376 E G Y P T. 
the kamfin, or deftroying wind. Ills image i3 fculptured 
on the four fides of a cubic die, which is in faCt nothing 
but a prolongation of the column : this member of archi¬ 
tecture has the advantage of filewing the capital more com¬ 
pletely, and preventing it from appearing to be entitled 
by the architrave ; and the general effect which it pro¬ 
duces is fo good, that we may be furprifed it has never 
yet been imitated. Fig. 3. Winged liorfes, the hiero¬ 
glyphic of fpeed, fculptured on the third platband of the 
ceiling of the portico of the great temple at Tentyra. 
Fig. 4. A11 ornament ufed in the Egyptian temples, 
fimilar to the cherubims in the temple of Jerufalem. 
Fig. 5. Another ornament of architecture of united doves. 
Fig. 6 . The head of Ifis, with all the attributes of this 
goddefs, crowning the columns of the temple of Tentyra. 
This is the moll elegant and expreflive of all the capitals 
found among the remains of Egyptian architecture. Fig. 
7. One of the beautiful but very fingular columns in the 
portico of the temple in the ifie of Elephantina. Fig. 8. 
A capital decorating the pillars of many of the temples 
in Upper Egypt; in which may be traced the origin of 
the Ionic volute, and the Item of the Corinthian capital. 
Fig. 9. A capital compofed of the branches and leaves of 
the palm, and the cups or capfules of its fruit; it is per¬ 
haps the molt chafte of all the known capitals, and even 
in Europe, where it would not poffefs the fame local in- 
terelt as in Egypt, it might be feleCted as a molt beauti¬ 
ful decoration for a feftive hall. Fig. 10. Caryatides of 
priefts or divinities, employed as ornaments in various 
edifices, and particularly in the Memnonium. Similar 
caryatides occur in the temple of Apollinopolis magna, 
and in that of Medinet-Abu. The invention of this or¬ 
nament in architecture has been pompoufiy, but errone- 
oufly, attributed to the Greeks, after their conqueft of 
Carya. “ I have alfo difeovered at Tentyra, (fays De- 
noil,) the reprefentations of the periftyles of temples in 
caryatides, which are executed in painting at the baths 
of Titus, and have been copied by Raphael, and which 
we conftantly ape in our rooms, without once fufpeCting 
that the Egyptians were the people who afforded us the 
firft models of them.” Fig. 11. A monolithic temple or 
fanCtuary, in which the facred birds were kept inclofed. 
Fig. 12. One of the pyramids ftripped of its outfide 
facing, and truncated like that of Cheops. This fiiews 
the (liability of principle upon which all the pyramids 
were ereCted. From the capitals here delineated, may 
be obvioufly traced the rudiments of the Grecian, Roman, 
and Gothic, architecture. 
A longer feries of years might, perhaps, have brought 
the Egyptian architecture to a higher degree of perfec¬ 
tion in fome particulars; but each fabric appears to have 
been fo equally finifhed in all its parts, that they feem all 
to have been executed by the fame hand; no one portion 
is better or worfe than any other ; there appears neither 
negligence nor the bold ftrokes of a more exalted genius ; 
uniformity and harmony prevail throughout. The art 
of fculpture, here made fubfervient and attached to that 
of architecture, appears, indeed, to have been circum- 
jeribed in principle, in method, and in ftile of execu¬ 
tion ; a (ingle figure exprelfes nothing, when taken out 
of its exact Ration in the group in which it is a part ; 
the fculptor mull have had his defign chalked out for 
him, and could not introduce any deviation which might 
alter the true meaning that it was intended to convey. 
The perfection given by the Egyptians to the reprefen¬ 
tations of their animals, proves that they were not with¬ 
out an idea of that bcld flyle which exprelfes much cha¬ 
racter in a few lines, and their execution tended to the 
grave, and to ideal perfection. 
“ As to the character of the human figure, fince they 
borrowed nothing from other nations, they could only 
copy from their own, which is rather delicate than fine. 
