THE SOURCE OF THE NILE. 53 



All to the fouth, in this defert, are vaft numbers of Py- 

 ramids ; as far as I could'difcern, all of clay, fome fo dis- 

 tant as to appear juft in the horizon. 



r 



Having gained the wefternedge of the palm-trees at Mo- 

 hannan, we have a fair view of the Pyramids at Geeza, which 

 lie in a direction nearly S. W. As far as I can compute the 

 diflance, I think about nine miles, and as near as it was 

 poffible to judge by light, Metrahenny, Geeza, and the cen- 

 ter of the three Pyramids, made an Ifofceles triangle, or 

 nearly fo. 



I asked the Arab what he thought of the diflance ? whe- 

 ther it was fartheft to Geeza, or the Pyramids ? He faid, 

 they were foivah, fcrwab, juft alike, he believed ; from Me- 

 trahenny to the Pyramids perhaps might be fartheft, but he 

 would much fooner go it, than along the coaft to Geeza, be- 

 caufe he mould be interrupted by meeting with water. 



All to the weft and fouth of Mohannan, we faw great 

 mounds and heaps of rubbifh, and califhes that were not of 

 any length, but were lined with ftone, covered and choked 

 up in many places with earth. 



We faw three large granite pillars S. W. of Mohannan^ 

 and a piece of a broken cheft or ciftern of granite ; but no 

 obelifks, or ftones with hieroglyphics, and we thought the 

 greateft part of the ruins feemed to point that way, or 

 more foutherly. 



These, our conductor faid, were the ruins of Mimf, the an- 

 cient feat of the Pharaohs kings of Egypt, that there was 

 v. i. g another 



