Juniata sentinel and Republican. [volume] (Mifflintown, Juniata County, Pa.) 1873-1955, 1885-06-24

The greatest ediGce which Amenem-
ha Ill. built was the Labyrinth, COD
sisting of "a number of small chambers
communicating with one another, and
of which this monarch appears % have
built the greater portion during bis
reign, leaving to his successor the com
pletiOn of the elifice. The object of
this singular edifice was stated to be
for the reception Of the princess and
other dignitaries of the country. Itpre-
ceded by centuries the celebrated one
of GnOsSus in Crete, in which King
MinOs kept the monster called the Nil
nOtaur, half man half bull. This Cretan
work consisted of series of meander-
ing passages, in which the intruder who
had not the requisite clew lost himself
and fell victim to the monster who
dwelt within. Probably some reason
of suspicion and security caused the
construction of this singular building,
which, with the pyramids and Obelisks,
was another marvel of old Egypt. In
Egyptian the Labyrinth was called
MoeTis, and had the same name as the
lake. The same word was also applied
to the streets, which probably in Egypt
originally did not run IN straight lines
as at present, but followed tOrtuOus
or Ineandering course. The Pyramids,
for there were two on the orders of the
lake, are supposed to have had colossal
statues of the kings at their SUBMITS.
In the time of HerOdOtus, who visited
Egypt in the reien of Darius, or about
b. G.. 4jj, the Lake MOeris, its pyTa-
mids and its labyrinth We're still exist
ing, although Trey are now an almost
indistinguishable mass Of ruins. The
Labyrinth greatly astOnished this an
cient Greek traveller 1t had, according
to his description, twelve courts, all
rooted with stone, which was unusual II
Egyptian buildings, most OF which had
no ceilings and were open 10 the sky, or
hypaethral, as the Greeks called them.
1t had twelve courts with gates exact
ly opposite one another, six facing the
north and the same number facing the
south, and great number of chambers
according TO HeTOdOtus !, ,JOO-abOye
and below.
The subterranean chambers or crypts
Herodotus did not see, but he heard
that they comprised the tOmbs of the
kings who built the Labyrinth and those
of the sacred crOcOdiles which were at
tached to the temple of Sebak, the crC-
cOdile god of CrOcOdilopOlis, or CrOcO-
die town. These great reptiles were
exceedingly tame and wore earrings, and
the Labyrinth seems to have been their
sepulcher, although the principal pits
in which the mummies of the crOcOdl
eS are found are at Maufalut. The
courts of the Labyrinth had cOlonnadeS
and entrances into the various cham
bers. The whole was surrounded 10y an
outer wall and the walls covered with
hierOglyphicS, but little is known of the
purpOrt of the inscriptions and the mere
fragments which have been found con-
tain the titles only of two kings. At
one of the corners of the Labyrinth
stood pyramid, Al fathoms, or 2i6 feet
high, which was entered by subter-
ranean passage.
Two other pyramids stood in the CEN
ter of the lake, 800 feet high above the
surface OF the water, which was of the
same depth at this spot. On the apex
of each of these pyramids was seated
colossal figure. These three pyramids
were the Sepulcher of the kings. The
Greek account gives different names to
the King of the Labyrinth; but the
fragments OF it which have been found
near the walls of the crypts or subter-
chambers show that it was
Amenemha ". and his sister, whose
mummies were perhaps buried IN the
pyramids placed in the middle of the
lake. The arrival of Joseph in Egypt
has been placed by some in the reign Of
Apepi H., and some considerations are
very favorable to that conjecture. The
name Potlphar, from its composition, Is
evidently Metropolitan rather than
Joseph married the daughter of the
high priest of HeliOpolis, occupied by
the shepherds during their occupation
Of the country. No mention Is made
in the narrative of Memphis or ThebeS. |
The 430 years Of the bondage of Israel
in Egypt correspond with the mOnumen- |
tai date of 400 years from the Shepherd |
ruler Set of SaiteS to RameSeS H.,
and the opinion generally entertained |
by EgyptOlOgiStS IS that the Exodus |
took place in the reign of Meneptah, /.
son and successor Of Rameses IL. The /
elevation of foreigner TO the high Of
tice held by Joseph Is also more conso-
nant with Egypt being at the time in
the hands of the Hyk- shOs, while the |
Pharos of Heliopolis must have known
the patriarch, whose eventful story
would have been unknown to the native I
dynasty, which expelled from the soil of /
Egypt the hated Hyk-shos, their tradi'
lions and anteceden s.