New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1852-03-12
.,,sc;oitous staircase, the walls

Ce.t
of which are covered with co u'iin' u
-. descended 10 a depth OF iof'y lee'' ""eie
I'll, a horizontal passage leading 10 ah ooions
~I.,,he, in which was formerly asep PHI
'-hicb Belzoni filed. This pit protected the en-
80. N the royal chambers, which was also
carefully walled up. In The grace and freedom
of the drawings, and the richness OF their color-
ing. this tomb surpasses all others. The SUP
,ects represeu,edare the victories OF she monarch,
while in the sepulchral chamber he is painted AS
belng received into the presence oil the gons
Tho Limestone rock is covered with hne
coating of plaster, on which the hgufeS "''0
first drawn with red chalk, and Afterwards care
fully finished IN colors. The reds yeilo"S'
,,,.o,s and blues are very brilliant, but seem 70
- hoe, eaoployed at random, the gods having
80. somet,mes of one color, sometimes OF
.no,ber In the Funniest chamber, which was
Jef, unfinished, the subjects are only sketched IN
rcd chalk. Some of them have the loose and I'M
certain lines of pupils hand, over which one
sees the bold and rapid corrections OF the mas
Ter. MANY of the figures are remarkable for their
strength and freedom OF outline. was greatly
interested In a procession OF men, representing
the different nations OF the earth. The physical
neculiarRies of the Greek, the Jew and the Eth
on;an are therein as distinctly marked as at the
present day. The blacks are perfect counter
parts OF the Nubians see every day on the Nlle'
and the noses Of the Jews seem newly panied
from originals in Chatham-st. So little diversity
in the Distinguishing features of the race, after
the lapse of more than three thousand years, is
Ans
Bishop Usher was mistaken, and Adam lived
considerably more than 1854 years ago, or, as
the Professor suggests, there was more than one
Adam
The burial.yault, where Bezoni found the ala
bastcr sarcophagus of the monarch, Is noble
hall, thirty feet long by nearly twenty IN breadth
and hight, with four massive pillars forming
corridor on one side. In addition to the light oil
Our torches, the Arabs kindled large bonfire In
the center. which brought out in strong relief
the sepulchral figures on the ceiling, painted IN
white on ground of intense blue The phlars
and walls Of the vault glowed with the VIVA
variety of their colors, and the general effect
was unspeakably rich and gorgeous This tomb
has already fallen prey to worse plunderers
than the Modes and Persians. Beizonl carried
off the sarcophagus, Champollion cut away the
splendid lambs and archiuave of the entrance
to the lower chambers, and Lepsius has finished
by splitting the pillars and appropriating their
beautiful paintings for the Museum at Berlin.
At one spot, where the latter has totally ruined
q fine doorway, some indignant Frenchman has
written in red chalk Meurtre eommis par Lep-
sius." In all the tombs of Thebes, wherever
you see the most fragrant and shameless spolia-
tions, the guide says "Lepsius." Who can
blame the Arabs for wantonly defacing these
precious monuments, when such an example is
set them by the vanity of European antlquarI-
ans
Bruce's Tomb, which extends for 400 feet into
the rock, is larger than Belzoni's, but not so
fresh and brilliant The main entrance slopes
with very gradual descent, and has on each
side number of small chambers and inches, APP
paren,ly for mummies. The illustrations In these
chambers are somewhat defaced, but very curl
Gus, ON account Of the light which they throw
upon the domestic life OF the Ancient Egyptians.
They represent the slaughtering of oxen, the
preparation of fowls for the table, the kneading
and baking of bread and cakes, as well as the
places the feld.laborsrs are employed IN leading
the water Of the Nile into canals, cutting dour-
"a. threyhing and carrying the grain into maya
zines. One room is filled with furniture, and
the row of chairs around the base OF the walls
would not be out of place IN the most elegant
modern drawingIoom. The Illustrated Cata-
iocue of the London Exhibition contains few
richer and more graceful patterns. In chamber
nearer the royal vault, two old, blind minstrels
are seen, playing the harp in the presence OF the
King, whence this is sometimes called the
Harper's Tomb. The pillars of the grand hall,
like those of all the other tombs we visited, rep
resent the monarch, after death, received into
the presence Of the gods-s.ately figures, with
calm and serious aspect, and lips, which, like
those of the Sphinx, seem closed upon some
awful mystery. The absurdity of the colorng
does not destroy this effect, and blue-faced
Isis, whose hard, black eyeball stares from a
brilliant white socket is not less impressive than
the same figure, cut in sandstone or granite.
The delcacy and precision of the sculptured
hieroglyphics filled me with astonishment. In the
tomb of Amunoph Ill, which visited next day,
they resembled the cyphers engraved upon seals
in their exquisite sharpness and regularity. On
ly the principal tombs, however, are thus beauth
Ned. In others the figures are either simply
painted, or apparently sunken in the plaster,
while it was yet fresh, by prepared patterns
The latter method accounts for the exact resem
blance of long professions of figures, which
would otherwise require most marvellous skill
on the part of the artist. In some unfinished
chambers detected plainly the traces of these
patterns, where the outlines of the figures were
blunt and the grain of the plaster bent, and not
cut The family likeness in the faces of the
monarehs is also too strking unfortunately, for
to accept them as faithful portraits They