THE NECROPOLIS OF THEBES. 383 



other conquered peoples. Once cleared of the accumulated refuse, the temple of 

 Medinet-Abu, the " book of the conquests and triumphs of Ramses III., master of 

 the sword on earth," will become the most complete, the most valuable and 

 interesting of all the Egyptian sanctuaries. 



Close by stands the almost Greek temple of Deir-el-Medineh, built by Ptolemy 

 Philopator, and the Ramesseum with its triumphal gateway, adorned with four 

 colossal decapitated figures. This is the edifice described by Diodorus under the 

 name of the " tomb of Osymandias." In one of the temple courts lies the broken 

 pink granite statue of Ramses II., formerly a monolithic block 55 feet high, 

 weighing over one thousand tons, consequently heavier than the largest block in the 

 temples of Baalbek, but at least a third less than the erratic boulder on which has 

 been erected the equestrian statue of Peter the Great. 



Between the Ramesseum and the temples of Medinet-Abu stood several colossal 

 statues. Of these two only are still erect, those that became so famous in 

 ancient times under the name of the statues of Memnon, but which in reality 

 represent the Pharaoh Amenhotep II., seated in the hieratic attitude with his 

 hands resting on his knees. Both are nearly 65 feet high with their pedestals, 

 which, however, have sunk deep into the alluvial soil. The colossus which the 

 Greeks and the Romans visited in crowds, and which they covered with writings 

 in prose and verse, is the northernmost of the two. Its celebrity was due to the 

 sound which it emitted, like that of the chord of a lyre when it breaks, and which, 

 according to some authorities, began to vibrate in harmonious sighs as soon as the 

 first rays of the sun dispersed the morning dew. But after Septimius Severus 

 caused a fracture in the statue to be clumsily repaired, its voice was hushed for 

 ever. No sound is any longer heard at dawn ; but in the temple of Karnak 

 there are some granite blocks which still emit sonorous vibrations when lit up by 

 the morning sun. 



North and west of the Ramesseum and of the temple of Seti which crowns the 

 Karnak eminence are situated the rocks and ravines honeycombed with under- 

 ground structures. Above the plain rises a hill of pyramidal form, shaped by the 

 hand of nature into vast parallel flights of steps. According to some writers this 

 characteristic form served as the model for the artificial pyramids raised over the 

 royal tombs. Thus was realised at Memphis, as well as at Thebes, the formula of 

 the ritual pronounced by the god of the lower regions : "I have set apart a 

 dwelling unto thee in the mountain by the west." 



The winding gorge ramifying amid these cliffs bears the name of Biban-el- 

 Moluk, that is, " Gates of the Kings." It presents an imposing aspect with its 

 bare rocky sides scored by vertical fissures, giving access to the royal tombs. 

 Towards the extremity of the gorge is situated the sepulchral cave of Seti I., 

 discovered by Belzoni in 1818, and remarkable especially for its painted bas- 

 reliefs, one of which represents the "four races of the world" — Retu, Amu, 

 Nahesu, and Tamahu, that is to say, the Egyptians, Asiatics, Negroes, and Libyans — - 

 marching in solemn procession at the obsequies of Seti. 



At the opening of the gorges between the Kurnah and Assassif hills, Mariette 



