ARCHAEOLOGY. (EGYPT.) 



63 short chapters, 41 of which contain a chrono- 

 logical sketch of the development of the Athe- 

 nian constitution, while the others are occupied 

 with the account of the official duties of the 

 magistrates and public bodies that existed in the 

 time of the author. The existing text casts 

 light on the obscure period of the kings and 

 the legislation of Draco and Solon and their suc- 

 cessors, and continues to the restoration of the 

 democracy after the reign of the thirty tyrants, 

 in B. c. 403. The genuineness of the work ap- 

 pears to be satisfactorily established. It has 

 been published in the Greek text and in fac 

 simile, and has been subjected to critical exami- 

 nations. 



Among other classical Greek documents found 

 among the papyri are considerable fragments of 

 the Antiope of Euripides, parts of another copy 

 of Plato's Phsedo, and fragments of the writings 

 of the poet Herodas, or Herondas, which had 

 not been known before. 



vided for the appointment of European inspect- 

 ors to secure the preservation of the monuments, 

 and has promulgated regulations concerning the 

 making of excavations and the disposition of the 

 relics found. 



The Pyramid and Temple of Mednm. 

 Mr. W. M. Flinders Petrie's examinations of the 

 pyramid of Medum, made and completed during 

 the early months of 1891, have proved it to be 

 the structure of Senefru, of the third dynasty, 

 and therefore the oldest dated pyramid. With 

 it is connected, still in good condition, the only 

 pyramid temple yet found entire, also pronounced 

 by Mr. Petrie the oldest dated building in the 

 world. It was reached by digging to the depth 

 of from 40 to 60 feet in the rubbish which had 

 accumulated around the pyramid. It is joined 

 to the east face of the pyramid, and has a front 

 about 30 feet wide and 9 feet high, with a door 

 in the south end of the face. A passage, parallel 

 to the front and 20 feet long, leads to the oharn- 



Egypt. Protection of Egyptian Monu- 

 ments. Anxious attention has been given to the 

 danger of destruction to which many of the 

 Egyptian monuments are exposed, either from 

 the action of the weather or the washings of the 

 Nile, or from the depredations of native specu- 

 lators in relics. The foundations of the temple 

 of Luxor are threatened by the stream of the 

 Nile, the temple of Karnak is in danger, and 

 some of the tombs and other structures have 

 been robbed of paintings and sculptures. A 

 memorial was addressed to the Egyptian Govern- 

 ment toward the end of 1890 on behalf of the 

 Society for the Preservation of Egyptian Monu- 

 ments, and signed by 650 persons, asking the ap- 

 pointment of an official inspector to whom the 

 care of the ruins should be intrusted. The re- 

 port of the society, made July 14, 1891, related 

 certain steps tuat had been taken in these mat- 

 ters. In consequence of these and other repre- 

 sentations, the Egyptian Government has pro- 



ber, which measures 20 feet by 7 feet. Hence a 

 wide doorway leads into the open air court, 

 which is built against the face of the pyramid. 

 The altar of offerings, which is plain, stands in 

 the middle of the court, with an obelisk 13 feet 

 high, rounded at the top and uninscribed, on 

 either side of it. The walls of the temple, which 

 is itself plain and uninscribed, are marked with 

 the graffiti of visitors who came to it during the 

 twelfth and eighteenth dynasties. The base of 

 a statuette was found which had been dedicated 

 to the gods of a town, Tat-snefru, by a woman 

 named Snefru-khati. The structure of the pyra- 

 mid was examined. It consists of a small stone 

 mastaba, heightened and built around repeated- 

 ly until there were 7 steps of construction. Over 

 all these a continuous slope of casing was added, 

 so that the pyramid appeared with one long face 

 from the top to the ground. The tombs had 

 been plundered in ancient times, evidently by 

 persons who understood their plans and ar- 



