DOI Page / Citation link:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.11715#0148
7 HE LAND OF THE PHARAOHS.
opians. But everywhere his countenance wears the same expression cf tranquility
and repose which nothing can disturb.
The entrance to the temple is so small, that only a feeble ray of light can penetrate,
leaving the halls in utter darkness, which is imperfectly dispelled by the aid of candles
or torches.1 But as the opening is towards the east, there are certain seasons of
the year at which the light of the rising sun or moon falls full into the vast area. This
of course only happens when the point on the horizon at which the luminary rises
exactly fronts the entrance, that is to say, twice in the year with the sun, once a month
with the moon.
Then for a few min-
utes a beam of light
streams through the
narrow portal, pen-
etrates the ereat
hall, and finds its
way into the very
adytum, illumina-
ting as with magical
effect the fig;ures
there. This inner-
most shrine was
dedicated to the
Sun and Moon,
whose symbols are
over the altar. We
may, therefore, con-
jecture that the in-
ternal arrange-
ments of the temple
were originally
planned so that on
the great festivals
this impressive
spectacle might be
witnessed.
PART OF FACADE OF GEEAT TEMPLE AT ABU-SIMBEL. At Abu - Simbel
our Egyptian tour
terminates. We drift slowly down the Nile, gliding past the ruins of departed great-
ness. As we revisit the shattered monuments of the most gigantic system of idolatry
which the world has ever seen, the contrast between bygone glory and present degra-
dation is forced upon us. It is impossible to forget that when Egypt was at the sum-
mit of its pride and power, its impending doom was again and again foretold by Hebrew
prophets. When Thebes was in her glory, and her subsequent conquerors were only
wild hordes of the desert, Joel began the warning :
' Visitors to Egypt should on no account omit to take with them a plentiful supply or magnesium wire, and an ordinary bull's-
eye lantern. The value of the latter for concentrating light on particular points is very great.
144
opians. But everywhere his countenance wears the same expression cf tranquility
and repose which nothing can disturb.
The entrance to the temple is so small, that only a feeble ray of light can penetrate,
leaving the halls in utter darkness, which is imperfectly dispelled by the aid of candles
or torches.1 But as the opening is towards the east, there are certain seasons of
the year at which the light of the rising sun or moon falls full into the vast area. This
of course only happens when the point on the horizon at which the luminary rises
exactly fronts the entrance, that is to say, twice in the year with the sun, once a month
with the moon.
Then for a few min-
utes a beam of light
streams through the
narrow portal, pen-
etrates the ereat
hall, and finds its
way into the very
adytum, illumina-
ting as with magical
effect the fig;ures
there. This inner-
most shrine was
dedicated to the
Sun and Moon,
whose symbols are
over the altar. We
may, therefore, con-
jecture that the in-
ternal arrange-
ments of the temple
were originally
planned so that on
the great festivals
this impressive
spectacle might be
witnessed.
PART OF FACADE OF GEEAT TEMPLE AT ABU-SIMBEL. At Abu - Simbel
our Egyptian tour
terminates. We drift slowly down the Nile, gliding past the ruins of departed great-
ness. As we revisit the shattered monuments of the most gigantic system of idolatry
which the world has ever seen, the contrast between bygone glory and present degra-
dation is forced upon us. It is impossible to forget that when Egypt was at the sum-
mit of its pride and power, its impending doom was again and again foretold by Hebrew
prophets. When Thebes was in her glory, and her subsequent conquerors were only
wild hordes of the desert, Joel began the warning :
' Visitors to Egypt should on no account omit to take with them a plentiful supply or magnesium wire, and an ordinary bull's-
eye lantern. The value of the latter for concentrating light on particular points is very great.
144