s 



THE CIVIL ENGINEER AND ARCHITECT'S JOURNAL, 



[January, 



tlie rock: this leads to tlie celeliratod valloy of Bihan-el-Moluk 

 — the valley of the 'I'onibs. where the great 'J'hehan kings have 

 found their last resting-jjlace. Many of these tombs remain 

 unexplored, but those wliich have been opened are sufficient to 

 attest the wonderful labour and skill, and the vast expenditure, 

 lavished on their |)reparation and adornment. 



The tomb of Aniuuotbpli III. is one of the most extensive of 

 tlie royal sepulchres: it <lescends into the solid rock 320 feet in 

 horizontal lenirth, and its perpendicular depth to the jilace where 

 it is closed bv the fallen rock is ISO feet. In some of the inferior 

 chambers it is probable members of the king's household may have 

 been buried. 



Another richly decorated tomb is that of Oimeneptha, opened 

 by IJelzoni: in a small vaulted chamber beyond the third and 

 largest hall was discovered the alabaster sarcophagus novf in Sir 

 J. Sonne's museum. 



In the reign of Osirtesen I. (about 16jfl b.c ), were excavated 

 the beautiful grottoes of Beni-Hassan, near Antiniiopolis, the poly- 

 gonal columns of which have been supposed to be the original of 

 the Doric; these columns are 3 ft. + in. in diameter, 16 ft. 8i in. in 

 heiglit, and have IC faces, each about S inches in widtli; these faces 

 are slightly grooved to the depth of about i-inch, thus suggesting 

 the idea of fluting: a sim])le abacus forms the capital. Two co- 

 lumns supporting an entablature projecting from the rock, out of 

 which it has l>een carved, completes the fa,ade. Upon the archi- 

 trave a sort of dentel is sculptured; the cornice is too much broken 

 away to allow of a decision as to whether it had the Egyptian or 

 Doric character. A beautifully-proportioned doorway forms tlie 

 entrance, the imposts and lintel of which are covered with carved 

 hieroglyphics. On the lintel the following words have been de- 

 ciphered: "A good house, food, and drink — bread, geese, cattle, 

 perfumes, as offerings to the (ieneral, Nahride Nevothph, son of 

 Dgiok." The principal chamber of the tomb is of a square form, 



about .SO feet in lengih and breadth. Two longitudinal arcliitraves, 

 each sup]iorted by two columns, similar to those on the exterior, 

 divide the ceiling into three parts, each division being \ aulted and 

 decorated with stars on a blue ground: the basement and archi- 

 traves are covered with hieroglyphics, coloured green on a red 

 ground; and the walls are adorned with paintings representing 

 the daily habits of Egyptian life, atul, it is to be supposed, of 

 Naliride Nevothjih in ]iarticular. The fancy of the artist was 

 allowed greater pl:iy in the tond)S than in the temple, and we fre- 

 quently find ornamental patterns \ory similar to those in use up to 

 tiie present day. There are several other grottoes at lieni-IIassan, 

 in one of wliiih are reed-shaped columns; another has polygonal 

 columns with i>biin sides. 



Although the Egyptians expended so much money and labour in 

 the preparation of their toniiis, they were by no means negligent in 

 Jiroviding for the ciuufcut and luxury of their houses. Fnun the 

 amusingly detailed drawings they h.ive left us, we have accpiired a 

 closer insiglit into the homes ami manner of life of the Egyptians 

 than of those of any otiier ancient nation. Diodorus Siculus tells 



us that the Egyptians originally built their houses of reeds. This 

 may probably have been the case; but as brick-making was so early 

 an invention, the reed houses were mostly soon confined to the 

 lowest classes; and this may be the reason we find no representa- 

 tions of them on the tombs. The houses there delineated are of 

 crude brick, as are found in the ruins of the Alabastron and else- 

 where, and were covered with stucco. 



