DOI issue:
July to December, 1854
DOI Page / Citation link:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.16614#0030
22
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
says I. Seven or eight of them were standing apart as I saw. 'Let the
men fall in !' I roared, ' Captains, go to your companies. Major ! '—
" What I was going to say to him does not matter • for the ruffian
fired a shot at me, and then sent the pistol flying at my head.
" It knocked down the poor aide-de-camp who was with me—upon
which, seeing I had to do with nine ruffians, of coarse I produced my
Revolvers, one of Colt's and one of Hanocock's, regarding the
respective merits of which, there has been some question.
"The practice, as I take it, is pretty equal. With the Colt I shot
three captains, two lieutenants, missing No. 6, the ensign—with the
Handcock. I potted two ensigns, a captain, a lieutenant, and filially my
friend the major, sending a ball into his great mouth, and stopping his
horrid language for the future towards his colonel and your
" Bashi-Bozouk "
On entering the door, we see on the wall a representation of the
triumph of Rameses the Third, who, seated in his chariot, looks on at
his scribes counting the number of hands cut from the slain, while the few
bearers in attendance aid him to look coolly on at the shocking spectacle.
On the other side is a battle scene, in which a chief and a charioteer
are both falling by the hand of the king, who, if he has not two strings
to his bow, seems to have at all events two
victims to his arrow. _ Passing onward we take
a glance at the eight gigantic figures of
Rameses holding the crook and flail, which
are emblematical of his power to punish and
protect, to cherish and to thrash his people. The
figures in the Egyptian Court are nifre ciphers
compared with the originals; but, though the
directors would not have objected to the highest
figure in point of expense, thev were compelled
PUNCH'S HANDBOOKS TO THE CRYSTAL |by the space at their disposal to depart from
PALACE, i facts, by the diminution of their figures.
One of the most beautiful objects in the
THE EGYPTIAN COURT j Egyptian Court is a representation—in rather
reduced circumstances—of the famous Temple
of Karnac at Thebes. This temple was com-
menced by Osiris the First, and was finished
by some subsequent Rameses, who put his
name to the work,—though the idea was not
his own—a practice which is still prevalent.
We must not overlook the Temple of Abco
Simbel, though it, was overlooked for many
centuries until Burckhaiudt recognised a row
of heads in the sand, which had been running
from the hour glass of Time for ages over
them. He fancied that where heads had been
found, temples might be discovered. Relzoni
and others having cleared away the sand, made
their way into this wondrous monument in Nubia, which, but for their
researches, might as well have been in Nubibus. Rameses himself
is, in the original, sixty-one feet high, while the Son at his side, to
whom he is offering a statue of Truth, is only twenty feet high, and
we cannot help feeling that the offer of a statue of Truth comes
with but an ill grace from a figure embodying in its exaggerated size
a most enormous falsehood.
The model in the Crystal Palace is only one tenth of the size of the
original, but the two figures in what is called the Sydendam transept
are iull-length copies, and are so capacious that a public house might be
started, called the Rameses Head, in the occiput of either one of them.
On the left hand is the Phfloe Portico, among the prominent features
of which are.the faces of an ape, a hawk, a man, and a jackal. Eigures
the least inscrutable are a pair of sugar tongs, a curtain ring, a short 01 tms description in wax or porcelain were often placed with a mummy,
German pipe, and the blade of a knife, are the names of Her Majesty ! ancl tliere are cases m which a mon
Imagining that we have asked a policeman the nearest way to Egypt,
and that he has civilly told us, to "take the first on the left," we shall
find ourselves at the end of an avenue of Lions, which would not under
ordinary circumstances be an agreeable promenade ; but fancying our-
selves on an equality with any of the Lions of the place we are induced
to enter. We find ourselves opposite to the entrance of a Temple, and
having a sort of natural aversion to the Temple—from legal associations
with which the Lions' mouths, and their formidable amount of jaw,
may have some subtle connection—we pause to examine the exterior,
the unintelligible hieroglyphics that surmount the Egyptian Temple in
the Crystal Palace help to carry us to the Temple in Meet Street, for
there is a close analogy between the jargon of law and the language of
mystery. We learn, however, that certain strange figures, of which
and Piiince Albert. It is fortunate for the Queen that she has
not to make the sign manual in Egyptian characters, for if she did, she
would be compelled to copy the Royal
sugar tongs and scribble short German
pipes over every official document re-
quiring her signature. On the frieze we
find a horse-shoe, a billiard ball, a quantity
of strange birds, an individual going
either to hang himself or jump out of
7\ >T window, and a few other equally brilliant
f fg^ _f designs, which we find signify altogether
ri| that " Her Majesty the ruler of the
waves," (we thought Rritannia did
that part of the business) "the chiefs,
architects, sculptors and painters, erected
this palace with a thousand colours, a
thousand decorations, a thousand statues
of chiefs and ladies, a thousand flowers, a
thousand birds and beasts, a thousand
tanks, and a thousand vases." This lan-
guage is evidently borrowed from an
old declaration in an action for an
• assault, in which the defendant was
usually alleged to have given " a thou-
sand blows with a thousand arms, on a thousand eyes, a thousand
noses, and a thousand mouths, whereby the plaintiff had sustained a
thousand pounds damages." The same inscription is repeated in other
places with the addition of a figure like a chimney
pot which means stability, a racket which repre-
sents life (though it would seem to be limited to a
rackety life) and an utterly inexplicable figure
which is said to stand for purity, though to us it
appears purely enigmatical. The columns of the
facade have their capitals adorned with palm and
lotus, both of which are so effective, that both seem to bear the palm
when separately examined
f
kev and an ass are found on each
side of a man, who is thus represented
as something between an ape and a
donkey.
