Connecticut western news., 1886-09-15
PHARAOH'S HOUSE.
An Interest," g Discovery in
 Lower Egypt.
Unearthing the Very Place Where Jere'
 m;ah Stood and Prophesied.

 Lower Egypt. In the land where previ- ous explorers have found only the mon- uments of an extinct faith and the graves of dead nation, MT. Flanders Petrie. hes lighted upon the ruins of a royal palace The fortunate finder of Norcratis has now been working upon vast mound calleds Tell Defenneh, which historians have long identified with the Pclusiac Daphne of the Greeks and the Tahpanhes of the Bible. Here he has discovered the ruins of that very palace to which, as recorded in the book of the Prophet Jeremiah, Johanan, the son of Kercah, followed by all the captains and remnant of Judah, brought the fugitive daughters of Zede- kiah, then dethroned captive in Baby lon. This flight of the Hebrew princesses took place about 5s5 B. G., during the reign of Ua-ab Ra, whom the Hebrews called Hophra and the Creeks Apries. The Pharaoh received the fugitives kindry. To the mass of the Jewish i'm migrants he gave tracts of land, to the daughters of Zsdekiah, his former ally, he assigned this royal palace, which the Bible calls "Pharaoahs House in Tah- panhes."
 Although this part of the Delta is now a wilderness, half marsh, half desert, over which no traveller ever passes, it was at the time when these events took place rich pastoral district, fertilized by the annual overflow of the Nile. In the midst of mud swamps have long been observed some groups of ruins, to one of which was attached the name of the Castle of the Jews Daughter. Hearing this from his natives, MT. Petrie at once preceived the interest which must attach to the p ace, and the intelli- gent labor which he has bestowed upon it has met with suitable reward. Not only the architecture's structure, but its history also has been rescued from cbliv- ion.
 The building was at first a stronghold, quadrangular, lofty, massive, like cas- tie keep. It contained sixteen square rooms on each floor, both the outer and partition walls being of enormous strength. It is, of course, impossible to guess of how many stories it was origi- nally composed, but it is of its fallen stones that the mound is made. This stronghold was built by Psammeticus I, as is prov d by the deposits marked with the royal name and titles, placed under the foundation walls. There were found also the libation vessels, specimens of ores, bricks, the bones of the OK aud bird sacrificed at the time and series of tablets with inscriptions. The rooms in the castle were lined with slabs of fine lime stone, covered with hieroglyphics, full of captives and the like, dehcately carved and painted. These are now splintered and ruined, as the castle was burned as we'll as battered down, and very few objects of value were therefore to be recovered. But the basements re- main in very perfect condition, and in the basement were the kitchen, buffers pantry end scullery, and these domestic offices become of great interest when they form part of an Egyptain palace 2550 years old. The kitchen of Pharaoh's house in Tahpanhes is a big room which served for dressers. There were IA large jars, and two large fat dishes, standing unharmed in their places, amid the gen. eral destruction. A stone corn crusher, large iron knife, weights and three small iron spits were found in this room. In the buffers pantry, adjoining, were no iron jars, but hundreds of jar lids and plaster stoppers, some stamped with the royal ovals ot Psammeticus and some with those o1 Necho, his successor. The empty jars, with quantities of other pottery, mostly broken, were piled in a sort of rubbish closet outside, and next was a small room, sacred to the scullery maid O. dishwasher. It contained recess witt a sink, bench to stand things upo1 and recesses in the walls by way O shelves. The sink was formed of large clay jar with the bottom knocked out and filled with broken potsherds placed on edge. The water ran througl this and then into more broken pot. below, placed one in another, all bottom less, going down to the clean sand below The potsherds were clogged with fish | bones.
 In other chambers were found number of early Greek vases, ranging from 55' B. O., to 600 B. O., some very fnel, painted with harpies, sphinxes, dancer and the like; nearly all, however, wer
 broken, but some can be mended. 4 sword handle, some scale armor, bronz rings, amulets, beads, seals, and especi ally two rings, engraved with the title of priest of Amen, have been found and many small tablets with inscrip tions.
 MT. Petrie has looked diligently fo the stones which Jeremiah hid among tn
 brick work, and some unhewn stone
 have been dug out from below the sur face, but to identify them positivel.
 would, of course, be impossible unles the prophet had previously inscribed them, which is unlikely. Egyptian in
 scriptions say that Nebuchadnezzar dit
 come to Tahpanhes, and spread out hi
 pavilion on that very spot, as foretold il