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1 | 锘縏he Project Gutenberg eBook of Manual of Egyptian Archaeology and Guide to the Study of Antiquities in Egypt
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Title: Manual of Egyptian Archaeology and Guide to the Study of Antiquities in Egypt
Author: G. Maspero
Translator: Amelia B. Edwards
Release date: December 20, 2004 [eBook #14400]
Most recently updated: October 28, 2024
... |
3 | EBOOK MANUAL OF EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGY AND GUIDE TO THE STUDY OF ANTIQUITIES IN EGYPT ***
MANUAL OF EGYPTIAN ARCHAEOLOGY
AND
Guide to the Study of Antiquities in Egypt.
_FOR THE USE OF STUDENTS AND TRAVELLERS_.
BY
G. MASPERO, D.C.L. OXON.
MEMBER OF THE INSTITUTE OF FRANCE; PROFESSOR AT THE COLL脠GE DE FRA... |
4 | ustrations.
1895.
PREFACE TO THE FOURTH AND REVISED EDITION.
Notwithstanding the fact that Egyptology is now recognised as a science, an
exact and communicable knowledge of whose existence and scope it behoves
all modern culture to take cognisance, this work of M. Maspero still
remains the Handbook ... |
5 | e study is found, fresh
light is thrown upon it by the progress of excavation, exploration, and
research. Hence it follows that, in the course of a few years, the standard
text-books require considerable addition and modification if they are to be
of the greatest value to students, who must always start from the fo... |
6 | a new edition in as light and portable a form as possible. This
edition is carefully corrected, and contains the enlarged letterpress and
many fresh illustrations necessary for incorporating within the book
adequate accounts of the main archaeological results of recent Egyptian
excavations. M. Maspero has himself ... |
7 | e past eight
years. By the headings of the pages, the descriptive titles of the
illustrations, and a minute revision of the index, much has been done to
facilitate the use of the volume as a book of reference. In that capacity
it will be needed by the student long after he first makes acquaintance
with its instruc... |
8 | y an arduous lifetime
during the present century, and, not least, by the unremitting labours of
M. Maspero.
_April, 1895_.
PREFACE TO THE FIRST EDITION.
To put this book into English, and thus to hand it on to thousands who
might not otherwise have enjoyed it, has been to me a very congenial and
inte... |
9 | For the skilled archaeologist, its pages contain
not only new facts, but new views and new interpretations; while to those
who know little, or perhaps nothing, of the subjects under discussion, it
will open a fresh and fascinating field of study. It is not enough to say
that a handbook of Egyptian Archaeology was m... |
10 | olume,
as delightful as if it were not learned, and as instructive as if it were
dull.
As regards the practical side of Archaeology, it ought to be unnecessary to
point out that its usefulness is strictly parallel with the usefulness of
public museums. To collect and exhibit objects of ancient art and industry
... |
11 | ftsmen of the past. Archaeology, no less
than love, "adds a precious seeing to the eye"; and without that gain of
mental sight, the treasures of our public collections are regarded by the
general visitor as mere "curiosities"--flat and stale for the most part,
and wholly unprofitable.
I am much indebted to Mr. W... |
12 | for many valuable notes
on subjects dealt with in the first three chapters. To avoid confusion, I
have numbered these notes, and placed them at the end of the volume.
My acknowledgments are likewise due to Professor Maspero for the care with
which he has read the proof-sheets of this version of his work. In
dep... |
13 | ceforth be the inseparable companion of all
English-speaking travellers who visit the Valley of the Nile; hence I have
for the most part adopted the spelling of Egyptian proper names as given by
the author of "Murray's Handbook for Egypt."
Touching my own share in the present volume, I will only say that I have
... |
14 | urther extending the usefulness of the book, I
have added some foot-note references.
AMELIA B. EDWARDS.
WESTBURY-ON-TRYM,
_August_, 1887.
CONTENTS.
CHAPTER I.
ARCHITECTURE--CIVIL AND MILITARY.
搂 1. HOUSES:--Bricks and Brickmaking--Foundations--Materials--Towns--
Plans--Decorat... |
15 | TER II.
RELIGIOUS ARCHITECTURE.
