106 
THE SACRED IBIS. 
sacred monuments, and still found, as mummies, 
embalmed with precious ointments and divers kinds 
of spices. It was to this bird that St. Paul chiefly 
alludes, in Romans, i. 23, when he accuses the 
Gentiles of changing the glory of the uncorruptible 
God into an image made like to corruptible man and 
to birds ; and it was this bird, again, which formed 
part of the idol abominations alluded to, in the vision 
of Ezekiel. It is called the Ibis religiosa , or Sacred 
Ibis; and is peculiar to Egypt, and the countries 
bordering on the river Nile, — coming down from 
Ethiopia on the increase of the river; and from this 
circumstance is named, by the Arabs, Abou-mengel, 
(Father of the Sickle,) in allusion to the fruits of 
harvest, which are derived from the inundations of 
the Nile. It feeds on the smaller reptiles, and, as 
the Arabs still say, on serpents, which has by many 
been supposed the sole cause of its being worshipped 
by the Egyptians ; but this appears doubtful, and we 
are inclined, with some other high authorities, to at- 
tribute their respect for it to another cause, — namely, 
a fancied resemblance to the moon, whether from 
the curved and crescent shape of its heak, or from the 
contrasted colours of black and white, which, in the 
opinion of an ancient writer* on the subject, made 
it appear as if marked with a crescent. Now the 
moon, as well as the sun, was a known object of 
worship amongst many of the heathen nations, and 
more especially the Egyptians. Thus J ob alludes to 
it, when he says, If I beheld the sun when it shined , 
or the moon walking in brightness , and my heart 
Plutarch de Iside et Osiride. 
