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diff --git a/50384-0.txt b/50384-0.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6ba2948 --- /dev/null +++ b/50384-0.txt @@ -0,0 +1,814 @@ +*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 50384 *** + + [Illustration] + + + + + EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY + + By DWIGHT L. ELMENDORF + + THE MENTOR · SERIAL NUMBER 42 + DEPARTMENT OF TRAVEL + + <> + + MENTOR GRAVURES + + CAIRO THE SPHINX KARNAK + THE PYRAMIDS LUXOR THE DAM AT ASSOUAN + + +It is no wonder that the Egyptians through all their history have +worshiped the Nile; for that marvelous river is the spine, the marrow, +and the life of Egypt. Indeed, it is Egypt; for living Egypt is only a +narrow strip twelve or fifteen miles wide,--simply the banks of the Nile. +Herodotus called Egypt "the gift of the Nile." The river nourishes and +controls the land. All along that waterway are to be found wonders and +mysteries of the past. The mind balks in contemplation of the monuments +of Egypt. They whisper messages from so far distant a time that we +stagger in trying to grasp their meaning. + +A visit through Egypt usually begins with Cairo. And it is just as well +that it is so; for in Cairo there is much that is modern and much that is +familiar to the English traveler. It is, therefore, a good way for the +visitor to break into ancient Egypt. In Cairo modern people mingle with +the sons of ancient Egyptians. The English soldier is to be seen almost +everywhere, and in front of Shepheard's Hotel you may at times almost +forget that you are in Egypt. + +That is because you are bound down in Cairo, mingling with your own +fellow visitors and too close to hotel life. Get up early in the morning, +and go to the top of the hill known as the Citadel, and there you will +get an impression of an Egyptian city. Look at one of the greatest +buildings, the Mosque of Mehemet Ali. It is called the Alabaster Mosque. +There is a great deal in modern Egypt that is imitation. That is the +reason that this building of pure alabaster is to be valued. Its interior +is rich and beautiful in design. + +[Illustration: TOMBS OF MAMELUKES, CAIRO] + +[Illustration: MUSKI CORNER AND MINARET, CAIRO] + + +CAIRO AND ITS SURROUNDINGS + +Stand on the parapet of the Citadel, and look over Cairo, and see +the sun rise. Far in the distance is a sandstorm. Many people in the +United States think that the weather in Egypt is as clear as crystal +always. That is a great mistake. The days there are rarely as clear as +American clear days. In January, February, and March you are likely to +have sandstorms, or the sirocco, or wind from the desert, which almost +obliterate the sun. + +Down by the edge of the desert is the Dead City. The tombs there and +their interiors are wonderful. The beautiful buildings have been allowed +to decay. It is an oriental peculiarity not to repair anything. + +On the other side of the Citadel are the tombs of the Mamelukes. I advise +anyone going to Cairo to visit these tombs; for they contain very curious +sarcophagi, and the tomb mosques are interesting, each of them being +surmounted by a picturesque dome. + +Our modern expositions and fair grounds would not be complete without +"the streets of Cairo." As we know, a bit of street life is shown, more +or less accurately--chiefly less. A fairly correct impression of Egyptian +street life is, however, created by such artificial reproductions. One +of our pictures will no doubt recall these exposition impressions. The +genuine old streets of Cairo are fascinating. Some are so narrow that the +traveler must go on foot, or on a donkey. The shops are almost within +arm's reach on both sides, and many of them are temptingly attractive. +There on one side they make famous leather goods; on another they sell +glassware. Be careful not to buy unless you know how to bargain. + + +THE STREETS OF CAIRO + +You must go to these little streets to find the bazaars if you want to +buy anything; for the great street of the Arab quarter, the famous Muski, +is not any longer a thorough Cairo street. Big shops and department +stores have crept into it. + +[Illustration: BAZAAR STREET, CAIRO + +Where the most interesting shops are found.] + +Stand for a moment on the corner of this great street and see a little +bit of the Arab life of old Cairo. It is a busy city. There goes a +carryall (a camel), an entire family on its back, except the husband, who +walks by the side. This man coming down with a strange sack on his back +is a walking fountain. The sack is filled with something sweet and sticky +which he calls "sweet water." It is not pleasant. The genuine water +carrier of the old school goes to the river, fills his jar, and then +goes through the streets shaking his cup in his hand with a chink. It is +plain water that he peddles. I should not advise one to