Passing through a doorway, we
come to the Inner Egyptian Court,
where we find a standard bearer,
walking with his left leg first, which
is the peculiarity of every Egyptian
statue, and would seem to show a
superstition of the Egyptians, that in
placing the left leg first, they were
putting their best leg foremost.
Proceeding through the Court _ of
Amunothph, which is of the real size,
we come to the facade of the outer
Egyptian Court, which is adorned
with various more or less interesting
figures : one of them represents Nilos
bringing her productions on a sort
of tray, for the Egyptians always
draw the Nile as a young woman acting
in the capacity of a waitress, or going
round with the tray at a tea-party.
The image of
Truth is frequently introduced as an object ^|
of Egyptian art, and when we look at the false
representations of nature with which Kgypt
abounds, we cannot be surprised that Truth
appears as an image, or, in other words, as an
imaginary character.
Re-entering the Inner Court, we come to
a portico, the capitals of whose columns
are adorned with a capital imitation of the
lotus. Above them is the head of an Egyptian
Venus, whose ears are those of a cow, and are fair specimens of carving.
PUNCH, OR THE LONDON CHARIVARI.
says I. Seven or eight of them were standing apart as I saw. 'Let the
men fall in !' I roared, ' Captains, go to your companies. Major ! '—
" What I was going to say to him does not matter • for the ruffian
fired a shot at me, and then sent the pistol flying at my head.
" It knocked down the poor aide-de-camp who was with me—upon
which, seeing I had to do with nine ruffians, of coarse I produced my
Revolvers, one of Colt's and one of Hanocock's, regarding the
respective merits of which, there has been some question.
"The practice, as I take it, is pretty equal. With the Colt I shot
three captains, two lieutenants, missing No. 6, the ensign—with the
Handcock. I potted two ensigns, a captain, a lieutenant, and filially my
friend the major, sending a ball into his great mouth, and stopping his
horrid language for the future towards his colonel and your
" Bashi-Bozouk "
On entering the door, we see on the wall a representation of the
triumph of Rameses the Third, who, seated in his chariot, looks on at
his scribes counting the number of hands cut from the slain, while the few
bearers in attendance aid him to look coolly on at the shocking spectacle.
On the other side is a battle scene, in which a chief and a charioteer
are both falling by the hand of the king, who, if he has not two strings
to his bow, seems to have at all events two
victims to his arrow. _ Passing onward we take
a glance at the eight gigantic figures of
Rameses holding the crook and flail, which
are emblematical of his power to punish and
protect, to cherish and to thrash his people. The
figures in the Egyptian Court are nifre ciphers
compared with the originals; but, though the
directors would not have objected to the highest
figure in point of expense, thev were compelled
PUNCH'S HANDBOOKS TO THE CRYSTAL |by the space at their disposal to depart from
PALACE, i facts, by the diminution of their figures.
One of the most beautiful objects in the
THE EGYPTIAN COURT j Egyptian Court is a representation—in rather
reduced circumstances—of the famous Temple
of Karnac at Thebes. This temple was com-
menced by Osiris the First, and was finished
by some subsequent Rameses, who put his
name to the work,—though the idea was not
his own—a practice which is still prevalent.
