Egyptian belief and modern thought / by James Bonwick.

  • James Bonwick
Date:
1878
Catalogue details

Licence: Public Domain Mark

Credit: Egyptian belief and modern thought / by James Bonwick. Source: Wellcome Collection.

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    soldiers and sailors, writers and merchants, shepherds and farmers, glassblowers and artists, marriage celebrations and funeral processions, in vivid colours and in excellent pre- servation, though from 5000 to 6000 years old. A fine story is told there of one Sabou Abba. We see the table of offerings laden with gifts, while servants and others are streaming in with new contributions. Another picture shows him seated in a palanquin borne on servants’ shoulders. There is a long hieroglyphic account of the several presents by friends from Athribitis, Latopolitis, Arabia, Hermopolitis, etc. There is a view, also, of this gentleman in his boat on the Nile. Auguste Mariette believes all this to be no representation of the past life of the man, but of that he was then pursuing in Hades, the Amenti^ or place of the departed. The tomb of the grandson of Snefrou, king before the pyramid was built, is described as “ a complete model.” It is vaulted in the middle, bears the ordinary invocation to Anubis, the Egyptian Pluto, and mentions the various fetes to be cele- brated in honour of the deceased on certain days. The early tombs had but one chamber. During the first three dynasties, yellow bricks were more frequently used than stone ; afterwards, nothing but stone was employed. Mariette tells us of these primitive sepulchres, that “ the plan of the chamber has the f&nn of a cross. It is, how- ever, generally so small that one can scarcely turn in it. “ But that which strikes us before everything,” observes the Bey, “ is, in the midst of all the scenes which form the subject of these pictures, the absolute absence of all repre- sentations of divinities^ and of all religious emblems. And yet, there is no absence of religion. Alluding to funeral gifts, he says : “ Upon the most ancient tombs, the trace of that sort of religious service is found.” We see priests presenting libations, and kneeling on a footstool.
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