drink either of +these beverages. Then there are the bread venders of Cairo, who walk the +streets carrying bread on their heads and crying out their wares. + +[Illustration: THE CITADEL, CAIRO + +Built, 1176-1207, of stones taken from the Pyramids.] + +Cairo is full of interesting mosques. The oldest and most celebrated +is the Mosque of Omri. It is one of the earliest of Mohammedan temples +in Egypt. They have a service there but once a year, when the khedive +himself comes. The interior seems a veritable forest of pillars. One of +these is a most remarkable pillar. I will tell the story of it as my +boy Mohammed Mousa told it to me: "This pillar very important one--very +holy. This pillar sent by Mahomet here; for when Omri come to build this +mosque Mahomet so pleased he sent pillar from Mecca. The pillar come +here. He find no other pillar from Mecca here; so he get lonely and fly +back. Mahomet very angry, and send pillar back. Second time he fly back. +Mahomet then get very angry, draw his sword, and strike pillar, and +tell Omri to put pillar in prison. So he put it in prison, and it stand +there." That is the story that they all believe. + +[Illustration: THE OLDEST PYRAMID, SAKKARA] + + +THE PYRAMIDS + +[Illustration: DISTANT VIEW OF PYRAMIDS, WITH THE NILE] + +The road leading down to the old Nile gate is a very beautiful one. +Crossing the bridge there, we see the picturesque Nile boats, like the +lateen boats of the Mediterranean. The avenue leads out to the pyramids, +and there in the far distance you can see them,--those golden cones +about which is wrapped so much of Egypt's history and mystery. The first +sight of the pyramids naturally means much to any intelligent traveler. +It makes no difference how much you have read, how much you have heard +of them, you cannot be disappointed. It is said that the pyramids will +last as long as the world, and they certainly look it. They represent +to us the life of the world stretching back into the dim past; and, +in their imposing solidity, they seem to give assurance of lasting to +eternity. There are four of the pyramids in this group; though the mind +naturally dwells on the largest,--the Pyramid of Khufu or Cheops. And to +think that these are the works of man, and that they are tombs of the +kings who lived and reigned somewhere about fifty centuries ago! The +Great Pyramid of Cheops is 480 feet high and covers an area of thirteen +acres, each side being 755 feet. The dimensions of this astounding work +are almost mathematically exact. It is built of over two million blocks +of limestone, and they are fitted together with the nicety of mosaics. +How could these wonderful structures have been erected?--that has been +the question of modern engineers. It has been suggested that an inclined +plane of earth was constructed, and that the blocks were dragged by men +to the top, the inclined plane being added to and raised for each layer. +Then, when the pyramid was complete, the inclined plane of earth might +have been taken away. This, however, is only a theory. Nothing is known +of the methods employed. Originally the sides of the pyramid were smooth, +and a little of this outer facing is still in place. These prism-shaped +blocks were taken away from time to time for building purposes in Cairo. + +[Illustration: GIZEH + +Great Pyramid, Sphinx, and Temple of Armachis.] + +People climb the pyramid, and also go inside. In the very heart of the +Great Pyramid is a tomb chamber, where we see the empty coffin of Cheops +or Khufu. The tomb was rifled long ago, and no one knows where the king's +ashes are. + +Ascent to the summit of the Great Pyramid means arduous climbing; but it +is worth while simply for the view it affords of the desert. Most of us +imagine the desert as a level of white sand. I thought so until I saw it +from the summit of this pyramid. The desert stretches off in long waves, +and does not seem like a plain, but rather like the rolling ocean. + + +THE SPHINX + +Not far from Cheops we see above the waves of sand a rough-hewn head that +stirs us mightily. No one can forget the first impression of the Sphinx. +It stands for something unique in history and in knowledge. No one with +a spark of reverence in his nature can stand before that great stone +face without a feeling of awe. There will be little that he can say--the +most reverent ones say nothing. There before you is that half-buried, +crouching figure of stone about which you have read and heard so much. +The paws are covered by sand. It is only by industrious shoveling and +digging that the desert is prevented from rising on the wings of the wind +and completely burying the great figure. + +[Illustration: THE SPHINX + +From a drawing showing the front uncovered by sand.] + +The Sphinx is the symbol of inscrutable wisdom, and its lips are supposed +to be closed in mysterious silence,--knowing