We must not overlook the Temple of Abco
Simbel, though it, was overlooked for many
centuries until Burckhaiudt recognised a row
of heads in the sand, which had been running
from the hour glass of Time for ages over
them. He fancied that where heads had been
found, temples might be discovered. Relzoni
and others having cleared away the sand, made
their way into this wondrous monument in Nubia, which, but for their
researches, might as well have been in Nubibus. Rameses himself
is, in the original, sixty-one feet high, while the Son at his side, to
whom he is offering a statue of Truth, is only twenty feet high, and
we cannot help feeling that the offer of a statue of Truth comes
with but an ill grace from a figure embodying in its exaggerated size
a most enormous falsehood.
The model in the Crystal Palace is only one tenth of the size of the
original, but the two figures in what is called the Sydendam transept
are iull-length copies, and are so capacious that a public house might be
started, called the Rameses Head, in the occiput of either one of them.
On the left hand is the Phfloe Portico, among the prominent features
of which are.the faces of an ape, a hawk, a man, and a jackal. Eigures
the least inscrutable are a pair of sugar tongs, a curtain ring, a short 01 tms description in wax or porcelain were often placed with a mummy,
German pipe, and the blade of a knife, are the names of Her Majesty ! ancl tliere are cases m which a mon
Imagining that we have asked a policeman the nearest way to Egypt,
and that he has civilly told us, to "take the first on the left," we shall
find ourselves at the end of an avenue of Lions, which would not under
ordinary circumstances be an agreeable promenade ; but fancying our-
selves on an equality with any of the Lions of the place we are induced
to enter. We find ourselves opposite to the entrance of a Temple, and
having a sort of natural aversion to the Temple—from legal associations
with which the Lions' mouths, and their formidable amount of jaw,
may have some subtle connection—we pause to examine the exterior,
the unintelligible hieroglyphics that surmount the Egyptian Temple in
the Crystal Palace help to carry us to the Temple in Meet Street, for
there is a close analogy between the jargon of law and the language of
mystery. We learn, however, that certain strange figures, of which
and Piiince Albert. It is fortunate for the Queen that she has
not to make the sign manual in Egyptian characters, for if she did, she
would be compelled to copy the Royal
sugar tongs and scribble short German
pipes over every official document re-
quiring her signature. On the frieze we
find a horse-shoe, a billiard ball, a quantity
of strange birds, an individual going
either to hang himself or jump out of
7\ >T window, and a few other equally brilliant
f fg^ _f designs, which we find signify altogether
ri| that " Her Majesty the ruler of the
waves," (we thought Rritannia did
that part of the business) "the chiefs,
architects, sculptors and painters, erected
this palace with a thousand colours, a
thousand decorations, a thousand statues
of chiefs and ladies, a thousand flowers, a
thousand birds and beasts, a thousand
tanks, and a thousand vases." This lan-
guage is evidently borrowed from an
old declaration in an action for an
• assault, in which the defendant was
usually alleged to have given " a thou-
sand blows with a thousand arms, on a thousand eyes, a thousand
noses, and a thousand mouths, whereby the plaintiff had sustained a
thousand pounds damages." The same inscription is repeated in other
places with the addition of a figure like a chimney
pot which means stability, a racket which repre-
sents life (though it would seem to be limited to a
rackety life) and an utterly inexplicable figure
which is said to stand for purity, though to us it
appears purely enigmatical. The columns of the
facade have their capitals adorned with palm and
lotus, both of which are so effective, that both seem to bear the palm
when separately examined
f
kev and an ass are found on each
side of a man, who is thus represented
as something between an ape and a
donkey.
Passing through a doorway, we
come to the Inner Egyptian Court,
where we find a standard bearer,
walking with his left leg first, which
is the peculiarity of every Egyptian
statue, and would seem to show a
superstition of the Egyptians, that in
placing the left leg first, they were
putting their best leg foremost.
Proceeding through the Court _ of
Amunothph, which is of the real size,
we come to the facade of the outer
Egyptian Court, which is adorned
with various more or less interesting
figures : one of them represents Nilos
bringing her productions on a sort
of tray, for the Egyptians always
draw the Nile as a young woman acting
in the capacity of a waitress, or going
round with the tray at a tea-party.
The image of
Truth is frequently introduced as an object ^|
of Egyptian art, and when we look at the false
representations of nature with which Kgypt
abounds, we cannot be surprised that Truth
appears as an image, or, in other words, as an
imaginary character.
Re-entering the Inner Court, we come to
a portico, the capitals of whose columns
are adorned with a capital imitation of the
lotus. Above them is the head of an Egyptian
Venus, whose ears are those of a cow, and are fair specimens of carving.