300 THE ANCIENT EGYPTIANS. CHAP. XIII. 



and many other characters of the Sun were pro- 

 bably admitted into the Pantheon of Egypt. 



Heliopolis, (Ainshems, or Bethshemesh,) the On 

 of Scripture, a small but celebrated city of Lower 

 Egypt, was the place where the worship of Re 

 was peculiarly adopted. Plutarch says*, "Those 

 who minister to the God of Heliopolis never carry 

 any wine into the temple, — looking upon it as in- 

 decent to drink it during the day, when under the 

 immediate inspection of their Lord and King. The 

 priests of the other Deities are not altogether so 

 scrupulous on this point ; making use of it, though 

 sparingly, unless at some of their more solemn 

 ])urifications, when they wholly abstain from it. 

 Indeed, they give themselves up wholly to study 

 and meditation, hearing and teaching those truths 

 which regard the divine nature." This, however, 

 does not appear to refer to the ordinary libations 

 made to the Sun, which were doubtless of wine t; 

 as the usual drink-offerings presented to the 

 Gods ; but to a regulation which prevented the 

 priests from indulging in the use of wine ; and we 

 hnd abundant proofs, from the sculptures in other 

 places, of its having been offered to the Sun, 



Plutarch continues to observe, that '* even the 

 Kings themselves, being of the order of priests, 

 have their wine given them according to a certain 

 measure prescribed in the sacred books, as we are 

 told by Hecata?us ; and it is only since the reign 

 of Psammetichus, that this indulgence has been 

 granted them ; for, before that time, they drank no 



* Plut. de Is. s. 6. t nde supra, Vol. II. p. 164-. note f. 