profoundly, but telling +nothing. These are, however, mere impressions. Facts are the important +things. No one knows how old the Sphinx is. It is supposed to have been +made during the middle empire; but later investigations seem to prove +that the Sphinx existed in the time of Cheops, which would mean that it +is even older than the Great Pyramid. The Sphinx was made out of living +rock, and the dimensions are as follows: Body, 150 feet long; paws, 50 +feet long; head, 30 feet long; face, 14 feet wide; and the distance from +top of head to base, 70 feet. + +[Illustration: FALLEN STATUE OF RAMESES, MEMPHIS] + +It must have been an imposing monument when constructed; for then it +stood in position to guard the valley of the Nile, and about it was +Memphis, the great city of Egypt--Memphis now past and gone. Memphis was +once the capital city of the Pharaohs, and is said to have been founded +by Menes. In its day of glory it was a prosperous and well fortified +city. About 1600 B. C. it was supplanted as capital by Thebes, and the +glory of Pharaoh's court was transferred to the southern city. + + +THEBES + +The most flourishing period in the history of Thebes was between 1600 and +1100 B. C. Thebes in turn fell into decay, and is now only a small place +visited in the course of a trip to Luxor and Karnak. The situation of +Thebes is interesting. It lies in the widest section of the Nile Valley, +with a broad plain on the west stretching off to the Libyan Mountains. On +this plain are the famous statues known as the Colossi of Memnon. Across +the Nile, on the east bank, stand the ruins of Luxor and Karnak, and +beyond them to the east are the Arabian hills. + +[Illustration: MEMPHIS + +Front of the second court of the Ramesseum.] + +[Illustration: THE COLOSSI OF MEMNON + +These two gigantic statues stand near the approach of the Temple of +Amenophis. One of them is known as the Vocal Memnon. Inscriptions on +the vocal statue record the visits of those who were with Hadrian, and +of others, and relate that they heard the voice of Memnon. The Colossi +are of hard gritstone, monolithic, and forty-seven feet in height, with +pedestals twelve feet high. They represent Amenophis III, seated on his +throne, and are sixty feet apart.] + +Notable monuments on the west side are the temples of Seti I, Rameses +II and III, which bear the names of El Kurna, the Ramesseum, and +Medinet-Abu. Lying by the side of the Ramesseum is the fallen Colossus of +Rameses II, the largest statue in Egypt. It is made of pink granite, and +is about sixty feet in height--or length, we should now say, since the +statue is prostrate. + + +LUXOR + +Not far from Thebes is the village of Luxor: not much in itself, but +just a place to stay while visiting the temples. It is pleasing to note +that they have done a good work there in raising the embankment in the +hope of keeping the Nile water out of the temples. The bank is steep; +for the Nile rises high every year. In olden times these temples were +evidently protected from the water by some means; but now it rises half +up over them. The Temple of Luxor is one of the most beautiful and +interesting in Egypt; though not so imposing as the Temples of Karnak. +As you approach you can only see a part of it; for there is a fence +up there, and if you want to go through you have to show a ticket. A +so-called "monument ticket" can be obtained from the government for about +six dollars a year, and this will enable a visitor to see every monument +in Egypt. The fund thus raised is used to save the monuments, and every +penny of it goes to that work. + +[Illustration: RAMESES STATUES AT LUXOR] + +The beauty of the Temple of Luxor is in its splendid colonnade. It must +have been superb when in good condition, with colors fresh and bright. + + +KARNAK + +The Temple of Karnak, too, is a distinguished mass of columns, the most +imposing structure of its kind in existence. It was erected by Seti I +and his son, Rameses II. Amenophis also had a hand in the building of +it. They were great builders in those days, and all their plans were +conceived on a vast scale. The ruins of Karnak are magnificent. Some +idea of the impressive character of their columns may be gathered from +the following statement: There are 134 great columns forming the central +aisle, 12 of these 62 feet high and 12 feet thick, the rest of them 42 +feet high and 9 feet thick. You will notice traces of color, and can +gather from that what the temple must have been in its full glory. On a +recent trip I found some German artists at Karnak, and suggested that if +they would get some water and throw it over the columns they would obtain +the effect of the true coloring. A good color chart of these columns has +now been secured, showing them as they were three thousand years ago. On +its outside walls sculptures tell the history of the splendid conquests +of the kings that erected the structure. + +[Illustration: MOONLIGHT ON THE NILE + +Reproduced from a night photograph taken near Luxor.] + +[Illustration: LUXOR, FROM OPPOSITE BANK OF THE NILE] + +Egypt is a country of impressive temples and monuments, the interest of +which has not been exhausted by a library of books on the subject. A +trip through Egypt is not complete without a visit to the Ramesseum and +that unique monument, the Temple of Denderah. The latter is a building +set apart in architectural and in historic interest. It is not imposing; +but it has an appeal that the other temples have not. It was a place of +mystery. Its inner chamber, the sanctuary of Denderah, was sacred to +Pharaoh himself. + + +THE GREAT DAM AT ASSOUAN + +[Illustration: EUERGETES GATE, KARNAK + +A splendid example of the Egyptian square arch form.] + +As one goes up the river visiting these strange monuments, he finds at +the first cataract of the Nile an imposing object of modern interest. +This is the dam at Assouan, one of the greatest feats of engineering in +the world. The dam, which was completed in 1902, is a mile and a quarter +long. It holds back the waters of the Nile, and supplies the reservoir, +from which the waters are led into irrigation canals. The benefits of +this great dam are felt from its location at the first cataract all +through the farms and fields that skirt the Nile clear to the delta, six +hundred miles below. It has made acres fertile that had been barren. +It also, of course, has relieved the burden of the poor workmen at the +shadoofs who dipped water for irrigation. Moreover, the dam has improved +the conditions of transportation on the Nile; for it has disposed of +the first cataract, where boats formerly had to be pulled through the +rapids by men. Now the vessels go into a canal, and are conveniently and +promptly lifted up through four locks to the level of the upper Nile. + +The visitor should not leave Egypt till he has seen Philæ, with its +beautiful temples, ruined walls, and colonnades. It is a sight for +artists to draw and for us to dream of,--Philæ apparently afloat; for now +the Nile water has penetrated the halls of its temples and surrounded its +beautiful columns. + +On returning from the upper Nile a visitor should go to the new National +Museum at Cairo. He may have visited this interesting place before he +took the Nile trip; but he will know more on his return. The valuable +collection of Egyptian antiquities there in the museum will mean more +to him. Months could be spent with profit in this building. It contains +one of the richest and most interesting collections of historic remains +in the world--the result of years of exploration, excavation, and the +intelligent study of eminent scholars. There before you are the relics of +ancient Egypt. There are the statues, mummies, and other antiquities that +the government has collected. In them you may read the history of ancient +Egypt and learn to appreciate the life, literature, and art of Pharaoh's +time. + +[Illustration: THE ISLAND OF PHILÆ + +This picture shows the beauty of Philæ before the waters of the Nile rose +about it. Since the building of the great dam at Assouan the temples of +Philæ are half under water.] + + ==================================================================== + +SUPPLEMENTARY READING.--"Modern Egypt and Thebes," Sir Gardiner +Wilkinson; "A Thousand Miles Up the Nile," A. B. Edwards; "Egypt," S. +Lane-Poole; "A History of Egypt from the Earliest Times to the Persian +Conquest," J. H. Breasted; "A Short History of Ancient Egypt," P. E. +Newberry and J. Garstang; "The Empire of the Ptolemies," J. P. Mahaffy; +"Egypt in the Nineteenth Century," D. A. Cameron; "Modern Egypt," Lord +Cromer. + + * * * * * + + + THE MENTOR + + ISSUED SEMI-MONTHLY BY + + The Mentor Association, Inc. + + 381 Fourth Ave., New York, N. Y. + + Volume I Number 42 + ==================================================================== + ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION, FOUR DOLLARS. SINGLE COPIES TWENTY CENTS. + FOREIGN POSTAGE, SEVENTY-FIVE CENTS EXTRA. CANADIAN POSTAGE, FIFTY + CENTS EXTRA. ENTERED AT THE POST OFFICE AT NEW YORK, N. Y. AS + SECOND-CLASS MATTER, COPYRIGHT, 1913, BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, + INC. PRESIDENT, THOMAS H. BECK; VICE-PRESIDENT, WALTER P. TEN EYCK; + SECRETARY, W. D. MOFFAT; TREASURER, J. S. CAMPBELL; ASST. TREASURER + AND ASST. SECRETARY, H. A. CROWE. + ==================================================================== + + + _Editorial_ + +It was no easy matter for Mr. Elmendorf to present the subject of Egypt +in an article of only 2,500 words. He has confined himself in his +characteristic interesting manner to the impressions of a traveler. Of +the great store of archæological treasures in Egypt, the monuments, +statues, tablets, tombs, inscriptions--in