DOI Seite / Zitierlink:
https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.1033#0023
THE CIVILIZATION OF THE XIITH DYNASTY—KAHUN.
porter's lodge. This seems to have been a place for
ablutions, as in the large room (PI. XV) a square
stone trough was let into the ground, 24 inches
square outside, and about 4 inches thick, the depth
being about 18 inches. Similar troughs sunk in the
floor occur in the town, with sloping slabs of stone
around them, for the washing water to run down. In
this lodge was found a scarab (bottom PL IX) and a
broken bronze knife (PL XVII).
About four feet of the higher walls of the lodge
remain, while some are almost level with the ground ;
the whole of it was covered with a heap of blown
sand and disintegrated mud brick. The great wall
around the temple similarly varies from only a brick
or two, to about three feet high. The back wall may
have been of the same thickness as the sides, but it
was so much washed away that this is not certain.
38. The temple stood on a prominent point of
rocky ground, standing forward just oyer the N-le
plain ; while on the north of it the hill swept round
forming a sort of bay about a quarter of a mile
across. Here the town for the workmen and the
stores was built. The outer wall of the town ran
from the end of the north side of the temple north-
ward for about quarter mile (only a part of it is
shown on PL XV), thus skirting along the edge of the
bay and then dipping down into the desert behind it,
before turning eastward at right angles to enclose the
town. Just before reaching the plain on the east, it
turned southward for a short way, but—excepting
this—the town stood open to the Nile valley on the
east side.
The architect not only thus laid out the site with a
rectangular enclosure, adjoining the temple, but he
also laid out the streets and blocks of chambers, or
houses, in regular lines. The plan was to run rows of
building about one hundred and fifty feet long,
branching from the long west wall, some of which are
shown on PL XV ; and then longer and wider blocks
branch from the north wall. Thus the western of the
longer blocks nearly closed the entrances to the
western streets, and so the whole of the western
blocks could be guarded by a single watchman at
the end.
39. The rooms are generally grouped together in
sets of half a dozen to a dozen with one outer door to
the street. They were planned by the architect in
round numbers of cubits throughout. Thus—to take
a chance example—208, 125, 121, 82, 64, 61, and 42,
inches are 10, 5, 4, 3, and 2 cubits of 2cr8, 20-9, 201,
20-5, 21-3, 20-3, and 21 inches. The dimensions vary
so much that, no very accurate settlement of the
length of the cubit can be made.
The chambers were sometimes vaulted with a barrel
roof of brick; but more usually they seem to have
been covered with beams and thatch. In one room
a massive log of wood remained, about a foot square
and 8 feet long, with marks of the attachment of cross
pieces let in. All of the doorways were arched over,
wherever they are yet preserved ; the bricks being
spaced apart on the outer side of the arch by chips of
limestone, to the same effect as the wedge form of
voussoirs. Probably some sort of centreing was em-
ployed, as the arch being 42 inches wide inside the
whole would be too heavy to lift up in one mass and
set into place, as Arab bricklayers will do now. The
barrel-vaulted chambers may have been filled up with
sand as the arch advanced, and emptied after com-
pletion. There can be no question now about the
common use of the arch in domestic building of the
Xllth dynasty; nor in large structures where it was
suitable, as in the pyramid of Hawara, to prevent the
brickwork settling down and splitting on the pointed
roofstones.
Though it does not appear that upper stories were
built, since there was no scant of ground as in a large
city, yet stairs were provided to go on to the roof, as
in modern houses. Many of these staircases remain
as will be seen in the Plan XV ; wherever sufficiently
preserved they are found in two parts, with a turn in
the middle. The flights are 25 to 28 inches wide, and
usually of five or six steps each.
The regularity and care with which the rooms were
laid out is seen not only by their being in whole
numbers of cubits, but by the repetition of the same
plan. The general similarity of the design repeated
in each block is evident, and in some cases the plan is
exactly copied. This is well seen in the south side of
rank B. Here I have drawn (PL XV) the three sets
of chambers superposed in outline, using full line,
broken line, and dotted line to distinguish them. The
differences are hardly ever more than an inch or two,
except in the northern side.
No special place seems to have been set apart for
the fire; generally it was against one side, as in
modern huts, and somewhat sunk in the floor.