搂 1. MATERIALS; PRINCIPLES OF CONSTRUCTION:--Materials of Temples--
Foundations of Temples--Sizes of Blocks--Mortars--Mode of hoisting
Blocks--Defective Masonry--Walls--Pavements--Vaultings--Supports--
Pillars and Columns--Capitals--Campaniform Capitals--Lotus-bu... |
16 | vels--Crypts--
Temple of Karnak--Temple of Luxor--Philae--The Speos, or Rock-cut
Temple--Speos of Horemheb--Rock-cut Temples of Ab没 Simbel--Temple of
Deir el Bahar卯--Temple of Abydos--Sphinxes--Crio-sphinxes
搂 3. DECORATION:--Principles of Decoration--The Temple a Symbolic
Representation of t... |
17 | tues of Decoration
--Decoration of Pylons--Statues--Obelisks--Libation-tables--Altars--
Shrines--Sacred Boats--Moving Statues of Deities
CHAPTER III.
TOMBS.
搂 1. MASTABAS:--Construction of the Mastaba--The Door of the Living,
and the Door of the Dead--The Chapel--Wall Decorations--The Double... |
18 | of Pyramids--Orientation--Pyramid of Kh没f没--
Pyramids of Khafra and Menkara--Step Pyramid of Sakkarah--Pyramid of
脹nas--Decoration of Pyramid of 脹nas--Group of Dash没r--Pyramid of Medum
搂 3. TOMBS OF THE THEBAN EMPIRE; THE ROCK-CUT TOMBS:--Pyramid-mastabas
of Abydos--Pyramid-mastabas of Drah Ab没'l... |
19 | bes--Valley of the Tombs of the Kings--Royal Catacombs--Tomb of
Seti I.--Wall-decorations of Royal Catacombs--Funerary Furniture of
Catacombs--脹shabti没--Amulets--Common Graves of the Poor
CHAPTER IV.
PAINTING AND SCULPTURE.
搂 1. DRAWING AND COMPOSITION:--Supposed Canon of Proportion--Drawing
... |
20 | l-paintings of Tombs--A Funerary
Feast--A Domestic Scene--Military Subjects--Perspective--Parallel
between a Wall-painting in a Tomb at Sakkarah and the Mosaic of
Palestrina
搂 2. TECHNICAL PROCESSES:--The Preparation of Surfaces--Outline--
Sculptors' Tools--Iron and Bronze Tools--Impurity of ... |
21 | ion of Painting to Sculpture in Ancient Egypt
搂 3. SCULPTURE:--The Great Sphinx--Art of the Memphite School--Wood-
panels of Hesi--Funerary Statues--The Portrait-statue and the Double
--_Chefs d'oeuvre_ of the Memphite School--The Cross-legged
Scribe--Diorite Statue of Khafra--Rahotep and Nefert--... |
22 | asty--Colossi of Amenhotep III.--New School of Tel el
Amarna--Its Superior Grace and Truth--Works of Horemheb--School of the
Nineteenth Dynasty--Colossi of Rameses II.--Decadence of Art begins
with Merenptah--Ethiopian Renaissance--Sa茂te Renaissance--The
Attitudes of Statues--Sa茂te Innovations--Gree... |
23 | E, CLAY, AND GLASS:--Precious Stones--Lapidary Art--Beads and
Amulets--Scarabaei--Statuettes--Libation Tables--Perfume Vases--Kohl-
pots--Pottery--Clay--Glazes--Red and Painted Wares--脹shabti没--Funerary
Cones--Painted Vases--"Canopic" Vases--Clay Sarcophagi--Glass--Its
Chemical Constituents--Clear G... |
24 | eban Blue--
The Enamels of Tell el Amarna--Enamelled 脹shabti没 of Amen Ptahmes--
Enamelled Tiles of the Step Pyramid at Sakkarah--Enamelled Tiles of
Tell el Yah没deh
搂 2. WOOD, IVORY, LEATHER; TEXTILE FABRICS:--Bone and Ivory--Elephant
Tusks--Dyed Ivory--Egyptian Woods--Wooden Statuettes--Statu... |