fact all that is comprehended +under the name Egyptology--Mr. Elmendorf could say nothing. These are +subjects for the historical student rather than for the traveler. And +they will be taken up in turn in The Mentor of some later date when we +will approach the subject of Egypt from the standpoint of the historical +student. There is, however, one question that readers of Mr. Elmendorf's +article are apt to ask--in fact ordinary curiosity would prompt the +inquiry. The monuments of Egypt are covered with historic records in the +form of inscriptions. These records are hieroglyphic. They are what some +people call "picture writings." The natural question is "How were these +hieroglyphics deciphered." The answer is interesting, and it seems to us +that both question and answer belong in the number of The Mentor with Mr. +Elmendorf's article. + + * * * * * + +The River Nile separates at its delta into two branches. The eastern +stream enters the Mediterranean at Damietta. The western stream enters +the great sea at Rosetta. It was near this latter town that an officer +in Napoleon's army discovered, in August, 1799, the key to Egyptian +hieroglyphics. It is called the Rosetta Stone, and it is now in the +British Museum. + + * * * * * + +For years the hieroglyphic was an unknown language, and the history of +Egypt, except such as is contained in the Bible, was a blind book. The +Rosetta Stone was found to contain an inscription in three different +languages--the Hieroglyphic, the Demotic, which was the common language +of the Egyptians, and the Greek. When these inscriptions were examined, +it was discovered that they were each a translation of the other. There, +then, was the clue which opened up the whole field of Egyptian history. + + * * * * * + +Dr. Young, in 1814, began the work of deciphering hieroglyphics by +this clue. He worked on various inscriptions, especially the pictorial +writings on the walls of Karnak. The value of this discovery may be +appreciated when we consider that its discovery has enabled scholars +to translate hieroglyphics almost as easily as they would any of the +classic writings. The actual inscription on the Rosetta Stone is not so +important in itself. It is a decree issued in honor of Ptolemy Epiphanes +by the priests of Egypt assembled in a synod of Memphis on account of +the remission of arrears on taxes and dues. It was put up in 195 B. C. +Since the discovery of the Rosetta Stone other tablets containing +more important inscriptions have been found, but the unique value of the +Rosetta Stone lies in the fact that it contains a corresponding Greek +inscription, thereby affording a clue to the meaning of the hieroglyphics. + + * * * * * + +The stone is black basalt, three feet seven inches in length, two feet +six inches in width, and ten inches thick. After it was found by the +French it was transferred to the British, and in 1802, it was brought to +England, where it was mounted and placed in the British Museum. + + * * * * * + +The Rosetta Stone is a corner stone of Egyptology. And the revelations of +early Egyptian history and life, brought to light by means of it, have +cleared some of the mystery of Egypt and have made known much of its +history. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: VIEW OF CAIRO, EGYPT] + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _Cairo_ + + ------------------------------- ONE ------------------------------- + + +Cairo is the capital of modern Egypt, and the most populous city in +Africa. By the Arabs it is called Maçr-el-Qâhira or simply Maçr. It is +situated on the Nile, extending along the east bank of that river for +about five miles. Cairo itself is really the fourth Moslem capital of +Egypt. The site of one of those which preceded it is partly included +within its walls, while the other two were a little to the south. Jauhar +or Gohar-el-Kaid, the conqueror of Egypt for the Fatimite calif El-Moizz, +in 968 founded El-Qâhira, "The Victorious." This name was finally +corrupted into Cairo. + +The city was founded on the spot occupied by the camp of the conqueror. +It grew larger and more important as the years went by. In 1175 the +Crusaders attacked Cairo; but were repulsed. The town prospered; but in +1517 it was conquered by the Turks. Thereafter it declined. The French +captured the city in 1798. The Turkish and English forces drove them out +in 1801, and Cairo was then handed over to Turkey. + +A few years later Mehemet Ali became the Turkish viceroy. This man was +a bold and unscrupulous schemer. He was born in Macedonia, and became +colonel of the troops of the Turkish sultan and was stationed in Egypt. +In 1805 he was appointed governor. Two years later England tried to get +possession of the country; but he foiled the British. + +The Mamelukes, the former rulers of Egypt, had been conquered by Napoleon +and were forced