113 ilijlory of AJlronojny for the Year 1800. 



of Conftantinople, where he made obfervations when with 

 the French ambalTador Choifoul-Goaffier. 



The Enghfli have announced that a veflel, called the Lady 

 Nelfon, is about to fet out on a voyage round the world for 

 ihe improvement of faience. 



Nouet has fent us a table of the pofitions of 35 cities irt 

 Kgypt, as far as Syena, which he finds to be in 24^^ 8 , though 

 it was long believed to lie Under the tropic. 



We learn from a memoir tranfmitted by C. Coraboeuf, 

 engineer in Egypt, that the Egyptians, on two zodiacs found 

 at Henne in 25^", and at Dindiira in 26^ north latitude, had 

 indicated the folflice, firft placed in the conftellatiori of Virgo^ 

 then in Leo, and approaching Cancer. 



C. Grobert, chief of the brigade of artillery, has publidied 

 ia defcription of the pyramids of Ghize and of the city of 

 Cairo: it contains an aftronomical note by Burckhardt, who^ 

 having feen a drawing, made by Denori, of the zodiac of 

 Dindara, finds that the foUtice had advanced 60^' further than 

 the place where it now is; which fuppofes an antiquity of 

 -4000 years. By ftudying the furrounding figures, this pofi- 

 tion may be obtained with more accuracy. 



C Fournier has prefented to the IniHtute of Egypt a me- 

 iTioir containing further details. 



The zodiac of Henne or Efma is much older; the fol(lic6 

 there is in the conftellation of Virgo, which fuppofes an an- 

 tiquity of 7000 years. But the pofition of the folflice is there 

 indicated in a more vague manner, and it is not impoffible 

 that there may be an uncertainty of feme hundred years. 

 This, however, ftill appears to give fomc degree of probability 

 to the hypolbcfis of Dupuis, mentioned in the fourth volume 

 of my Aftronomy, who afcribcs our zodiac to the climate of 

 Egypt when the fummer folftice was in the conftellation of 

 Capricorn 14 or 15,000 years before our asra ; and w'ho findi 

 that the Indian zodiac, which Bailly caufed to be eilgraved, 

 goes back alfo 7000 years. 



The zodiac of Henne was found by general Dcfjaix, Fou- 

 iier, and Coftas, after the departure of Denon. But Cora- 

 boeuf fays in his letter that the zodiac indicalc^s the foKlice 



in 



