Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1921-12-28
BRING BACK PAST
Priceless Objects Used by the
Early Egyptians.
Prof, Flinders Petrie Has Made Won
derful Discoveries, Soon to Be
Placed on Exhibition.

Prof. Flinders Petrie and his experts
are busy at University college, London,
unpacking the ninety cases that con-
tain thousands cf interesting things
dug up during the last two winters
by the British School Of Archaeology in
Egypt.
They will be exhibited before they
are distributed among the British and
foreign museums Unfortunately
many Of the most precious finds are
likely to be lost to Great Britain. The
British school is far more generous
ly supported by other countries than
it is in England, and the arrangement
is that the objects are distributed in
proportion to the amount subscribed.
Before the war, says the Manchester
Guardian, the exhibition of Prof. Film
ders Petries discoveries used to be
one of the London events Of the year.
He began work again in the winter
before last in the tombs at Lahun,
where In 1914 he had unearthed won
derful collection of jewelry which is
now in New York, for the reason
given above. Last winter the school
excavated cemetery in the western
desert, seventy miles south Of Cairo.
A rich harvest of objects belonging
to the early dynasties, particularly
the sixth and ninth was obtained.
A large number of tombs of the lat
ter dynasty-which are entered by long
stairways descending in the open des-
ert to rock chamberS-were opened,
and great many treasures that had
escaped the thieves and despoilers Of
past centuries were found. Oldest of
all was the body of girl who lived
(the experts say), about 5000 years
ago. The dry desert sand has ex-
traordinary preservative properties,
and this and other prehistoric bodies
were in wonderfully preservation.
The mass Of the exhibition is formed
Of things that were buried with the
dead. Among these Is beautiful
magic" jar of transparent alabaster
found In the tomb of a daughter Of
King Senuzert II. 1t has an inscrip-
ton saying that if she puts her hand
into it she can draw out anything on
earth or in the water that she wants.
Some articles of copper are a very
rare find, and one of the finest things
is stone cup carved In imitation of a
lotus tiower-a piece Of most delicate
workmanship.
Among the works of art there is a
fine ebony statue Of the sixth dynasty.
1t is to the ancient Egyptian belief
that existence after death is duplicate
OF this present life that we owe the
little sculptured figures, usually in
painted wood, which reproduce domes-
tic scenes from the ordinary daily
round Of work on the banks of the
Nile thousands Of years before Christ.
These fascinating statuettes' are we'll
known from earlier discoveries, but
Prof. Flinders Petrie has added enor-
mously to our knowledge of old Egyp-
tian life by his latest finds. Carved
and painted with surprising vigor and
realism, these groups show a minia-
ture granary filed with busy servants;
a kitchen where one cook turns
trussed goose on spit while another
CHS wig removed for coolness' sake)
fans the fire; sacrificial ceremony
the setting of table; and high
powered boats with sails Of brown linen
manned by crews Of black haired
sailors. The stone headrests, sandals,
toilet sets, tools and weapons deposited
In the graves made 1t possible to re-
construct every detail Of that long
persisted civilization down to the
minutest particular.