to acknowledge Mehemet Ali as master of Egypt. But they +were still powerful, and their plots hindered the plans of the ambitious +viceroy. So one day in 1811 Mehemet gave a great feast in the citadel in +Cairo, to which the Mamelukes were all invited. Four hundred and fifty +of them accepted and rode, a magnificent cavalcade, up to the citadel +through a deep, steep passageway leading from the lower town. + +The lower gates of the street were suddenly closed. Behind the walls +were the armed men of Mehemet Ali. Point-blank they fired into the crowd +of horsemen. The slaughter was kept up until all were dead. Tradition +says that one man escaped by leaping his horse over a wall. Thus Mehemet +became ruler indeed of Egypt. + +Under his rule Cairo grew up. He is supposed to have watched over the +welfare of his people; but, according to one historian, "they could not +suffer more and live." + +Ismail Pasha, the first of the khedives (keh-deeves') modernized +Cairo. Coming from Paris filled with progressive but reckless ideas of +civilization, he resolved to transform the ancient city by the Nile into +an African metropolis. The festivities he organized on the occasion +of the opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 are said to have cost twenty +million dollars. He built the opera house of Cairo, and had Verdi, the +famous composer, write the opera "Aïda" especially to be produced there +in 1871. His extravagances plunged Egypt into debt, but in 1882 Cairo was +occupied by the British, and under their rule Egypt came gradually from +under this heavy burden of indebtedness. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: PYRAMIDS, EGYPT] + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _The Pyramids_ + + ------------------------------- TWO ------------------------------ + + +"All things fear Time; but Time fears the Pyramids," says the ancient +proverb. The pyramids are for eternity. They alone of all man's works +seem able to conquer time. They are mute witnesses to the greatness and +majesty of Egypt five thousand years ago. The Egyptian pyramids are +royal tombs, the burial vaults of kings. A pyramid was constructed of +horizontal layers of rough-hewn blocks with a small amount of mortar. The +outside casing was of massive blocks, usually greater in thickness than +in height. Inside of each pyramid, always low down, and usually below the +ground level, was built a sepulchral chamber. This room, which contained +the body of the king, was always reached by a passage from the north, +sometimes beginning in the pyramid face, sometimes descending into the +rock on which the pyramid was built. To build but a single one of these +huge tombs must have taken thousands of slaves many years, and there +are seventy-six of them in existence today. What a record of toil and +suffering for the vanity of kings! + +The oldest of these pyramids is the Step Pyramid of Sakkara. It is +supposed to be the oldest building of stone in the world. It lies near +the vanished city of Memphis, the capital city of King Menes, the first +Egyptian monarch whose name is known to history, and the founder of the +earliest known dynasty, variously estimated to have been from 5702 to +2691 B. C. + +The greatest and most famous pyramid is the Pyramid of Khufu (Cheops) +at Gizeh. It was originally four hundred and eighty feet high; its base +covers an area of thirteen acres; and each side is seven hundred and +fifty-five feet long. The ancient builders were so accurate in their +work that modern engineers have discovered an error of only sixty-five +one-hundredths of an inch in the length of the sides of the base, and +of one-three-hundredth of a degree in angle at the corners. The base is +practically a perfect square. + +The Pyramid of Khufu is the only surviving wonder of the Seven Wonders +of the ancient world. One hundred thousand men worked for twenty years +to build this tomb, which contains two million three hundred thousand +limestone blocks, of an average weight of two and a half tons. How the +tremendous undertaking was ever accomplished is one of the mysteries of +the world. But even this huge tomb was no protection against robbers. The +body of King Khufu has disappeared, stolen from its famous resting place +centuries ago. + +To ascend the pyramid one has to climb steps, narrow and about three feet +apart. For a small fee the Arabs help the tourist to the top, from where +the view is well worth the trouble. The blocks that formed the point +of the pyramid have been removed, and the summit is a level platform +thirty-six feet square. