Egyptian Antiquities. 395 



natural, which it presents. A few calm days, with oppressive 

 south winds, detained us some time below Errouan, on the First 

 Cataracts: we reached them in December. The necessity of 

 changing our boat, the large one in which we came up the Nile 

 to Errouan being too heavy for the shallows above the First Ca- 

 taracts, at this time of the year particularly, we were obliged to 

 remain at the small island of Philas, a few miles from Errouan, 

 three or four days in succession. This time was well occupied 

 in making sketches, &c. of the various buildings of the island, 

 arranging notes,&c. Late in Decemberwe recommenced boating, 

 and proceeded on our way through the ancient Ethiopia. The re- 

 mains here are still more perfect, perhaps, than those of Egypt, be- 

 ing, with the exception of the excavated temples, referable to a 

 late period (the Ptolemaic dynasty), and not subject to the frequent 

 injuries of successive occupiers. Comparing the physiognomy of 

 the present race with that usually adopted in all their paintings, 

 of which great and well preserved specimens are to be found in 

 almost every temple, it is almost apparent that very few changes, 

 if indeed anv, have occurred, and that the Nubians of the day are 

 the descendants of the ancient Ethiopians. We made our Christ- 

 mas dinner in the capital of the country, Deim; but you are not 

 to understand by these high-sounding appellations any thing more 

 than a thjrd or fourth rate kind of Irish village. The inhabitants 

 are worthy of their works — wretchedly dwarfed in all the fair pro- 

 portions of mental and bodily strength, and as contemptible iu 

 character as in appearance. I have generally found mind gra- 

 dually decreasing as I proceeded south, with all other high qua- 

 lities, beginning with England as the maximum ; but I am not 

 altogether inchned to projiose the assertion without some quali- 

 fications. We met in our return some Seneer men, very far su- 

 perior in all particulars to tiie miserable population of this coun- 

 try. On the 2d of January we attained the limits of our journey, 

 and remained a ^cw hours at the Upper Cataracts, beyond which 

 all navigation ceases : we read the names of hamlets, looked once 

 more south towards the blue mountains of Dongola, and returned 

 across the Desert to our boat. 



" We had for a short time serious intentions of penetrating still 

 further towards the equator ; but the unimportance of the very 

 few ruins which remain, not more than three temples, and the 

 difficulty of procuring camels for so large a party, deterred us, on 

 more mature consideration. We returned a day or two after, to 

 Abouranbol, the principal temple in Etliiopia : it is excavated in 

 the solid rock, and of a siniplicitv, magnitude of dimension, and 

 solemnity, even eyes familiar with ordinary Egyptian works have 

 not l)eeii accustomed to. We found that the excavation made 

 at the head of the door a year and a half ago, by Captains Man- 

 gles 



