Wilkinson, John Gardner: Topographie of Thebes, and general view of Egypt: being a short account of the principal objects worthy of notice in the valley of the Nile, to the second cataracte and Wadi Samneh, with the Fyoom, Oases and eastern desert, from Sooez to Bertenice (London, 1835)

108 BIBAN EL MOLOOK. [Chap. II.

in that state they were left for the chisel of the
sculptor. But the death of the king or some other
cause prevented, in this case, their completion; and
their unfinished condition, so far from exciting our
regret, affords a satisfactory opportunity of appre-
ciating their skill in drawing, which these figures
so unequivocally attest.

The beautiful groups at the base of the next
staircase have been removed by M. Champollion;
and the subjects in the succeeding passages refer
mostly to the liturgies or ceremonies performed to
the deceased monarch. In the square chamber be-
yond them the king is seen in the presence of the
deities Athor, Horus, Anubis, Isis, Osiris, Nofri-
Atmoo, and Pthah.

The grand hall contains numerous subjects,
among which are a series of mummies, each in its
own repository, whose folding doors are thrown
open ; and it is probable that all the parts of these
catacombs refer to different states, through which
the deceased passed, and the various mansions of
Hades or Amenti. The representations of the door-
valves at their entrance tend to confirm this opinion;
while many of the sculptures seem to relate to the
life and actions of the deceased and to the mysteries
of the Egyptian rites.

In the side chambers are some mysterious cere-
monies connected with fire, and various other sub-
jects ; and the transverse vaulted part of the hall
or saloon of the sarcophagus, ornamented with a
profusion of sculpture, is a termination worthy of