98 
A TRIP TO EGYPT. 
Temple of Koorneh, 
situated at the entrance of the gorge leading to Bab-el-Molook, 
through which we rode for some forty minutes along its dreary 
desert valley, it being entirely destitute of life of any kind, the 
bare rugged mountains rising on either side, without a tree or 
shrub, no dowers, no tufts of grass, not even a moss or a lichen to 
break its dull monotony. No bird hovered near its wild crags ; no 
insect buzzed amidst its oppressive air; and so for many miles our 
patient donkeys picked their sinuous way among the boulders and 
debris which had rolled from the mountain sides. So that it was 
with no little relief that we came to a halt in a more open space on 
the mountain side, called 
The Tombs of the Kings. 
There are twenty-five in all here, sculptured in the solid rock. 
We explored six of these, but that known as the 
Tomb of Sethi I. 
was by far the finest, being 470ft. long, and descending 180ft. 
perpendicularly. Its walls were profusely adorned with sculptures 
and bas-reliefs, among which was the well-known representation of 
the “Judgment of the Soul.” This tomb was opened by Belzoni 
fifty years ago, and has since been much damaged. After a 
welcome luncheon, which was provided for us in tomb No. 18, we 
returned by the same hot dreary valley, and then crossed the sand 
to the 
Rameseum, 
built by Raineses II., which still forms a magnificent pile of ruins. 
We then passed 
The Colossi, 
representing Amunuph III., two immense sitting figures, quite by 
themselves in the desert, the temple having disappeared to its very 
foundations. We then remounted our donkeys, and after a long, 
hot ride, reached the Nile, and found a boat waiting to take us to 
the steamer. 
The Temple of Karnak. 
on the east bank of the Nile, and about two miles north of Luxor, 
was visited on two successive days. 
After passing through a mud village, we entered the 
May, 1893, 
