The farmer and mechanic. [volume] (Raleigh, N.C.) 18??-19??, 1906-07-10

/ fair To bear testimony for ages ,..
to the reverence felt rs the ate5. .-s
for the sun At one time Hefiopot-
Was a thriving CITY. and is referred III
in the Bible As on" but toda, tae
obelISk stands alone fin the mlQst n
cultivated fields. all Of tile builqln-s
having disappeared.
While the obelisk at HeliopolIs out
ranks ali others in age. the ono at
harnark, IN tho suburbs Of Luxor. ms
the distinction Of being tire tdllesr one
yet remaining. IT is eight and one
- - feet i'm height Ceight and 9aa-
half feet less than the obeliSk at
Romeo The obelisks were cut iii Il
single shaft. most Of them from gram
lte quafries near Assuan. These quar-
IleS are more than 800 miles SGuta Of
Cairo. and it is supposed that the ODE
lisks were transported on the Nil to
the places where they nave since been
found, but how they were handled OF
placed in position no one knows.
The temple Of Ammon. at karnak.
Is generally regarded as tho most in
tercsting of temple ruins III Egypt. 1t
- the work Of many kings, one adding
a sanctuary, nothe a pylon, another
4 court, etc.-each placing his car
touche, or seal upOn his work. This
ttIIil4c. when Was OIIIGldItN fEIcd
the Throne Of the World, covers an
immense area. one pylon, or gateway.
is more than 800 feet wide. nearly 80
feet high, and has walls IL feet HE
One court covers almost 1000 square
yards, and one aisle leads between
pillars 60 feet in height, about Il
feet in diameter and supporting cap
itals Of IL feet. The ston used IN this
temple are of enormous size. and
they We're probably raised to their po-
sitions on scaffolding Of earth-this
being also the method employed where
attempts have recently been made -
restore fallen columns.
4 = r
The hicroglyphics upon the walls,
the columns. the obelisks and the stat
ueS, after remaining q puzzle for ages.
have been deCiphcrcd and woven into
a consecutive history. This was made
possible by the discovery, in 1899. of
what is known as the Rosetta stone
(noW in the British museum,) at the
mouth of the Rosetta arm Of the Nile.
by a French engineer named Rouch-
ard. This stone bears a decree in
scribed III three languages-aacient
Egyptian, modern Egyptian and Greek
and furnishes the key to unlock the Sc
crets Of ancient history.
Tho pictures represent sacrificial
ceremonies. domestic and industrial
scenes. battles, triumphal professions
phases Of life. in fact. One wall
contains, in hieroglyphics, the treaty
Of peace which Rameses II, concluded
With the Utilities, while another wall
represents III. holding a
group of prisoners by the nais. and
raising a club US if to strike. Close
by, the god Ammon is delivering -
him chained representatives of differ
cnt Vanquished nations. the faces be-
ing SO true to life that the ISraelites
hTOlIoht from Palestine can Si1,-. ~.
distinguished from the Philippians and
NublanS of the south. one Of the
heads seen often in the drawings re
sembies "the yellow kid and the don
keys are exactly like those seen today.
Luxor and karnak are on the east
bank of the Nile, but Thebe5 required
both sides of the river for her great
population, and the west bank is also
rich in evidences of ancient civiliza-
ton. The RameSeum is here and
would attract more attention if it were
not o~vershadoWed by larger temples,
here also are the "Colossi Of Menon,"
one Of them known to literature as the
singing statue. This is described by
Strabo and Juvenal and bears many
inscriptions i'll Latin and Greek made
by those who visited it under the
Roman rule. Hadrian looked upon it
$50 A.. d, and a pOetcSS OF his day
declares that the statue greeted the
emperor. 1t is supposed that the
sound which for many years issued
from the head of the statu just after
sunrise was caused by the change in
temperature, the granite having been
cracked; at any rate, the ound ceased
when the statue was repaired. 1t
now sits silent, and With its
ion gazes upon the barley field that
reaches out in every direction from
their feet.
But more interesting than the Ram
eseum or the Colossi are the tombs of
the kings, some IL Of which have al
ready been discovered. At this point
the west side Of the valley Of the Nile
is walled in by q range of limestone
hills. one of which bears a striking
resemblance to a pyramid. Gould it
nave suggested the idea of a pyramid
for a tomb?) Leaving the valley Of the
Nile about two miles north of this
pyramidal hill, there is a small, dry,
valley which Wends its way back
through the hills n terminates at
the foot of steep walls just west of the
hill mentioned.
Here are the tombs. hewn in the
solid rock, the most elaborate Of which
IS the tomb of Sethos. or Seti, the
father of Rameses II. This tomb bur
rows into the bill to the depth Of $50
feet, a flight Of steps leading down
through different levels and different
chambers to the final vault. The walls
are covered with figures in coIors rep
ACi - - '~S vi 10 =
offerings to the various gods. Their
are also drawings Illustrating scenes
in this world and life as it was SUP
posed to be in the next. Some Of these
pictures portray a hell where the
wicked are punished by fire, and
there are also drawings which have
been interpreted to represent the res
direction and Judgment.
Not far away is the tomb Of "the
Pharaoh Of the Exodus" which cor
tains a granite image of the king. anu
close by the tomb is another in which
the nlummied form of a Pharaoh still
pose Grave robbing. however. was
SO popular an amusement in those
days that the bodies of nearly all the
kings had been emOved for Saftey to
a secret vault, which was SO carefully
concealed that they were not found
until the nineteenth century.
At Memphis. which is only about Is
miles from Cairo, there are tombs Of
less Importance, colossal status OF