52 Memoir en the Ibh of 



Such is the ibis of Perrault *, the white ibis of BrifTon f, 

 the white Egyptian ibis of Buffon J, the tantalus ibis of 

 Linnaeus in the twelfth edition of his works ; fuch is the 

 bird which in the National Mufaeum is called the Egyptian 

 ibis, and which is there placed near, and not without rea- 

 fon, to the curkaca of Margrave, or the tantalus loculator 

 of Linnaeus, for they both have a hooked, {harp, and in- 

 dented bill. To the fame bird, according to Blumenbacb, 

 who, however, confefles that at prefent it is very rare, at lead 

 in lower Egypt, the Egyptians paid divine honours §. 



I participated in the error of thefe celebrated men above 

 mentioned, till I had an opportunity of examining myfelf 

 fome mummies of the ibis. This pleafure was afforded to 

 me lately by Fourcroy, to whom General Grobert of the 

 Artillery, on his return from Egypt, prefented two of thefe 

 mummies. On unwrapping it with care, we obferved that 

 the bones of the embalmed bird were much fmaller than 

 thofe of the tantalus ; that they were fcarcely fo large as 

 thofe of the curlew ; that its beak refembled that of the 

 latter, the length excepted, which was fomewhat lefs, and 

 not at all equal to the tantalus ; in a word, that its plumage 

 was white, with the wing feathers black, as mentioned by 

 the antients. 



We were therefore convinced, that the bird which the 

 Egyptians embalmed was by no means our tantalus ibis ; 

 that it was fmaller; and that it was neceflary to fearch for it 

 amonof the genus of the curlew. 



After fome refearch, we found that the mummies of the 



* Defcri prion dun ibis blanc et de deux cicrgnes in the Memoirs of the 

 Acad, of Sciences, Vol. III. p. 6,. Plate XIII. 'fig. i. The bill is 

 represented as truncated at the end ; but this is the fault of the 

 draftsman. 



■f Numenius fordide albo rufefcens, capite anteriore nudo rubro ; la-- 

 teribus rubro purpureo et carheo colore maculatis, remigibus majoribus, 

 nigris, ne£\ricibus fordide albo rufefcentibus, rofiro in exortu dilute 

 Juteo, in extreminte auranteo, pedibus griftis. — Ibis Candida. Eriflon 

 Ornith. Vol. V. p. 349. 



t HtJIoire des Animaux, Vol. VIII. 4to. p. 14. Plate I. Planches 

 cnl. No. 369. 



§ Handbuch der Nairn G^cbicbie, p. aevj. Edit, of 178*. 



9 ibi?. 



