22 TRAVELS IN UPPER 



Stance would have been sufficient to overthrow 

 the opinion of some of the moderns, who imagined 

 that these pyramids were only composed of facti- 

 tious stones, though besides the most ancient of the 

 historians who have written on Egypt, Herodotus, 

 bad not positively said, that upon the mountains 

 of Arabia (that chain which is on the side of the 

 Red Sea) may be seen the quarries from whence 

 were hewn the pyramids of Memphis*. 



At a full quarter of a league before your arrival 

 st Scheick llmann, on the eastern shore of the river, 

 is Toura, which has retained something of the an- 

 cient name Troja, which it formerly bore. On 

 each side, and from distance to distance, you see 

 those useless buildings, which, under the name of 

 monasteries, enclose societies of men more useless 

 still. They were peopled by Cophtish monks. 



Opposite to Sfhelck Itniami^ a village called il/^- 

 sara (a press) appears on the same side with Totira% 

 but retreating somewhat farther into the land. 

 Above the first mentioned place there is a pretty 

 large canal, the direction of which to the west- 

 ward does not extend very far. 



I bought some little M/;//j, fishes which I have 

 made mention of at the conclusion of the preced- 



* Book II. sect. 8. Larcher's translation, vol. ii. p. j^ 



mg 



