis was the "Captain-General of Sailors." The tomb of his daughter's son Pahir lies just above his.

UTFÛ (EDFÛ).

Edfû, 515 miles from Cairo, on the west bank of the river was called in Egyptian Beḥutet, and in Coptic &&TW; it was called by the Greeks Apollino

[graphic][subsumed][subsumed][merged small]

polis Magna, where the crocodile and its worshippers were detested. The Temple of Edfû, for which alone both the ancient and modern towns were famous, occupied 180 years three months and fourteen days, that is to say it was begun during the reign of Ptolemy Euergetes I., B.C. 237, and finished B.C. 57. It resembles that of Denderah in many respects, but its complete condition marks it out as one of the most remarkable buildings in Egypt, and its splendid towers, about 112 feet high, make its general magnificence very striking. The space enclosed by the walls measures 450 X 120 feet; the front of the propylon from side to side measures about 252 feet. Passing through the door the visitor enters a court, around three sides of which runs a gallery supported on thirty-two pillars. The first and second halls, A, B, have eighteen and twelve pillars respectively; passing through chambers C and D, the shrine E is reached, where stood a granite naos in which a figure of Horus, to whom the temple is dedicated, was preserved. This naos was made by Nectanebus I., a king of the XXXth dynasty, B.C. 378.

The pylons are covered with battle scenes, and the walls are inscribed with the names and sizes of the various chambers in the building, lists of names of places, etc.; the name of the architect, I-en-hetep, or Imouthis, has also been inscribed. From the south side of the pylons, and from a small chamber on each side of the chamber C, staircases ascended to the roof.

The credit of clearing out the temple of Edfû belongs to M. Mariette. Little more than twenty-five years ago the mounds of rubbish outside reached to the top of its walls, and certain parts of the roof were entirely covered over with houses and stables.

HAGAR SILSILEH.

[ocr errors]

Hagar (or Gebel) Silsileh, 541 miles from Cairo, on the east and west banks of the river, derives its name probably not from the Arabic word of like sound meaning "chain," but from the Coptic xwxeλ, meaning "stone wall"; the place is usually called Chennu in hieroglyphic texts.. The ancient Egyptians here quarried the greater part of the sandstone used by them in their buildings, and the names of the kings inscribed in the caves here show that these quarries were used from the earliest to the latest periods. The most extensive of these are to be found on the east bank of the river, but those on the west bank contain the interesting tablets of Åmen-em-neb, a king of the XVIIIth dynasty, who is represented conquering the Ethiopians, Seti I., Rameses II. his son, Meneptaḥ, etc. At Silsileh the Nile was worshipped, and the little temple which Rameses II. built in this place seems to have been dedicated chiefly to it. At this point the Nile narrows very much, and it is generally thought that a cataract once existed here; there is, however, no evidence to show when the Nile broke through and swept such a barrier, if it ever existed, away.

KOM OMBO.

Kom Ombo, 556 miles from Cairo, on the east bank of the Nile, was an important place at all periods of Egyptian history; it was called by the Egyptians Pa-Sebek, "the temple of Sebek" (the crocodile god), and

, Nubit, and w by the Copts. The oldest

object here is a sandstone gateway which Thothmes III. dedicated to the god Sebek. The larger temple was begun by Ptolemy VII. Philometor, and the building was continued by his immediate successors; it has two entrances, and is

dedicated to Horus and Sebek. Unlike other Egyptian temples, it has neither dromos nor propylon; the portico was supported by fifteen pillars, thirteen of which are still standing, and the hall contained ten. This temple measured about 185 feet × 114 feet; all its walls and columns were covered with coloured hieroglyphics, and the cornice which ran round the portico and hall was exceedingly fine. To the north-west of this temple is a smaller sandstone temple which was dedicated to Isis (?) Both temples stood in an enclosure which measured about 460 × 400 yards, on each side of which was a thick crude brick wall; on the south and south-east sides there was a door.

« PreviousContinue »