The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1915-08-29
Pennsylvania University
Expedition EXcavates
Many Rare Articles

ticipated. The great granite sphinx which stands In the
courtyard Of the university museum stood in the temple
OF Ptah in the city Menes founded In 1000 B. c. Prof.
Petrie dug 1t up in 1912.
4. is the aim Of the Eckley n. Coke. Jr, expedition
to carry on the Memphite excavations in the thorough,
unhurried manner characterizing Petrte's
work. There Is much TO be done. He has merely
scratched the surface Sand from the desert and mud
from the Nile through centuries have accumulated, bury
ing the city far below: and since the Moslem conquest
the site has been used as a quarry for building stone.
much OF nearby Cairo having been built from IL. opera
tons present many difficulties.
The surface stratum was found covered with heavy
mud brick walls OF Roman or Ptoemaic o~rigin-that is, 30
u. C.. or s23 Il. c. A trench was sunk down through this
to the water level. and as the seepage OF the Nile would
interfere with results a pump was installed to keep the
trench dry. Mr. Fisher then built a railroad to carry TO
TO a distance the rubbish removed, thereby immensely
facilitating operations.
Below the first stratum In a layer whose period Of
occupation has not been determined, and below that were
found traces OF a wall Of such proportions that Mr..
Fisher was certain he had come upon his royal palace.
Near II were two projecting columns that Prof. Petrie
had partly uncovered. on April 10 Mr.. Fisher wrote 10
the museum:
II am sure that we have the beginnings of the palace
here. The columns bear long inscriptions and the
panels Of the doors have also inscriptions and reliefs
Of the King Merneptah making offerings to different
delties."
But as the work progressed IT developed that this was
a temple OF King Seti !. or his grandson, not the royal
palace of the New Empire, We know from papyri and
monuments already deciphered that a temple was built
in Memphis by Seti |. and that his son. Rameses H., re-
built it: statues of the king have been unearthed here
by other crrators. Merneptah was the thirteenth son
Of Ramcs H. and reigned from 1894 r. c. to 1914 n. c.
Bu' VI. her 1t is the temple Of seti I. or of Mernep-
tab. this = a find Of far greater Importance than the
palace would have been. The best authorities now place
the date Of the exodus as 1913 II. c. and identify Rameses
as the Pharaoh referred TO. Merneptah, we read. main
tanned friendly relations with his H.ttite neighbors, hut
during the troubled days of his successor, when anarchy
ruled, the supposition is that Moses led his brethren out
OF the land Of bondage.
Moses. then. was in Egypt when Merneptah was king.
The world will wait with interest for possible light
upon Moses or the Israolites from this expedition.
Put its task is tedious and requires infinite patience.
Whom the columns referred 10 above were COmplctpiy
freed from their enClrcling debris they were coated with
mud and the surface Of the stone itself was wet and soft,
They could not he cleaned and examined until dried in
the sun, after which the earth pcels of,
The greatest skin must be exercised in handling the
stone beneath. There have been many breaks, many
cracks; portions are Clipped off or arc loose. \ r6yEh
or hasty touch may destroy an invaluable record.
II Is impossible to keep Egyptian workmcn at their
posts during the hot spell. and toward the last Of June
Mr.. Fisher discontinued excavations. In another week
he will be back at the Memphis temple. Besides the