AND LOWER EGYPT. 125 



delicacy, and have forms more elegant than that of 

 Alexandria. Not that this last wants beauty ; but 

 its principal merit consists in the prodigious mag- 

 nitude of its dimensions, and the truly astonishing 

 enormity of its mass. 



The same considerations which suggest a doubt 

 respecting the ascription of this pillar to the time 

 of Adrian, apply still more forcibly to that of the 

 emperor Severus. Abulfeda, quoted by Savary, 

 only says, " Alexandria possessesa renowned pharos, 

 "" and the column of Severus*." He adds not a 

 word more, and does not so much as point out the 

 spot where the column of Severus was reared. The 

 city of Alexandria contained such a number of co- 

 lumns, that it is impossible to ascertain to which of 

 them the passage of the Arabic historian is appli- 

 cable. Alexander-Severus traced his pedigree up 

 to Alexander the Great : it was natural for him to 

 prize a city founded by the conqueror his ancestor, 

 and it is by no means wonderful, that he should en- 

 deavour farther to embellish it by works of various 

 description, to supply the place of such as had been 

 thrown clown or destroyed, with those which had 

 already rendered it so magnificent. On the other 

 hand, on comparing the column dedicated to Se- 

 verus, and still existing in the ancient city of An- 

 tinoe, with that of Alexandria, we shall find it im- 



* Description of Egypt, Savary's translation. 



possible 



