Manchester Democrat. [volume] (Manchester, Iowa) 1875-1930, 1914-07-15
OLDER THAN Ia SPHINX
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BUILDING
DISCOVERED BY EXPLORER. 3
Vast Underground Edifee4 Described
In Earliest Writings Extant, Re
veaied Through Explorations
, Made by Scientist. q

Professor Naville has Just discov-
cred what he believes to be the most
ancient building extant in Egypt. The
professor believes that he has discov-
cred the place mentioned by Strabo.
who calls it the well, or fountain. Of
Abydos. Below the Memnoniun,"
says that ancient writer, lis a spring
reached by passages with low vaults
consisting of a single stone and dis
tinguished for their extent and mode
of construction. This spring is con
nected with the Nile by a canal which
flows through a grove Of Egyptian
thornacacias, sacred to Apollo"
The vast underground edifce. to
which the excavators first penetrated
on February 13,is termed by it's dis
coverer a reservoir. remarks the In.
dianapolis News. It is some ninety
feet long by sixty feet wide and sur
rounded by a wall eighteen feet thick.
The construction OF the building is Of
the %cyclopean order, blocks Of stone Of
enormous size being piled n on top
Of the other. a canal runs right
around the building under q roof sup
ported by enormous pillars Of granite,
with q narrow stone towing path along
the sides. The center Of the cOnstruc-
tion seems to have been q sortsof is.
land, reached possibly by q wooden
bridge from the pathway.
The professor. states: "We have still
nc certain indication Of the date Of its
construction; but the style, the size
Of the materials used and the COIN:
plete absence OF all characterization all
indicate a very great antiquity. Up
to now the temple Of the Sphinx at
Gizeh has always been considered the
most ancient ediice in Egypt It is,
contemporary With the pyramid Of
Chefren. The reservoir Of Abydos, OF
a wholly analogous construction. but
built Of very much vaster material.
has q character still more archaic. I
should not be surprised II It were the
most ancient piece Of architectural
work extant In Egypt. The pyramids
are possibly OF the same age, but
pyramid is only . mass of stones, and,
would not require 10 complicated .
plan az the reservoir.
III we have before US the most an
dent Egyptian building which has
been preserved. It Ii: curious that It r.
neither temple nor tomb but . resert
yoir. atgreat hydraulic piece Of work.
That shows ius that these ancient peo-
pies knew very well the movement Of
ts~ubterranean waters and the laws
which govern their rise and fall. It IL
quito probable that this reservoir
played some part in the cult Of Osiris.
'Thescells along its sides are possibly
those that appear in the Book Of the
Dead It is also possible that the va
teri were held to have curative quail
ties and that they were used by sick.
persons who came thither to seek Q
cure. II may be that sometimes the
boatfof Osiris f1oated on the waters Of
the reservoir, hauled by priests on the
path that runs along the side; for the
bark Of, the sun. as one ees It depicted
in the tombs Of kings, journeys always,
at the end Of q towline. Who would
have thought q few months ago that
thirty feet beloY the earth one would
be able to see q building such assthis,
which surpasses In grandeur the most
colossal of cyclopean edifces!"