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: THE SPHINX, EGYPT] + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _The Sphinx_ + + ------------------------------- THREE ------------------------------ + + +Battered and broken by the attacks of time and man, buffeted by the +desert winds, flat faced, and almost featureless, the Sphinx is still the +possessor of its mighty secret--the mystery of the ages. "It is still +able to express by the smile of those closed lips the inanity of our most +profound human conjectures." + +Everyone knows about the Sphinx at Gizeh near the Great Pyramids. This is +proved by the common use of the word "sphinxlike," applied to that which +holds, but will not disclose, mystery. But not everyone knows the reason +for the form of the Sphinx, half human and half beast. + +Sphinx is the Greek name for a compound creature with a lion's body and +a human head. The Greek sphinx had male wings and a female bust. The +sphinx of Egypt was wingless, and was called "Androsphinx" by Herodotus. +In Egypt the sphinx was usually designed as lying down. The heads of the +Egyptian sphinxes are royal portraits, apparently intended to represent +the power of the reigning Pharaoh. + +The most famous sphinx is the great Sphinx of Gizeh. No one knows who +formed this gigantic figure of mystery nor when it was made. It was cut +from a ridge of natural rock, with patches of masonry here and there to +carry out the effect. The body is one hundred and forty feet long, and it +faces eastward, looking out over the valley of the Nile. It has been said +that the Sphinx was probably intended to be the guardian of the entrance +to the Nile Valley. + +The name of the Sphinx in Egyptian was "Hu." The inscriptions in the +shrine between its paws say that it represented the sun god Hormakhu. + +In the long past days of Egypt's grandeur the Sphinx was a central +feature of the grandest cemetery the world has ever seen. This was the +cemetery of Memphis, the metropolis of Egypt. The city of Memphis was +the chief city of King Menes, who founded the earliest known dynasty. +Now the only things that mark the site of the vanished metropolis are +two colossal but fallen statues of Egypt's vainest king, Rameses II, the +Great. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: TEMPLE OF LUXOR, EGYPT] + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _The Temple of Luxor_ + + ------------------------------- FOUR ------------------------------ + +The ancient Egyptians had a great many gods; but the greatest of all was +the Sun God. His name was Amun, and this meant "the hidden or veiled +one." All worship of this god was mysterious and shrouded in darkness. +In that way the priests held their power over the people. It was at old +Thebes that the greatest temples of the Sun God were built. For about +two thousand years Thebes was the capital of the powerful Egyptian +Pharaohs. It was called Weset and Nut, which means "The City." The Greeks +gave it the name of Thebai. Now this once great and important city has +disappeared except for its ruins. + +The little village of Luxor occupies the southern part of ancient Thebes. +It is on the east bank of the Nile, four hundred and fifty miles from +Cairo. Its name, Luxor, is a corruption of the Arabic El-Kusur, meaning +"The Castles," and referring to the many-columned courts of the abandoned +temples. + +The great king of Egypt, Amenophis III, built the temple of Amun about +which Luxor has grown up. He did not finish it, and Rameses II added to +it a huge columned court. But this temple was never altogether completed. +Still, it measures almost 900 feet from front to rear. + +Rameses II also erected outside some colossal statues and a pair of +obelisks. One of these obelisks now stands in the Place de la Concorde in +Paris. It was taken there in 1831. + +The chief religious festival of Thebes was that of "Southern Opi," the +ancient name of Luxor. The sacred ships of the gods, which were kept in +the temple of Karnak, were then taken in procession to Luxor and back. + +Most of the old village of Luxor lay inside the courts of the temple. The +Christians built churches within the temple. Luxor was also called Abul +Haggag, from a Moslem saint of the seventh century. His tomb stands on a +high heap of debris in the court of Rameses. + +Today Luxor is a tourist center, and several fine hotels have been +erected to accommodate the many visitors to the famous ruins. Nearly all +the debris has been cleared away by the _Service des Antiquités_, which +took up this work in 1885. Most of the natives thereabout are engaged +in the manufacture of forged antiques, which they sell to the unwary +traveler. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: KARNAK--VIEW FROM SACRED LAKE, EGYPT] + + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _Karnak_ + + ------------------------------- FIVE ------------------------------ + + +A little village with a big ruin,--that is Karnak. Karnak itself is a +town of only twelve thousand people in upper Egypt, which has given +its name to the northern half of the ruins of ancient Thebes. The most +important of these ruins are the ruins of the temple of Amun. These are +to other ruins what the Grand Canyon of the Colorado is to other gorges. + +Many of Egypt's kings contributed to build the temple of Amun at Karnak. + +Karnak represents colossal antiquity. Here are to be found the highest +columns on earth. They are one hundred and thirty-four in number; but +many have crumbled and fallen to earth. The large columns were nearly +twelve feet thick and sixty-two feet high. On top of each a hundred +men could have stood. Each column was made up of many half-drums put +together, and on them are raised reliefs, once painted with bright +colors, picturing the events in the reigns of the various kings of Egypt. +But now their glory has departed. The walls of the temple have fallen, +and all that we can see is a mass of ruins, resembling the litter of an +avalanche. + +Tribute from all the world once poured into the coffers of the priests of +Amun. The Egyptian kings gave them a great share of the spoils of their +conquering raids, and Rameses III gave ninety thousand of his prisoners +of war to them for slaves. Finally these priests became so rich and +powerful that the high priest of Amun took the throne and became ruler of +the Egyptians. + +In 1899 a great calamity came upon the ruins of the temple. Eleven of the +standing columns fell. These were all restored by 1908, and the work of +excavation, strengthening, and reconstruction is still going on. + +Beside the temple of Amun at Karnak there are two other ruins of +importance. A temple of the god Mut, built by Amenophis III, and restored +by Rameses II and the Ptolemys, has almost disappeared, except for a well +preserved gateway and the plan of the foundations. The other ruin, the +temple of Khuns, was built by Rameses II and his successors. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + +[Illustration: THE GREAT DAM, ASSOUAN, EGYPT] + + ==================================================================== + _EGYPT, THE LAND OF MYSTERY_ _The Dam at Assouan_ + + ------------------------------- SIX ------------------------------ + + +There are many ancient and awe-inspiring monuments in Egypt; but one work +of modern times there does not suffer in comparison with the greatest +things that the Pharaohs have left us. The tombs, the pyramids, and the +obelisks were built at the cost of terrible suffering, merely to satisfy +the vanity of selfish kings; but this great work has given life to the +land, enriched the population, and made their labor far lighter. It is +the dam at Assouan. + +Assouan, or Aswan, is a town of upper Egypt on the east bank of the River +Nile below the first cataract. It has of late grown very popular as a +winter health resort, and many large modern hotels are now situated there. + +At the beginning of the cataract, three and a half miles above the town, +is the dam of Assouan. This is a mile and a quarter long from shore to +shore. It was finished in December, 1902. This dam controls the water of +the Nile, and makes possible the irrigation of vast areas of land that +had hitherto been dead and unproductive. Water is very valuable in Egypt. + +Before the dam was built a boat had to be hauled up the rapids of the +first cataract by hundreds of natives. It was an all-day task. Now a +canal with four locks quietly and quickly takes vessels to the upper +level of the Nile. + +The dam has transformed the river above it into a huge lake. Many former +islands have been wholly or partly submerged. The Isle of Philæ is the +most important of these. The goddess Isis was worshiped there, and there +were temples erected to her. One rocky point of the island is still above +water. The rest of Philæ is an Egyptian Venice. Water paves the courts of +the temples and gives added beauty to the relics of the past. + +Opposite Philæ, on the east bank of the Nile, is the village of Shellal. +This town is the southern terminus of the Egyptian railway, and the +starting point of steamers for the Sudan. + +Near Assouan are the quarries from which the old Egyptians took granite +for their obelisks. There is still one obelisk all carved and shaped, +ready to be taken from the rock. When an obelisk was shaped, holes were +bored in the rock all along the line of separation. Wedges of wood were +driven into these holes and soaked with water. The wet wood expanded, and +the great obelisk was broken from the mother rock. It was then ready to +be shipped to its destination. + + PREPARED BY THE EDITORIAL STAFF OF THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION + ILLUSTRATION FOR THE MENTOR, VOL. 1, No. 42, SERIAL No. 42 + COPYRIGHT, 1913. BY THE MENTOR ASSOCIATION, INC. + + * * * * * + + + + + + + +End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Mentor: Egypt, The Land of +Mystery, Serial No. 42, by Dwight L. Elmendorf + +*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 50384 *** |