40. In the larger rooms columns were often employed
to support the roof. These seem probably to have
been of wood shaped octagonally, to judge by the
marks left upon the stone bases which remain. The
bases are generally from 20 to 24 inches diameter at
the under side, and about 3 inches less on the top.
porter's lodge. This seems to have been a place for
ablutions, as in the large room (PI. XV) a square
stone trough was let into the ground, 24 inches
square outside, and about 4 inches thick, the depth
being about 18 inches. Similar troughs sunk in the
floor occur in the town, with sloping slabs of stone
around them, for the washing water to run down. In
this lodge was found a scarab (bottom PL IX) and a
broken bronze knife (PL XVII).
About four feet of the higher walls of the lodge
remain, while some are almost level with the ground ;
the whole of it was covered with a heap of blown
sand and disintegrated mud brick. The great wall
around the temple similarly varies from only a brick
or two, to about three feet high. The back wall may
have been of the same thickness as the sides, but it
was so much washed away that this is not certain.
38. The temple stood on a prominent point of
rocky ground, standing forward just oyer the N-le
plain ; while on the north of it the hill swept round
forming a sort of bay about a quarter of a mile
across. Here the town for the workmen and the
stores was built. The outer wall of the town ran
from the end of the north side of the temple north-
ward for about quarter mile (only a part of it is
shown on PL XV), thus skirting along the edge of the
bay and then dipping down into the desert behind it,
before turning eastward at right angles to enclose the
town. Just before reaching the plain on the east, it
turned southward for a short way, but—excepting
this—the town stood open to the Nile valley on the
east side.
The architect not only thus laid out the site with a
rectangular enclosure, adjoining the temple, but he
also laid out the streets and blocks of chambers, or
houses, in regular lines. The plan was to run rows of
building about one hundred and fifty feet long,
branching from the long west wall, some of which are
shown on PL XV ; and then longer and wider blocks
branch from the north wall. Thus the western of the
longer blocks nearly closed the entrances to the
western streets, and so the whole of the western
blocks could be guarded by a single watchman at
the end.
39. The rooms are generally grouped together in
sets of half a dozen to a dozen with one outer door to
the street. They were planned by the architect in
round numbers of cubits throughout. Thus—to take
a chance example—208, 125, 121, 82, 64, 61, and 42,
inches are 10, 5, 4, 3, and 2 cubits of 2cr8, 20-9, 201,
20-5, 21-3, 20-3, and 21 inches. The dimensions vary
so much that, no very accurate settlement of the
length of the cubit can be made.
The chambers were sometimes vaulted with a barrel
roof of brick; but more usually they seem to have
been covered with beams and thatch. In one room
a massive log of wood remained, about a foot square
and 8 feet long, with marks of the attachment of cross
pieces let in. All of the doorways were arched over,
wherever they are yet preserved ; the bricks being
spaced apart on the outer side of the arch by chips of
limestone, to the same effect as the wedge form of
voussoirs. Probably some sort of centreing was em-
ployed, as the arch being 42 inches wide inside the
whole would be too heavy to lift up in one mass and
set into place, as Arab bricklayers will do now. The
barrel-vaulted chambers may have been filled up with
sand as the arch advanced, and emptied after com-
pletion. There can be no question now about the
common use of the arch in domestic building of the
Xllth dynasty; nor in large structures where it was
suitable, as in the pyramid of Hawara, to prevent the
brickwork settling down and splitting on the pointed
roofstones.
Though it does not appear that upper stories were
built, since there was no scant of ground as in a large
city, yet stairs were provided to go on to the roof, as
in modern houses. Many of these staircases remain
as will be seen in the Plan XV ; wherever sufficiently
preserved they are found in two parts, with a turn in
the middle. The flights are 25 to 28 inches wide, and
usually of five or six steps each.
The regularity and care with which the rooms were
laid out is seen not only by their being in whole
numbers of cubits, but by the repetition of the same
plan. The general similarity of the design repeated
in each block is evident, and in some cases the plan is
exactly copied. This is well seen in the south side of
rank B. Here I have drawn (PL XV) the three sets
of chambers superposed in outline, using full line,
broken line, and dotted line to distinguish them. The
differences are hardly ever more than an inch or two,
except in the northern side.
No special place seems to have been set apart for
the fire; generally it was against one side, as in
modern huts, and somewhat sunk in the floor.
40. In the larger rooms columns were often employed
to support the roof. These seem probably to have
been of wood shaped octagonally, to judge by the
marks left upon the stone bases which remain. The
bases are generally from 20 to 24 inches diameter at
the under side, and about 3 inches less on the top.