25 | Huge Outer Cases of Ahmesnefertari and Aahhotep--Funerary
Furniture--Beds--Canopies--Sledges--Chairs--Stools--Thrones--
Textiles--Methods of Weaving--Leather--Breast-bands of Mummies--
Patchwork Canopy in Coloured Leather of Princess Isiemkheb--
Embroideries--Muslins--Celebrated Textiles of Alexandr... |
26 | e--The Posno Bronzes--The Lion of Apries--Gilding
--Gold-plating--Gold-leaf--Statues and Statuettes of Precious Metals
--The Silver and Golden Cups of General Tah没ti--The Silver Vases of
Thm没is--Silver Plate--Goldsmith's Work--Richness of Patterns--
Jewellery--Funerary Jewellery--Rings--Seal-rings--... |
27 | ST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
FIGURE
1. Brickmaking, tomb of Rekhmara, Eighteenth Dynasty
2. House with vaulted floors, Medinet Hab没
3. Plan of the town of Kah没n, Twelfth Dynasty
4. Plan of house, Medinet Hab没, Twentieth Dynasty
5. Plan of house, Medinet Hab没, Twentieth Dynasty
6. Fa莽ade of house of Second ... |
28 | th Dynasty house, Kah没n
11. View of mansion, tomb of Anna, Eighteenth Dynasty
12. Porch of mansion of Second Theban Period
13. Porch of mansion of Second Theban Period
14. Plan of Theban house and grounds, Eighteenth Dynasty
15. A perspective view of same
16. Part of palace of A茂, El Amarna tomb, Eigh... |
29 | lion of house, Second Theban Period
21. Ceiling decoration from house at Medinet Hab没, Twentieth Dynasty
22. Ceiling decoration, Twelfth Dynasty style
23. Ceiling decoration, tomb of Aimad没a, Twentieth Dynasty
24. Door of house, Sixth Dynasty tomb
25. Fa莽ade of Fourth Dynasty house, sarcophagus of Kh没f没 ... |
30 |
29. Plan of main gate, second fortress of Abydos
30. Plan of S.E. gate of same
31. Plan of gate, fortress of Kom el Ahmar
32. Plan of walled city at El Kab
33. Plan of walled city at Kom Ombo
34. Plan of fortress of K没mmeh
35. Plan of fortress of Semneh
36. Section of platform of same
37. Syr... |
31 | l and bridge of Zar没, Karnak, Nineteenth Dynasty
43. Cellar with amphorae
44. Granary
45. Plan of Store City of Pithom, Nineteenth Dynasty
46. Store-chambers of the Ramesseum
47. Dike at Wady Gerraweh
48. Section of same dike
49. Quarries of Silsilis
50. Draught of Hathor capital, quarry of Gebe... |
32 | doorway in temple of Seti I., Abydos
55. Pavement in same temple
56. "Corbelled" vault in same temple
57. Hathor pillar in temple of Ab没 Simbel, Nineteenth Dynasty
58. Pillar of Amenhotep III., Karnak
59. Sixteen-sided pillars, Karnak
60. Fluted pillar, Kalabsheh
61. Polygonal Hathor-headed pillar,... |
33 |
66. Compound capital
67. Ornate capitals, Ptolemaic
68. Lotus-bud column, Beni Hasan, Twelfth Dynasty
69. Lotus-bud column, processional hall of Thothmes HI., Karnak
70. Column in aisle of Hypostyle Hall, Karnak
71. Hathor-head capital, Ptolemaic
72. Campaniform and Hathor-headed capital, Philae
... |
34 | temple of Hathor, Deir el Medineh
78. Plan of temple of Khons没, Karnak
79. Pylon with masts, wall-scene, temple of Khons没, Karnak
80. Ramesseum, restored
81. Plan of sanctuary at Denderah
82. Pronaos, temple of Edf没