The female forms, however, refemble the figure of their 
handfomeft women of the prefent day, round and volup¬ 
tuous, a fmall nofe, the eyes long, half flint, and turned 
2 
up at the outer angle, like thofe of all perfons whofe 
fight is habitually fatigued by the burning heat of the 
fun, or the dazzling white of fnow ; the cheeks round 
and rather thick, the lips pouting, the mouth large, but 
cheerful and fmiling; in (Fort, the African character is 
confpicuous, of which the negro is the caricature or ex¬ 
aggerated piClure, and perhaps the original type. Vol- 
ney, however, was extremely incorreCt in calling the an¬ 
cient Egyptians negroes. This fuggefiion arofe from the 
following paffage in Herodotus : “ I believe, (fays He¬ 
rodotus,) the C'olchi to be a colony of Egyptians; be- 
caufe, like them, they have a black fkin and curled hair:” 
which M. Volney chofe to tranflate or rather torture into 
frizzled iiair; and adds, “ That the ancient Egyptians 
were therefore real negroes.” The belt anfwer to this 
comment, will be another from Herodotus, by which the 
decifive article of frizzled hair is quite done away. “ The 
priefis of other nations have long hair, thofe of Egypt 
arc clofe fhaved : in mourning for near relations, all other 
people cut their hair fhort; but the Egyptians, mourn¬ 
ing for the dead, fuffer the hair of the head and chin to 
grow long : Aneuri rss? rgix a $ avferfiat* raj re tv re y.e(paXvi, 
v.u\ rco yr t veta. Herodot. A change, which, from the na¬ 
ture of the thing, could not take place on the woolly 
head of chin of a negro. 
It has been admitted that the Egyptians were of a dark 
olive complexion ; Herodotus is decifive on the point. 
But it is probable that the negro was not known to the 
Greeks fo early as the age of this hiftorian. Certain it 
is, that the ancients do not appear to have entertained 
the leaf!: difiike of a black complexion ; nor fliould we, 
after the firft furprife, did we not conneCt with it the 
image, and with that the character, of the negro. There 
are throughout Afia numerous tribes of dark olive-co¬ 
loured people, but with European features, and abun¬ 
dant hair. From among thofe tribes mu ft have come 
that fable beauty, who thus afferts her pretentions, in 
the Song of Songs: “ I am black, but comely, O ye 
daughters of Jerufalem 1 ” 
“ Amid thefe refearches, (fays Denon,) I difeovered 
a rule or canon of proportions traced upon a human fi¬ 
gure, with red chalk, and afterwards covered by a thin 
(tucco, a method adopted by the Egyptians to give a finer 
finifii to their bas-reliefs, and render their architectural 
paintings indefiruCtible. I made an outline drawing of 
the bas-relief and the lines, by which the figure was di¬ 
vided into proportions : hence we may infer the princi¬ 
ples which they had adopted, their'mode of applying 
them, and, in fhort, that method of proceeding, which, 
to the advantage of preventing at once all errors, all un- 
harmonious combinations, and ignoble proportions, unites 
that of attaining the confiant equality obfervable in their 
works; an equality, which, if it is detrimental to the 
fallies of genius and the expreflion of delicate fentiment, 
tends at leaf! to the perfection of uniformity, converts 
drawing into a mechanical art, and reduces fculpture to 
an acceffary proper for the decoration and enriching of 
architecture, to a method of exprefling ideas, in fhort, 
to writing. It is worthy of remark, that, according to 
the Egyptian canon, the human figure was divided into 
twenty-two parts and a half, of which the head took up 
two and two-thirds, or the eighth of the whole, corre- 
fponding in this refpeCt with the heroic flile among the 
Greeks. 
“The hieroglyphics, adopted as ornaments in their 
architecture, are executed in three different ftiles, are 
alfo of three fpecies, and may take their date from as 
many d-iftinCt periods. From the examination of the dif¬ 
ferent edifices which now remain, it would feem that the 
mod ancient of thefe characters are only fimple outlines 
cut in without relief, and very deep; the next in age, 
and which produce the leaf! effeCt, are fimply in a very 
fhallow relief; and the third, which feem to belong to a 
more improved age, and are executed at Tentyra more 
perfectly than in any other part of Egypt, are in relief 
below 