One of the houses painted on a Theban tomb represents a square 

 indosure, to which ingress is gained by doors on opposite sides; 

 the door to the left leads into a garden, where is a vine-arbour, 

 and four trees. Beyond the garden is a courtyard, where, in seve- 

 ral tiers, bread and meat, &c. is set out in the air in vases. On the 

 right of this c(mrt is a gallery or passage, with a large window : 

 then follows the house, witli the entrance-do<jr to the right. This 

 htmse consists of two stories; two rectangular windows are seen 

 with light and elegant imposts and architrave, variously orna- 

 mented and painted; the window-shutters are perforated, so as to 

 admit the air and moderate the light. Above the second story is 

 a terrace, with a roof supported by columns. A cornice runs along 

 the side of the house as far as the entrance-gate, supported at each 

 end by a pillar in the form of a stalk of the papyrus, with a square 

 abacus. 



Another house is represented in the midst of a beautiful pleasure 

 garden; by the side of one of the walls flows tlie river, shaded by 

 a row of tall trees. From this walk an alley leads to the entrance 

 gate; fnmi this an avenue of trees conducts to a smaller gate, 

 ojjeaing to the vine-arbour. The garden is laid out in walks or 

 alleys, some of which lead to tanks of water surrounded by little 

 verdant ])lots, on which vases containing plants are placed; in the 

 tanks the lotus is growing and water-birds are disporting them- 

 selves. Here are also two small pavilions or summer-houses, sur- 

 rounded by a balustrade. At the end of the garden, behind the 

 vine-arbour, stands the house, which is entered by two doors; two 

 elegantly decorated windows give light to the ground-floor; above 

 are three stories, the upper one finished with a cornice, on which is 

 placed three vases containing papyrus plants. The columns at the 

 entrance-door were on festive occasions ornamented with ribands 

 and banners: the name of the person to whom the house belonged 

 was painted on the lintel m- imposts of the door. 



The rooms were usually arranged round an open court, or on 

 either side a long passage; and in the court was generally a man- 

 dara, or receiving room for visitors. The ground-floor was chiefly 

 used for store-rooms. The walls of the rooms were stuccoed inside 

 and out, and variously ornamented with painted devices. The 

 doors were frequently stained to imitate rare woods; they were 

 sometimes single, sometimes folding, turning on metal pins and 

 secured within by a bar or bolts of bronze. The floors of the 

 rooms were either of stone or composition; the roo*"s formed with 

 rafters of the date-tree, laid close together, or apart when trans- 

 verse layers of palm branches or planks were added. Occasionally 

 the ceilings were of crude bricks and vaulted. Sometimes, instead 

 of a covered terrace, the house was surmounted by a niuhiuf, or 

 wind conductor, such as is seen at Cairo at the present day. In 

 some instances, part of the house was raised above the terrace as a 

 tower, and was ornamented with battlements, in the form of half- 

 shields. Each house had its granary, sometimes separated from it 

 by an avenue of trees. We may judge how much trees were valued 

 in that country, by the careful manner in which they were tended: 

 each tree was surrounded by a low wall, to protect it from the cattle 

 or other injury, with holes bored to admit the air. 



The streets in the towns seem to have been regularly laid out, 

 without the mixture of large houses and hovels, so usual in eastern 

 cities. As is generally tiie case in hot climates, the streets were 

 narrow, only the principal ones admitting the passage of a chariot. 

 Tlie himses of tlie lower classes were connected together, so as to 

 form the continuous sides of the street; some of these small houses 

 consisted merely of a court, and three or four store-rooms on the 

 ground-floor, — with a single chamber above, to which a flight of 

 steps led from the court. The upper chamber was so small and 

 inconvenient, that it could scarcely be used for anything but an 

 occasional shelter frcmi the heat of the sun, or a place from whence 

 the master could overlook his household; as Sir Gardiner A\'ilkin- 

 son remarks, it calls to mind the proverb : "It is better to dwell in 

 a corner of the house-top, than with a Ijrawling woman in a wide 

 house." The shops were either open stalls similar to those in an 

 eastern bazaar, or else mere booths in the public thoroughfares. 

 The Egyptians possessed also extensive villas with orchards, vine- 

 yards, and pleasure grounds. Some of the larger country mansions 

 had pylons and obelisks at the entrance, like small temples. 



In contemplating the vast structures raised by the ancient Egyp- 