83. Plan of same temple
84. Plan of temple of Karnak in reign of Amenhotep III
... |
35 | l Silsileh
90. Plan of Great Speos, Ab没 Simbel
91. Plan of Speos of Hathor, Ab没 Simbel
92. Plan of upper portion of temple of Deir el Bahar卯
93. Plan of temple of Seti I., Abydos
94. Crio-sphinx from temple of Wady Es Sab没ah
95. Couchant ram, from Avenue of Sphinxes, Karnak
96-101. Decorative desig... |
36 | y
105. Zodiacal circle of Denderah
106. Frieze of uraei and cartouches
107. Wall-scene from temple of Denderah
108. Obelisk of Heliopolis, Twelfth Dynasty
109. Obelisk of Begig, Twelfth Dynasty
110. "Table of offerings" from Karnak
111. Limestone altar from Mensh卯yeh
112. Wooden naos, in Turin M... |
37 | de
118. Portico and door of mastaba
119. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Khabi没sokari
120. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Ti
121. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Shepsesptah
122. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Affi
123. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Thenti
124. Plan of chapel, mastaba of Red Scribe
125. Plan of chap... |
38 | aba of Ptahhotep
130. Plan of serdab in mastaba at Gizeh
131. Plan of serdab and chapel in mastaba of Rahotep
132. Plan of serdab and chapel in mastaba of Thenti
133. Section of mastaba showing shaft and vault, at Gizeh
134. Section of mastaba, at Sakkarah
135. Wall-scene from mastaba of Nenka
136.... |
39 | ramid of 脹nas
141. Mastabat el Fara没n
142. Pyramid of Med没m
143. Section of passage and vault in pyramid of Med没m
144. Section of "vaulted" brick pyramid, Abydos, Eleventh Dynasty
145. Section of "vaulted" tomb, Abydos
146. Plan of tomb, Abydos
147. Theban tomb with pyramidion, wall-scene, tomb at ... |
40 | Beni Hasan, Twelfth Dynasty
152. Fa莽ade of rock-cut tomb, As没an
153. Plan of tomb of Khn没mhotep, Beni Hasan, Twelfth Dynasty
154. Plan of unfinished tomb, Beni Hasan, Twelfth Dynasty
155. Wall-scene, tomb of Manna, Nineteenth Dynasty
156. Plan of tomb of Rameses IV.
157. Plan of tomb of Rameses IV., f... |
41 | n ostrakon
162. Vignette from _Book of the Dead_, Sa茂te period
163. Vignette from _Book of the Dead_, papyrus of H没nefer
164-5. Wall-scenes, tomb of Khn没mhotep, Beni Hasan
166. Wall-scene, tomb, Eighteenth Dynasty
167. Wall-scene, tomb of Horemheb
168. Wall-scene, Theban tomb, Ramesside period
169.... |
42 | b of Rekhmara
175. Wall-scene, tomb of Rekhmara
176. Wall-scene, mastaba of Ptahhotep
177. Palestrina mosaic
178. Sculptor's sketch, Ancient Empire tomb
179. Sculptor's sketch, Ancient Empire tomb
180. Sculptor's correction, Medinet Hab没, Twentieth Dynasty
181. Bow drill
182. Sculptor's trial-pi... |
43 | scribe, at Gizeh, Ancient Empire
187. King Khafra
188. The "Sheikh el Beled" (Raemka), Ancient Empire
189. Rahotep, Ancient Empire
190. Nefert, wife of Rahotep, Ancient Empire
191. Head of the "Sheikh el Beled," Ancient Empire
192. Wife of the "Sheikh el Beled," Ancient Empire
193. The kneeling scr... |
44 | ef head of Seti I.
