THESl'KOTIA. 



iod appear, to hw> been about B.C. 1000, when it was 

 all t^ypt, and when, according to Herodotus and 

 UM wbols country of Egypt bore the name of Thebes. 

 U.U period, which probably comprises ssrsral centuries, 

 _ was UMissMioos of UM Egyptian king*, whose tombs are still 

 i"in UM rooks on UM western side of the city, and extend even to 

 WM bordsn of UM desert Homer (' Iliad,' ix. 381, Ac.) speaks of the 

 riialrn'mrttli.*. and wealth of Thebes, and calls it " the city with 

 sTkoBdrsd giHr. esch of which sent oat two hundred men with horses 

 sod chariots." Daring UM invasion of Egypt by the Persians under 

 Osmbys**, Thebe*. liko other towns, suffered very severely, especially 

 UM wival* dwelling*, which were for the most part constructed of 

 wood, while UM great architectural works defied the flames as much 

 as they have defied the slower influence of time. After this catas- 

 smyns thi city appear* never to hare recovered its former greatness. 

 During UM time of the Ptolemier, when the scat of government was 

 in UM northern extremity of the country, Thebes appears to have 

 nscUctfd by the Egyptian king*. In the reign of Ptolemy 

 , about B.C. 88, H revolted, and after a siege of three yean it 

 n and plundered by the Greeks. As early as tho time of 



_ , a-hen its name had been changed to Diospolis (' City of Jove'), 



and the circuit of the city, which could still be traced, amounted to 

 80 stadia, the place confuted of a number of villages, and what 

 mssilixl of UM ancient city consisted chiefly of temples. Under fie 

 p/wn. n dominion something appears to have been done to preserve 

 UM venerable city; but new calamities broke in upon it when Chris- 

 tianity wa introduced into Upper Egypt, and the Christians iu their 

 rdigtoua seal destroyed as much as they could of the works of the 

 sinful idolaters. At present, the site of the city is occupied by four 

 principal villages Luxor and Carnac on the eastern, and Gournou and 

 Msdi-net-Abou on the western side of the river. The buildings and 

 sculpture* still extant are the most ancient of any that exist in Egypt, 

 and are the best and most genuine specimens of Egyptian art and 

 architecture; for we have every reason to believe that by far the 

 gresVtt part of them were executed before Egypt had yet experienced 

 UM isrflT^ of the Greeks, that is, long before the Persian invasion. 

 (B.C. 625.) The ruins, chiefly consisting of temples, colossi, sphinxes, 

 and obelisk*, occupy nearly the whole extent of the valley of the Mile, 

 a pac of six miles from east to west; and on the western side, 

 where UM rains of the city end, there begins, as it were, tho city of 

 UM dead, the tombs in the rocks with their paintings, which are still 

 ai fresh as if they bad been made only a few days ago. 



At Luxor, near the river, are the remains of a temple, tho entrance 

 to which is through a magnificent propylon, or gateway, consisting of 

 * pyramidal mole*, the lower part of which is now concealed by 

 accumulated sand, but which probably form a propylon as large us 

 that of Carnac, hereafter described. In front of the propylou, which 

 is covered with elaborate sculptures, stood two of the most perfect 

 obelisks known to exist; one about 82 feet high, tho other 70 feet, 

 and from 8 to 10 feet wide at the base. The smaller obelisk was 

 removed by the French in 1831, and erected iu the Place de la Concorde, 

 in Paris, on October 25, 1836. 



But the remains of Carnac, about a mile and a quarter lower down 

 UM river, are still more wonderful than those of Luxor. An irregular 

 avenue of sphinxes, 2180 yards in length, connects the southern 

 entrance of Carnac with the northern entrance of the temple of Luxor. 

