202 



was rendered firm and coherent ; when the bandage was removed, 

 the bird appeared to be covered with the same kind of bituminous 

 substance that had cemented the strips of cloth. As much of this 

 substance as could be removed without injuring the bird was now 

 carefully taken off; and after the labour of several hours, Mr. Pearson 

 succeeded in displaying the whole bird as it had been originally de- 

 posited by the embalmer. 



The neck of the bird was twisted, so that the vertex of the head 

 lay a little to the left of the sternum. The bill descended between 

 the feet, and reached to the extremity of the tail. The feet were 

 bent upwards, and placed one on each side of the head. The wings 

 were brought close to the sides of the body. The feathers of the 

 back and wings were white, tipped at their extremities with dark 

 brown. The tail feathers could not be sufficiently cleared from the 

 bituminous substance, to determine their colour. From the state of 

 the quills of the wing feathers, it appeared that the bird had attained 

 its full growth. 



The dimensions of this bird were as follows : inches. 



From the termination of the neck to the extremity of 



the tail 



Length of the neck 



head and bill 8 



sternum 4 



metatarsal bone 3 



Longest toe ; 3 



Width at the shoulders 4| 



Circumference of the body 13| 



Weight of the whole, 16 ounces, Troy. 



No particular marks of decay can be perceived in this mummy, 

 although it is probable, Mr. Pearson says, that the greater part of 

 3000 years has elapsed since it was embalmed. It was, he thinks, 

 immersed in the bituminous matter, while that matter was in a liquid 

 state ; but that it was not boiled therein, as Grew supposed, is evi- 

 dent, from the feathers not being corrugated, or otherwise materially 

 changed from their natural state. 



Mr. Pearson unrolled another mummy of an Ibis, also sent from 

 Thebes by Major Hayes, which appeared to have been embalmed in 

 a different manner. The cloth of this latter was of a coarser texture ; 

 it had not been so thoroughly imbued with bitumen, nor were the 

 circular bands continued to the body of the bird, which was merely 

 wrapped in several pieces of cloth. This mummy was in such a state 

 of decay, that no remains of the head or bill could be discovered. The 

 exterior layer of feathers was in general of a dark colour, some of 

 them tipped with white. The plumage of the neck and tail was 

 white ; the latter had a tufted appearance. 



Whether the two birds here described were what authors have 

 called the white and the black Ibis, Mr. Pearson cannot, he says, 

 presume to determine. With respect to the mode in which such 

 birds were embalmed, it appears, he thinks, contrary to what is 



