Dodge City times. [volume] (Dodge City, Kan.) 1876-1892, 1882-03-16

NhahipoiIloh the Key 10 the language OF
ancient Egypt, and thus became. rs
Marietta says. 1.-THE instrument, Of one
OF the greatest discoveries that do hon
or TO the nineteenth century" Not,
however. until Lepsius and Mariette. in
1865 IS. brought to light the Greek.
hieroglyphic and demotic texts of the
Canopic Decree engraved upon the
Stone Of San, was the accuracy of Cham
pollion's mode Of interpreting hero
glyphics confirmed, and the study of
Egyptology placed on sure and solid
grounds. The Stone of Kom-el-Hama-
dra-as. Judging from analogy. l sup
pose this stella will henceforth be called
bears the same decree As that of San.
except that the texts. inscriptions and
representations are very much fuller and
detailed than are those of the latter.
The stella is splendid piece of work
manship; it is of limestone, and meas
ures eight feet high by three feet wide
and two and half feet thick. The top
is rounded. and represents the winged
disk and pendent ur9i serpents, togeth-
er with the upper and lower portions of
the crown pshent Below the urni SER
penis there are some twelve lines of
hieroglyphs. and representations of
Ptolemy Euergetes, his Queen. and his
daughter Bcrenice. the Queen of Nir-
gins Then follows the decree in
Greek. hieroglyphic and demotic. This
stella has already been placed in the Boo
lax Museum. which. with the additions
Of the past year. is now quite as rich in
t.L1.s.-
and writings barring historical papyri
as are the combined collections of Eu-
rope. This is as il should be, for Egyp-
tian relics have an artistic value, which
they lose in the uncongenial climate and
surroundings of Europe and America.
The seco:d discovery that | have to
announce is that of two tombs of the vi.
Dynasty, which present the earliest
known instances of the arch. These
tombs are of private persons Of high
rank. They were discovered near the
most southerly group of Sakkara pyra-
mids, and within stones throw of the
prominent truncated pyramid of King
Unas; known as the Mas;aba-el-Pha-
raoon. 1t should be remembered that in
the Pyramid of Mycerinus of the w.
Dynasty the smallest of the three great
Pyramids of Ghizeh-there is Il passage
way the top of which, although resem-
bling an arch. is not constructed on the
principle of an arch-that is to say,
blocks were placed horizontally, one
projecting beyond that Immediately be-
low it, till the uppermost two met in the
center; the interior angles being after
ward rounded off to form the vault.
Several instances of these pseudo-arches
are known TO exist in tombs of the vi.
and later Dynasties, but no true arch
had hitherto been found previous to
those in the tOmbs of the XVIII, KIN.
and M. Dynasties, near Thebes. The
arches in the two recently-discoyered
tombs of the vi. Dynasty are built over
the entrances. They have ornamented
key-stones. and are beautifully con-
structed Of fine bricks.
The third discovery to which | have
referred is the long-sought-for entrance
to the Pyramid of Maydoom-a pyra-
mid which will probably turn out to be
at least II century older than the Great
Pyramid of Cheops. and hence the old
est known monument in Egypt. This
pyramid, situate some fifteen miles TO
the south of Ghizeli. is one of the most
striking landmarks on the Nile. From
distance il seems to stand on the top
of hillock; nearer view shows this
hillock to be formed by the crumbling
away of the outer casing of the pyra
mid itself. 1t is called by the Arabs
Eel Haram el katdab'' (the false pyra-
midi. for they suppose it 10 be formed
of the rock itself. Its general appear
ance has been described by Miss Amelia
Edwards as IAN unfinished Tower OF
Babel" The pyramid of Maydoom is
doubtless the most carefully constructed
o,J ,,I,o,s,thar tho host httilt ,,vrami1