198. Amen and Horemheb
199. Head of a queen, Eighteenth Dynasty
200. Head of Horemheb
201. Colossal statue of Rameses 11.
202. Queen Ameniritis.
203. Th没eris, Sa茂te period
204. Hathor cow, Sa茂te period
205. Pedishashi, Sa茂te period
206. Head of a scribe, Sa茂te period
207... |
45 | ulet
214. A scarab
215-7. Perfume vases, alabaster
218. Perfume vase, alabaster
219. Vase for antimony powder
220. Turin vases, pottery
221-3. Decorated vases, pottery
224. Glass-blowers, wall-scene, Twelfth Dynasty
225-6. Parti-cloured glass vases
227. Parti-coloured glass vase
228. Glass... |
46 | Lenticular vase, glazed ware, Sa茂te period
235. Tiled chamber in Step Pyramid of Sakkarah
236. Tile from same
237. Tile, Tell el Yah没deh, Twentieth Dynasty
238. Tile, Tell el Yah没deh, Twentieth Dynasty
239. Inlaid tiles, Tell el Yah没deh, Twentieth Dynasty
240-1. Relief tiles, Tell el Yah没deh, Twentiet... |
47 | . Wooden perfume and unguent spoons
255. Fire-sticks, bow, and unfinished drill-stock, Twelfth Dynasty
256. Dolls, Twelfth Dynasty
257. Tops, tip-cat, and toy boat, Twelfth Dynasty
258-60. Chests
261. Construction of a mummy-case, wall-scene, Eighteenth Dynasty
262. Mask of Twenty-first Dynasty coffin... |
48 | ch, Graeco-Roman
267. Mummy-sledge and canopy
268. Inlaid chair, Eleventh Dynasty
269. Inlaid stool, Eleventh Dynasty
270. Throne-chair, wall-scene, Twentieth Dynasty
271. Women weaving, wall-scene, Twelfth Dynasty
272. Man weaving carpet or hangings, wall-scene, Twelfth Dynasty
273. Cut leather wo... |
49 | e statuette of Tak没shet
280. Bronze statuette of Horus
281. Bronze statuette of Mos没
282. Bronze lion from Horbeit, Sa茂te period
283. Gold-worker, wall-scene
284. Golden cup of General Tah没ti, Eighteenth Dynasty
285. Silver vase of Thm没is
286. Silver vase of Thm没is
287. Piece of plate, wall-scen... |
50 | r of Queen Aahhotep, Eighteenth Dynasty
299-300. Bracelets of same
301. Diadem of same
302. Gold _脹sekh_ of same
303. Gold pectoral of same
304-5. Poignards found with mummy of Queen Aahhotep
306. Battle-axe found with same
307. Model funerary bark found with same
308. Ring of Rameses II
309.... |
51 | rated their attention
upon temples and tombs, that not one has devoted himself to a careful
examination of the existing remains of private dwellings and military
buildings. Few countries, nevertheless, have preserved so many relics of
their ancient civil architecture. Setting aside towns of Roman or Byzantine
date... |
52 | te of Memphis is covered with mounds, some of
which are from fifty to sixty feet in height, each containing a core of
houses in good preservation. At Kah没n, the ruins and remains of a whole
provincial Twelfth Dynasty town have been laid bare; at Tell el Mask-h没tah,
the granaries of Pithom are yet standing; at S茫n (... |
53 |
notice, there may be seen ruins of private dwellings which date back to the
age of the Ramessides, or to a still earlier period. As regards
fortresses, there are two in the town of Abydos alone, one of which is at
least contemporary with the Sixth Dynasty; while the ramparts of El Kab, of
Kom el Ahmar, of El Hibeh... |
54 | * * * * *
1.--PRIVATE DWELLINGS.
The soil of Egypt, periodically washed by the inundation, is a black,
compact, homogeneous clay, which becomes of stony hardness when dry. From
immemorial time, the fellahin have used it for the construction of their
houses. The hut of the poo... |
55 | wickerwork of palm-
branches, coated on both sides with a layer of mud. As this coating cracks
in the drying the fissures are filled in, and more coats of mud are daubed
on until the walls attain a thickness of from four inches to a foot.
Finally, the whole is roofed over with palm-branches and straw, the top
bein... |
56 | ure, while in others the roof is six or seven
feet from the floor. Windows, of course, there are none. Sometimes a hole
is left in the middle of the roof to let the smoke out; but this is a
refinement undreamed of by many.
[Illustration: Fig. 1.--Brickmaking, from Eighteenth Dynasty tomb-painting,
Tomb of Rekhma... |
57 | re oblong block of mud mixed with chopped straw and a
little sand, and dried in the sun. At a spot where they are about to build,
one man is told off to break up the ground; others carry the clods, and
pile them in a heap, while others again mix them with water, knead the clay
with their feet, and reduce it to a ho... |
58 | as they
are shaped, and lays them out in rows at a little distance apart, to dry in
the sun (fig. I). A careful brickmaker will leave them thus for half a day,
or even for a whole day, after which the bricks are piled in stacks in such
wise that the air can circulate freely among them; and so they remain for a
we... |
59 | mud, however, is so tenacious that,
notwithstanding this carelessness, they are not readily put out of shape.