 Caruac is about 830 yards from the east bank of the Kile, and is sur- 

 rounded by a wall of unburnt bricks about 5300 yards in circuit, or 

 more than three miles. The largest building, which some have thought 

 to be a temple and some a palace, is 1215 feet in length, 300 feet in its 

 greatest width, and 321 feet in its least width. The entrance to it 

 front* UM Nile, with which it is connected by an alley of crio-aphinxea. 

 This alley conducts to a propylon, without sculpture, 300 feet long 

 sad 148 (set high, with a great doorway in the centre 64 feet high ; 

 rasilag through which a large court is entered, having a range of 

 pillar* on the north and south lides, and a double row of loftier pillars 

 down UM middle, which terminate opposite two colossal statues in 

 front of a second propylon. A flight of 27 st-ps then leads to an 

 enormoni hall, 838 feet by 1704 feet, and comprising an area of 57,629 

 square feet The roof, which is flat, and when perfect was formed of 

 very large slabs of stone, is supported by 134 columns, the largest of 

 wbieh are about eleven feet in diameter, and the smallest nearly nine 

 The interior propylon, pillars, and walls are covered with 

 tons. Four beautiful obelisk* form the entrance from the hall 

 i adytum, or sacred place, which consist* of three apartments, all 

 of granite ; and the central room, or sanctuary, is adorned with sculp- 

 tors*, and painting and gilding. Beyond the adytum are porticoes 

 and gallerir*, which were probably continued to another propylon at 



Voor prapyU, with colossi in front of them, form the cntranc 

 UM soaUi d-, at the en-l of the long avenue of sphinxes leading I 

 Luxor; and UMT* was probably a similar entrance on the north a: 



entrance on 

 from 



voL L \ Wilkinson' 7/anrfoooi tf~Bgypi) 



I c.llhS (in BojoUa), one of the most ancient and most important 

 tttrs of UTMOS, was situated in the plain between Lake Hylice on the 

 north, and a range of low hills on UM south. The Acropolis of the 

 fey, built upon an eminence in this plain, was said to have been 

 1 by 1-honicJaas under Cadmus, whence it was called Cadmea. 



Around this citadel the city arose at a later time, and was . 

 that the greater portion of it occupied the part north of th. , \<-.v\-\. 

 Previous to the Trojan war the city was destroyed by tho Epigoui ; it 

 took no part in that war. In the time of Homer, however, who calls it 

 "a city with seven gates," it appears to have again been iu a nourishing 

 condition. In B.C. 335 Thebes was destroyed a second time, by 

 Alexander the Great, who left nothing of the lower city stai 

 except the gates, the temples, and the house of Pindar the poet : liuuil 

 inhabitants were killed, and 30,000 sold as slaves. Cassanrler rebuilt 

 the city iu B.C. 3 1 6, with the generous aid of the Athenians, Meiseuians, 

 and Megalopolitans. (Pausanias, ix. 7.) The city suffered a third 

 time iu &o. 291, under Demetrius Poliorcetes. Diaearchus, who saw 

 Thebca about this time or shortly after, has left an interesting descrip- 

 tion of it After the Macedonian time the city declined still more, 

 and Sulla seems to have given it the last blow by depriving it of half 

 of its territory, which he assigned to tho Delphian* (Pausanias, ix. 

 7, 4) ; and Strabo remarks that in his time it had scarcely the appear- 

 ance of a village (ix., p. 403, ed. Cosaub.). In the time of Pausauia*, 

 the citadel, then called Thebes, was still inhabited, but the lower city 

 was entirely abandoned ; and he only saw the walls, gates, and temples, 

 of which he gives a description. The place which now occupies the 

 ancient Cadmea is called Theba, or Pheba ; and here, as well as in tho 

 surrounding plain, there are many remains of ancient buildings, sculp- 

 tures, and inscriptions. The inhabitants of ancient Thebes were onco 

 distinguished above all the other Greeks for rusticity, fierceness, and 

 passion. The women were celebrated for their gentleness and beauty. 



