The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-07-18

Christianity. as distinguished from what has
since developed into what we may call orthodox
Christianity.
What helps to fix the date of this particular
page as being certainly not later than early in
the two hundreds, Is the fact that all the
papyri found near are of about that date and
earlier. One large sheet they showed me this
morning was found close to the logia and bears
internal evidence Of being Of tho first century.
This ancient document was a letter from a Gov
ernor severely rebuking a police official in con-
nectlon with a disorderly outbreak which had
occurred in the district
Yet another fragment they bowed me was .
page, marked A, Of later date than the logia,
and opening with the exact words Of tho first
chapter Of Matthews gospel as we now have It:
In fact, this page was practically identical with
Matthew. chapter /. It may be that there are
still more papyri of Biblical interest in those an
yet unexamined. or among those that still lie un-
disturbed in the light soil Of Oxyrynchus. Mr..
Grenfells theory is that these Christian writings
| were thrown away during the Diocletian perse-
cution in order to escape the rigors of the anti
Christian monarch, and II that Is the case We
may hope certainly for further interesting finds.
Prof. Flinders Petrie. the greatest of Egyp-
t~ologists, while perhaps not 80 fortunate as
Messrs. Grenfell and Hunt In their great find,
| discovered a mass Of ancient material 30 great
that 1t Is as yet scarcely catalogued. He worked
at Deshasheh, about fifty miles south of Cairo,
and he has brought home no fewer than 1000
tablets containing records Of the early Egyp-
tians, besides an enormous collection Of their
handiwork Of every description. Both from
Deshasheh. near the Fayum. and from FL Kab, in
the south, there come remains Of the same people.
the subjects Of Kings assigned by Egyptologists
to the Fourth and Fifth Dynasties. They all be-
| long In the Old KinO1nm fnr that closaa with
the Sixth Dynasty. They are older than most,
IL not all, of the pyramid builders, and certainly
than those of Gizeh. Hardly anything can be
materially later than $500 years before Christ;
some things may go back almost to 1000.
And they were no rude barbarians. Though
metal does not appear to have been In common
use among them, 1t existed, but bronze seems
then to have been a rarity, as iron was in the
days described by Homer. Their tombs were ex-
cavated in limestone with cherry veins, which
is overlain by q mass of hard gravel. In digging
through the former they used rough, strong
wooden chisels and mallets Of the same material.
When they got down to the limestone. metal
tools were employed, but even here big heavy
stones, probably attached to q rope, were en-
ployed to crush the cherry veins. For the metal
chisels similar mallets were used, but these can
be readily distinguished by their being worn
into holes. while the others have comparatively
smooth heads. Lying by them as they are dis
played to-day ut University College and in
surprisingly good preservation are tho exible
baskets in which the workmen carried their
tools and food. The artistic power Of this early
people was singularly great. The tombs Of El
Kab have yielded q collection Of vases and
bowls, wrought not only from alabaster but
also from porphyry and varieties Of diorite.
one OF them being O very light-colOred kind.
with scattered dark green spots, a rock of great
beauty. All these, whether the material be soft
or hard, arc wrought with wonderful skill. One
of the alabaster vases has two fanges project
ing from the rim. something like those occa-
sionally made at the present day to keep the
mustache from the fluid. Intended probably to
prevent tho latter from being split in drinking.
But there is further and, in some respects.
more striking evidence of artistic power in the
days OF these early dynasties. A little group of
amulets shows u mastery over sundry gems-it Is
the first that has ever been found-but Desha-
sheh has furnished results yet more valuable.
They consist of statues and statuettes found In
a rock chamber connected with a ruined tomb
of masonry. once OF considerable size. The most
striking is q statue. three-quarters OF
life size, representing a certain Ncnkhefta.
It is admirably modelled and life-like
in expression. almost wholly FREQ from
the conventional treatment 30 marked In
later Egyptian art. 1t is. in fact. hardly
inferior to that exquisite figure OF the
scribe, now preserved In the Museum OF the
Louvre in Paris. and assigned TO the Fifth by
nasty. Other figures OF smaller size represent
Nenkhefta's wife and his son. both with names
The tomb had evidently been violated at some
early date. for all the figures were more or less
broken; but strange to say. the heads OF the
larger statues were placed In q recess. ThS
treatment suggests that the intention was Il
dishOnor rather than to destroy. The tombs Of
this region have yielded other very important
finds. The dead. In some cases. were ent0mbod