The Portland daily press., 1882-03-10

by its lists of kings to determine the dynasties.
Here are fine paintings of the Egyptian school
representing court scenes, banquets, and those
delineations of ordinary Egyptian life. The
further we 90 back the mere doubtful the
chronology becomet. The reigns before Menes
have been fiercely disputed, and yet the 18th
dynasty is known to have excavated the
Moeris Lake, built the Labyrinth, founded
the city of Abydos reared the great fortress OF
Semneh, and conquered Nubia. The Oldest
reigns were distinguished by high civilization
and refinement, who conquered ARABIA, and
built the Pyramids as royal sepulchres. Among
the Oldest existing monuments Is scuiptured
slab of King Sent, Of the second dynasty, con-
tanned in the Ashmolean Museum at Oxford.
The lecturer said the attendants ct the Muse
UNI were rather reticent on chronology but it
is thought that people who have left such
solid monuments of their existence have also
left clear chronological annals. Everyday new
discoveries are made, and Mr.. Gladstone has
well said that ancient history is like great
dissected map, its broken fragments widely
scattered and some still buried, but we are
slowly gathering them up and lifting them TO
their places, and in time shall read connect
ed history of civilized man from the begin
ming.
In ascending to the upper rooms we pass up
the northwest staircase. and on the landings
find the documents OF the collection written on
thin rolls of the papyrus plant, illustrating all
the Egyptian methods of writing; the hero
glyphic, heratic and demotic. They COM
prise the great book of their religion, the
ritual of the Dead" also songs, stories, trea-
tises and records, the most noticeable the trea-
tise on medicine with the recipes for certain
diseases of the age of Cheops, 1900 years be-
fore Moses. In the upper stories are arranged
the smaller antiquities-1st, those relating to
the Egyptian religion I'd, to their civil and do
nestle life; Sd, to their death and burial.
They form full picture of the Egyptian life,
furniture, clothing and utensils. They follow
the man or woman from the cradle to the
grave. Children's toys, ladies' toilet articles,
implements of agriculture, weapons of the SOL
diery, workmen's tools, coffins and bandages
for the dead; many of them similar to those in
use in our day. A full description OF the pre-
servation of mummies was given. Joseph had
Jacobs body embalmed. II is calculated over
420 millions people were thus preserved,
number equal to one-third the present popu-
lation Of the globe. The vast amount OF lit
erature handed down to rs Is remarkable, and
it is certain some day the sarcophagus OF Jacob
ing an account OF the family, corroborating
the last chapter of Genesis. SO also many
sarcophagi will be opened containing
rolls Of papyri which, added to what Is known,
will give a better history of the Egyptians even
than that We possess of the Greeks and Ro-
mans.
A very interesting description was given of
the methods of using the artist and writing
materials by the scholars and painters. A slab
Is inches long, wide and one-fourth thick,
rested in the lap of the writer, who squatted a
la Chirsoise They were made of alabaster,
ivory, porcelain or wood. The inkstands were
depressions in the upper part OF the tablet, two
in number, with red and black ink in either
A groove in the lower part of the tablet con-
tanned the writing reed, called kash, split at
one end but not sharpened. Before the scribe
was the cylinder containing the leaves of the
papyrus which were spread on the tablet as
needed, and when used rolled on other cylin-
ders, placed in leather cases. :
The lecture closed with the opinion that the
more we learn of the Egyptian religion the
more certain 1t is that their doctrine, restored
to the world, is simply that held by the disci-
pies OF che Swedenborgian faith.