The outer faces of the bricks become disintegrated by the action of the
weather, but those in the inner part of the wall remain intact, and are
still separable. A good modern workman will easily mould a th... |
60 | sent day, produced equally satisfactory results. The dimensions
they generally adopted were 8.7 x 4.3 x 5.5 inches for ordinary bricks, or
15.0 x 7.1 x 5.5 for a larger size (Note 3), though both larger and smaller
are often met with in the ruins. Bricks issued from the royal workshops
were sometimes stamped with t... |
61 | he maker. By far the
greater number have, however, no distinctive mark. Burnt bricks were not
often used before the Roman period (Note 4), nor tiles, either flat or
curved. Glazed bricks appear to have been the fashion in the Delta. The
finest specimen that I have seen, namely, one in the Gizeh Museum, is
inscribe... |
62 | oes not allow of deep foundations. It consists of a
thin bed of made earth, which, except in large towns, never reaches any
degree of thickness; below this comes a very dense humus, permeated by
slender veins of sand; and below this again--at the level of infiltration--
comes a bed of mud, more or less soft, accord... |
63 | , they
stop at a yard or so below the surface. The old Egyptians did likewise; and
I have never seen any ancient house of which the foundations were more than
four feet deep. Even this is exceptional, the depth in most cases being not
more than two feet. They very often did not trouble themselves to cut
trenches a... |
64 | e was finished, the scraps of mortar,
the broken bricks, and all the accumulated refuse of the work, made a bed
of eight inches or a foot in depth, and the base of the wall thus buried
served instead of a foundation. When the new house rose on the ruins of an
older one decayed by time or ruined by accident, the bui... |
65 | hus each town stands upon one or several artificial mounds, the
tops of which may occasionally rise to a height of from sixty to eighty
feet above the surrounding country. The Greek historians attributed these
artificial mounds to the wisdom of the kings, and especially to Sesostris,
who, as they supposed, wished t... |
66 | board, formed the
substructure, the cells being next filled in with earth, and the houses
built upon this immense platform (Note 5).
[Illustration: Fig. 2.--Ancient house with vaulted floors, against the
northern wall of the great temple of Medinet Hab霉]
[Illustration: Fig. 3.--Plan of three-quarters of the to... |
67 | 's quarters are principally on the west, and separated from the
eastern part of the town by a thick wall. At the south-west corner, outside
the town, stood the pyramid temple, and in front of it the porter's lodge.
Reproduced from Plate XIV. of _Illah没n, Kahun, and Gurob_, W.M.F. Petrie.]
But where I have excavat... |
68 | of older
dwellings, which in turn rest on others still older. The slightness of the
foundations did not prevent the builders from boldly running up quite lofty
structures. In the ruins of Memphis, I have observed walls still standing
from thirty to forty feet in height. The builders took no precaution beyond
enlar... |
69 | was increased to three or four feet. Large
beams, embedded here and there in the brickwork or masonry, bound the whole
together, and strengthened the structure. The ground floor was also
frequently built with dressed stones, while the upper parts were of brick.
The limestone of the neighbouring hills was the stone... |
70 | ent Egyptians having pulled their neglected monuments to pieces
quite as unscrupulously as do their modern successors. The houses of an
ancient Egyptian town were clustered round its temple, and the temple stood
in a rectangular enclosure to which access was obtained through monumental
gateways in the surrounding b... |
71 | town. Such
towns as were built all at once by prince or king were fairly regular in
plan, having wide paved streets at right angles to each other, and the
buildings in line. The older cities, whose growth had been determined by
the chances and changes of centuries, were characterised by no such
regularity. Their ... |
72 | ar, and a muddy pond where the
cattle drank and women came for water. Somewhere in each town was an open
space shaded by sycamores or acacias, and hither on market days came the
peas-ants of the district two or three times in the month. There were also
waste places where rubbish and refuse was thrown, to be quarrel... |
73 | 6.--Fa莽ade of a house toward the street, second Theban
period.]
[Illustration: Fig. 7.--Plan of central court of house, second Theban
period.]
[Illustration: Fig. 8.--Restoration of the hall in a Twelfth Dynasty house.
In the middle of the floor is a tank surrounded by a covered colonnade.
