The herald., 1898-06-11

meaning. This last would soon be SIM
plifed to mere leaf. Sometimes this
device was the more necessary because
the same word was used in several
senses,-as If, after ''cab-eye-net." we
should draw a piece of wood to show
that an article Of furniture was intend
ed, and not the Presidents council.
Thus when the Egyptian word "ankh,
which might mean goat" but also rep
resented the symbol of Immortality and
various other things, was used in the
first named sense, a bit of hide with
the tail attached was sketched in after
1t to suggest the idea of an animal.
From these syllable symbols to sort
| or alphabet was a natural transition,
certain to come. The pictures of OBJ
Jects having names which began with
a given letter Cor in which it was the
predominant sound) were used to ex-
press that letter-as If one should rep
resent the word bite by "bee-eye-
tea" Thus "achom," an eagle, stood
for one of the sounds of Although
vowels were rarely written unless very
emphatic, and in this the hieroglyphics
resemble our short hand,' though
otherwise they were long hand" with
vengeance. In the same way "labo,"
lion, stood for L, "moulad," an owl,
| for m, "hOhe," a knotted cord, for H,
and SO on through the list. At first
| there were a great many alternative
symbols for the same letter,-as If we
should express 7 by tea" or "toe" or
table" or top" Unfortunately; but
at last the Egyptian scribes settled
down to a tolerably uniform hierogly
phic alphabet, the symbols which were
most convenient and clear naturally
prevailing. The most important char
acters of this alphabet are shown in
the accompanying illustration. By
means of these, words were spelled out
much as we spell them with true let
ters-which, indeed, are only disguised
and abbreviated hieroglyphics.
Yet the older methods were by no
means abandoned; all these modes Of
expression are mingled together in
hieroglyphic writing-which is rather
confusing. Syllable signs are very
numerous, and characters purely SYM
bolic scarcely less so. Examples of
both are given in the illustration. and
some of the latter are very curious.
For instance. "land' is expressed by
crossing lines (fo- cross-roads) in
scribed in a circle. Three lotus bios
SONS appended to this indicate that the
land in question is Upper Egypt. while
the papyrus similarly used indicates
Lower Egypt,-these plants being
characteristic of those regions respec-
lively. A picture of the sun means day,
and three suns, three days; but three
stars mean simply night. The cross
with ring attached-often used as a
handle to carry it by in Egyptian pic
f,1r -iC ,IoI oF 20
tality; and the queer bug called scara-
baeus has about the same significance.
And now, with the aid of the alpha
bet given, you will have no difficulty in
reading the names Of the kings, of
which several are shown in the illus
tration. Remember that vowels are
often omitted, and that the writing
runs from top to bottom, like Chinese.
The first is Menes Gin the Egyptian
spelling Mna). who is said to have
founded the dynasty of the Pharaohs.
Next is presented Cheops (Khufu), the
builder of the great pyramid. His
name has been found painted upon
stones deep in it's dark interior-quarry
marks, which it was not expected that
any eye would ever see after the
structure was completed, but which
furnish a startling confirmation of
tradition. Then Thothmes, whose
obelisk now stands in Central Park,
New York; and after him Rameses
(RamesW, the great Egyptian con-
queror, whose blackened and shrunken
features-amazing as it seems and is
may now be seen in a glass-covered
case in the Gizeh Museum near Cairo.
After a long interval of time and
many changes comes the still greater
conqueror who made Egypt part of his
vast empire-Alexander (Alsandros):
and after another lapse of time, Cae-
sarion (Kisaros), the son of julius
Caesar, and the beautiful but wicked
Cleopatra. The spelling of her name
also it will be noticed, is a little modi-
fed.
1t is an easy matter to write your
own name in hieroglyphic characters If
you feel inclined to experiment. Make
it short, and omit most of the vowels.
The writer once presented a lady of
his acquaintance with a letter seal ex-
pressing her name in this manner. and
the effect was very quaint and attrac-
tive. Such gift Is certainly UNIQUE.
and not likely to be duplicated.
WALKER LOVELANp.
Copyright, 1898, by Bachelor Syndicate.
hau I,o, b.