The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1903-08-02

successors of the first and Immediately
following dynasties passed from the
region of legend to that of fact, but
also the names and sundry relics of
yet earlier rulers have been identified.
This winter, however, Prof. Petrie has
devoted himself to completing the ex-
animation of a temple area which for
merly bore-but incorrectly, as 1t
proves-the name of Osiris. 1t stands
on the margin of the cultivated zone,
and is thus liable to be submerged.
Favored by an exceptionally low Nile,
he has laid bare the foundations of no
less than ten temples, the earliest of
which is probably anterior even to the
dynasty, and the latest belongs to the
twenty sixth. In other words, they
range from about 1890 to 900 B. c.
Though not built one directly above
another, (for they are irregularly SUI
perposed) they afford a definite success
sion, so that Prof. Petrie has been able
to place them in chronological order, to
check and to augment the lists already
ascertained from the tombs. But the
most ancient of these temples have
cast a new and surprising light on an
almost primeval phase Of civilization.
The discoveries on temple sites dating
from the eleventh dynasty onward
supply fresh details and fill up gaps
in history, but those of older times re-
veal new and unexpected facts.
From the horizon of the Seventh
Dynasty come some specimens of pol
ished black pottery, admirably mace
and Greek in style. They correspond
exactly with what has been found in
Crete in deposits of Neolithic age, and
thus anterior to that of Minos. The
fact that the artists of the Fourth Dy-
nasty-the pyramid builders-could do
admirable work in sculpture was al
ready known, from such figures as that
of the village sheik at Boulak and the
scribe in the museum of Louvre, and
this is fully confirmed by the ivory
statuette of Khufu, better known to
English readers as Cheops. This, OF
which only a photograph is exhibited,
as the Original was claimed for the
Egyptian Museum, is only about a
couple of inches high, but is wonder
fully lifelike. The square face, rather
heavy features, and bulldog express
sion show that he knew little of fear
or pity and was just the man to make
his people build the great pyramid OF
Gizeh We feel the face must be
likeness. The head was found separate
from the body after three weeks pa
tient sitting of debris! But another
curious set of relics has been discov-
cred in connection with Khufu. He,
as Herodotus tells us, had come 20
the conclusion that the priests cost
much more than they were worth, so
he had closed the temples and forbid
den notwithstanding thus the first on
record to disestablish and disendow
a national church. He appropriated
the revenues for the state and for
bade the waste of any useful mate
rial for offerings. In the recent ex-
cavations of the Fouth Dynasty stra-
tum a number of small looplike OBJ
iects of baked clay were discovered
living in a great bed of vegetable ashes,
evidently a hearth of burned oHerihgs'
about which was no temple, but mere
cell. thus affording one more proof
that the Father of Lies" told truth
oftener than a certain class of critics
supposed.
But this is not all. There were art
lists of yet earlier date who were SUI