Reproduced from Pla... |
74 | hough built of bricks, were no
better than those of the present fellahin. At Karnak, in the Pharaonic
town; at Kom Ombo, in the Roman town; and at Medinet Hab没, in the Coptic
town, the houses in the poorer quarters have seldom more than twelve or
sixteen feet of frontage. They consist of a ground floor, with someti... |
75 | t contained some half-dozen rooms communicating by
means of doorways, which were usually arched over, and having vaulted
roofs in some cases, and in others flat ones. Some few of the houses were
two or three storeys high, and many were separated from the street by a
narrow court, beyond which the rooms were ranged ... |
76 | reet. In the latter case the fa莽ade consisted of a high wall, whitewashed
or painted, and surmounted by a cornice. Even in better houses the only
ornamentation of their outer walls consisted in angular grooving, the
grooves being surmounted by representations of two lotus flowers, each pair
with the upper parts of ... |
77 | s, the door was often made
of stone. The doorposts projected slightly beyond the surface of the wall,
and the lintel supported a painted or sculptured cornice. Having crossed
the threshold, one passed successively through two dimly-lighted entrance
chambers, the second of which opened into the central court (fig. 7... |
78 | Dynasty town of Kah没n the shafts of these columns
rested upon round stone bases; they were octagonal, and about ten inches in
diameter (fig. 8). Notwithstanding the prevalence of enteric disease and
ophthalmia, the family crowded together into one or two rooms during the
winter, and slept out on the roof under the ... |
79 | nerally in pairs (see fig. 11), brick-built in the same long conical
shape as the state granaries, and carefully plastered with mud inside and
out. Neither did the people of a house forget to find or to make hiding
places in the walls or floors of their home, where they could secrete their
household treasures--such... |
80 | reproduce the ground-
floor plan with scarcely any differences. These upper rooms were reached by
an outside staircase, steep and narrow, and divided at short intervals by
small square landings. The rooms were oblong, and were lighted only from
the doorway; when it was decided to open windows on the street, they w... |
81 | ked or paved, or consisted still more frequently of
merely a layer of rammed earth. The rooms were not left undecorated; the
mud-plaster of the walls, generally in its native grey, although
whitewashed in some cases, was painted with red or yellow, and ornamented
with drawings of interior and exterior views of a ho... |
82 | ng of mud thick enough to withstand the effects of rain. Sometimes it
was surmounted by only one or two of the usual Egyptian ventilators; but
generally there was a small washhouse on the roof (fig. 9), and a little
chamber for the slaves or guards to sleep in. The household fire was made
in a hollow of the earthen... |
83 | el.
[Illustration: Fig. 10.--Wall-painting in a Twelfth Dynasty house. Below is
a view of the outside, and above a view of the inside of a dwelling.
Reproduced from Plate XVI. of _Illah没n, Kahun, and Gurob_, W.M.F. Petrie.]
[Illustration: Fig. 11.--View of mansion from the tomb of Anna, Eighteenth
Dynasty.]
... |
84 | e the commoner houses, they turned a blank
front to the street, consisting of bare walls, battlemented like those of a
fortress (fig. 11). Thus, home-life was strictly secluded, and the pleasure
of seeing was sacrificed for the advantages of not being seen. The door was
approached by a flight of two or three steps,... |
85 |
[Illustration: WALL-PAINTINGS, EL AMARNA.
Fig. 12.--Porch of mansion, second Theban period,
Fig. 13.--Porch of mansion, second Theban period.]
Sometimes this was preceded by a pylon-gateway, such as usually heralded
the approach to a temple. Inside the enclosure it was like a small town,
divided into quarters b... |
86 | e system to which we as yet
possess no clue. These arrangements, however, were infinitely varied. If I
would convey some idea of the residence of an Egyptian noble,--a residence
half palace, half villa,--I cannot do better than reproduce two out of the
many pictorial plans which have come down to us among the tomb-... |
87 | n a road bordered with trees, which runs beside a canal,
or perhaps an arm of the Nile. Low stone walls divide the garden into
symmetrical compartments, like those which are seen to this day in the
great gardens of Ekhm卯m or Girgeh.