As a state, Thebes comprised the whole territory between the 

 eastern coast of Lake Copais and Mount Cithacrou, and cxtcn 

 the north as far as the river Cephisaus, which empties itself into tin; 

 sea between Euboea and the mainland. This whole territory was 

 called Thebais, and contained a great number of towns, which were 

 subject to Thebes. Among the fourteen confederate states of 1; 

 Thebes was the first, whence it is generally colled the capital of 

 Bocotia, which, iu the strict sense of tho word, it certainly was not. 



Besides the Egyptian and Uceotian Thebes, the following towns of 

 this name are mentioned by ancient writers : 



1. Thebes in Phthiotis, in Thessaly, an important commercial town 

 with a good harbour. [THBsUIiT.] 



2. Tiiebe in Troaa, iu Asia Minor, was celebrated as a fortified place 

 as early as the Trojan war. It was situated north of Aclramy ttium, and 

 taken and destroyed by Achilles. The plain in which the town had 

 been situated was known down to the latest times as the Plain of 

 Thebe. 



3. Thebes in Arabia Felix. 



4. Thebes in Lucauia, iu Italy. 

 THEISS, 1UVEK. [Ai sriii.v ; IU X..AHY.] 

 TI1ENON. [DoiiUoujlK.J 



THKKA, an island iu the Grecian Archipelago, and tho chief uf tlm 

 Sporades. Its modern name is Santa Thira, which is usually written 

 Santonin. It is about 30 miles in circumference, and iu figure like a 

 tiorse-shoe. When it first emerged from the sea, it is said to have 

 been called Colliste : Theraiia, a small island to the weat, and called 

 at present by the same name, was torn away from it, according to 

 Pliny. Volcanic action seems at one time to have been actively at 

 work in this part of the sea. (Strabo, i. 57.) Pliny speaks of an 

 which arose between Thera and Therosia, to which he gives the names 

 of Uiera and Automate, and of another which appeared iu his own age, 

 called Thio. The former is now called Aspromai, or ' the white 

 island ;' the latter Kaimeui, or ' the burnt.' 



Thera was originally inhabited by tho Phoenicians, who are said to 

 have been left there by Cadmus. It was subsequently colonised by a 

 mixed colony of Minyaus and Spartans (Herod., iv. 147, 1 1>), and 

 always remained faithful to its mother-city Sparta. Thera founded tho 

 colony of Cyrene in Africa, under the guidance of Battus, iu i;.< 

 (Herod., iv. 150, &c.) 



In tho present day the island is covered with pumice-stone ; and 

 though the soil is dry and barren, it produces a large quantity of 

 cotton and wine. The wiue is strong, and is exported to all parts of 

 the Archipelago. There is no wood in the island. They have hardly 

 any cattle, and very little fruit except grapes, and there H only one 

 spring in the island. It contains a few castles, surrounded by some 

 houses ; but the majority of the inhabitants live underground in caves 

 cut out of the pumice-stone, which are arched over with very light stones 

 of a reddish colour. The island bos a very desolate appearance, the 

 coast being craggy and rugged, and the rocks burnt and scorched. 1 1 

 has only one harbour, in the shape of a half-moon ; but no ship can 

 anchor in it, as no bottom has yet been found by the plumb-line. 



The inhabitants number about 13,000; they ure under a Ureek and 

 a Catholic bishop. 



THEKESIENSTADT. [EoKE.] 



THERMOPYLAE. [SPAKTA; THESSALY.] 



THESPKO'TIA, a district of the ancient Epirus, around the river 

 Acheron. It seems to have included the coast from tho mouth of the 

 Ambracian Uulf northwards to the river Thyainis, and the country 

 inland as far as Mount Tomarus. The south-eastern part of Thes- 

 protia, south of the river Acheron, was called Cassoptm. 



Thesprotia was one of the chief abodes of the Pelasgi. In Thesprotia 

 was the oracle of Dodoua (Herod., ii. 50), the chief seat of the old 