[Illustration: Fig. 14.--Plan of a Theban house with garden, from
Eighteenth Dyn... |
88 | ucks and geese. Two nurseries, two summer-houses, and various avenues of
sycamores, date-palms, and d么m-palms fill up the intermediate space; while
at the end, facing the entrance, stands a small three-storied house
surmounted by a painted cornice.
[Illustration: Fig. 15.--Perspective view of the Theban house, fr... |
89 | rom one of the rock-cut tombs of Tell el Amarna
(figs. 16, 17). Here we see a house situate at the end of the gardens of
the great lord A茂, son-in-law of the Pharaoh Kh没enaten, and himself
afterwards king of Egypt. An oblong stone tank with sloping sides, and two
descending flights of steps, faces the entrance. The... |
90 | nd flanked by store-houses fully stocked with
provisions. Two small courts, placed symmetrically in the two farthest
corners, contain the staircases which lead up to the roof terrace. This
first building, however, is but the frame which surrounds the owner's
dwelling. The two frontages are each adorned with a pilla... |
91 | The inside court is bordered by chambers; the two others open to
right and left upon two smaller courts, whence flights of steps lead up to
the terraced roof. This central building is called the _Akhon没ti_, or
private dwelling of kings or nobles, to which only the family and intimate
friends had access. The number ... |
92 | , with the middle
division projecting, in which case the two wings were ornamented with a
colonnade to each storey (fig. 18), or surmounted by an open gallery (fig.
19). The central pavilion sometimes presents the appearance of a tower,
which dominates the rest of the building (fig. 20). The fa莽ade is often
decora... |
93 | now but little. As in the middle-class
houses, the sleeping rooms were probably small and dark; but, on the other
hand, the reception rooms must have been nearly as large as those still in
use in the Arab houses of modern Egypt.
[Illustration: Fig. 17.--Perspective view of the Palace of AT, Eighteenth
Dynasty, E... |
94 | .--Central pavilion of house, in form of tower,
second Theban period.]
The decoration of walls and ceilings in no wise resembled such scenes or
designs as we find in the tombs. The panels were whitewashed or colour-
washed, and bordered with a polychrome band. The ceilings were usually left
white; sometimes, how... |
95 | sed with rosettes
(fig. 21), parti-coloured squares (fig. 22), ox-heads seen frontwise,
scrolls, and flights of geese (fig. 23).
[Illustration: Fig. 21.--Ceiling pattern from behind, Medinet Hab没,
Twentieth Dynasty.]
[Illustration: Fig. 22.--Ceiling pattern similar to one at El Bersheh,
Twelfth Dynasty.]
I... |
96 | arge numbers in the Fay没m date only from
Roman times; but the Egyptians of that period continued to build according
to the rules which were in force under the Pharaohs of the Twelfth,
Eighteenth, Nineteenth, and Twentieth Dynasties. As regards the domestic
architecture of the ancient kingdom, the evidences are few ... |
97 | ophagus, that of Kh没f没 Poskh没, is carved in the likeness of a
house (fig. 25).
[1] Many of the rooms at Kahun had vaulted ceilings.
[2] Seventeenth to Twentieth Dynasties.
2.--FORTRESSES.
Most of the towns, and even most of the larger villages, of ancient Egypt
were walled. This was an almost nece... |
98 | gainst the
Bedaw卯n; while the great feudal nobles fortified their houses, their towns,
and the villages upon their domains which commanded either the mountain
passes or the narrow parts of the river, against their king or their
neighbours.
[Illustration: Fig. 23.--Ceiling pattern from tomb of Aimad没a, Twentieth
... |
99 | asty house, from the
sarcophagus of Kh没f没 Poskh没.]
The oldest fortresses are those of Abydos, El Kab, and Semneh. Abydos
contained a sanctuary dedicated to Osiris, and was situate at the entrance
to one of the roads leading to the Oasis. As the renown of the temple
attracted pilgrims, so the position of the city... |
100 | es.
At Abydos there yet remain two almost perfect strongholds. The older forms,
as it were, the core of that tumulus called by the Arabs "Kom es Sultan,"
or "the Mound of the King." The interior of this building has been
excavated to a point some ten or twelve feet above the ground level, but
the walls outside hav... |
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