WONDERS OF EGYPT.

Manawatu Standard, Volume XLIV, Issue 645, 2 March 1923, Page 5

WONDERS OF EGYPT.

VASES AND STATUES. SARCOPHAGUS CERTAIN TO CONTAIN KING'S REMAINS. LONDON, Feb, 17. This has been the most extraordinary day in the history of Egyptian excavation. Whatever anyone may have imagined about the secret of Tutankhamen's tomb, he cannot have dreamed of tho truth as is now revealed. An entrance was made into tho sealed chamber beyond which is yet another doori No eyes have yet seen the King’s remains, but to a practical certainty we know that he lies there in ail his original state and undisturbed. To-day has brought to light a bewildering wealth of objects of artistic, historical and intrinsic value. Lord Carnayon’s. discovery is in a class by itself, being such a hoard as the most sanguine excavator can liardly have pictured even in visions. The process of opening the doorway which bears the royal insignia, and is guarded by protective statues of the King, took several hours of manipulation under intense heat. Finally it ended in a wonderful revelation; for before the spectators was the resplendent mausoleum of the King a spacious and beautifully decorated chamber completely occupied by an immense shrine covered with gold, and inlaid with brilliant blue faience work. This beautiful construction towers nearly to the ceiling, and fills the great sepulchral hall to within a short span of the four walls. SYMBOLS OF THE DEAD. Tho shrine’s sides are adorned with magnificent religious texts and with fearful symbols of the dead. It is capped by a sUperb comice and a moulding like the propylae of a temple. On the eastern end of the shrine are two immense folding doors, closed and bolted. Within is yet another shrine, closed and sealed and bearing the cypher of the royal necropolis. On this hangs a funerary pall studded with gold, and, by the evidence of the papyrus of Rameses the Fourth, there must be a 1 scries of shrines covering tho remains of the King lying in the sarcophagus. . Around the outer canopy stand great protective emblems of a mystic type, finely carved and gilt. Upon tho floor lie seven cars for the King’s use on the waters of the Elyslah fields. 'BEAUTIFUL SHRINE. In the further end of the eastern wall another doorway is Open. It was never closed, and it leads to the stone chamber of the sepulbhto, where there stands an elaborate, magnificently carved, _ gilded shrine of indescribable beauty. Its sides are protected bv open-armed goddesses of the finest Workmanship. Their pitiful faces are turned over their shoulders towards the intruder. It is a receptacle for lour oanopic jars, which should contain the un-muminmed remains of the King. . Immediately at the entrance to this chamber stands the black and gold jackal Anubis upon his shrine, which rests on a strange resplendent portable sled. Behind this again is the head of a bull, emblem of the underworld. Stacked on the south side of the chamber are great numbers of black boxes and shrines of all shapes, All are closed ana sealed except oue near the door, in which stand the golden effigies of the King upon black leopards. At the end of the chamber are more cases including miniature coffins sealed, but undoubtedly containing funerary statuettes as servants for the dead in the coming world.. 1 , , . , ■ Oh the south side of the deity Anu bis is a tier of wonderful wooden and ivory boxes of every shape and design, studded with gold and inlaid with faienco._ Beside them is yet . another chariot. The sight is of stupendous signiflcenco and indescribable. . , i i As tho day was fast creeping on to dusk, the tomb was closed for further action. > A VIGIL OF CENTURIES.

It is reasonably certain _ that the construction of the successive tabernacles which successfully baffled ancient robbers, makes their immediate opening impossible, and that tho actual sight of Tutankhamen and of where he lies must be postponed indefinitely. His long and lonely vigil is not yet ended Some of the alabaster vases discovered surpass in beauty those previously found. They are still white and untouched s by age. The statuettes and other objects seen are undoubtedly of the greatest beauty and value. Many uhopohed boxes with unbroken seals give promise of an unprecedented harvest of precious tilings. A very embarrassment of riches'confronts the Earl of Carnarvon and Mr Carter, and becomes a serious problem, apart from the question of the King’s tabernacle. The actual opening was prefaced by short complimentary speeches by Mr Carter and tho Earl of Carnarvon, thanking the New York Metropolitan Museum and the Egyptian Government. The Earl of Carnarvon paid a tribute to Mr Carter’s unquenchable faith and indomitable perseverance. Mr Carter then turned to_ the sealed wall, and breaking into it with a chisel and mallet, in a 1 short time revealed the wooden lintel of a door. Enough material Was removed to let Mr Carter enter, and soon a large portion of the wall came away, revealing to tho dazzled and spellbound spectators the wonderful scene described. ARMOUR OF OLD EGYFT.

LONDON, Feb. 11. The removal of the treasures from Tutankhamen’s tomb continues, says a message from Luxor. A red box was discovered, the examination of which disclosed a large corselet, in an elaborate mess of faience pennants with gold clasps, ties, and and inlaid with glass in imitation of semi-pre-cious stones.. It was well known that corselets existed in ancient Egypt, but never before had the actual article been found, nor was The intricate detail and superb workmanship realised. Valuable parts of the corselet had been tom off by robbers, but it is hoped that it will be possible to reconstruct it. Other removals included a magnificent chariot, considered the best of the lot, and decorated with sheet gold inlaid with stones and coloured glass. It was evidently the King’s triumphal chariot. A broken chariot, part of the harness, a ceremonial couch, and two statues of the King arc now all that remain of the 167 principal objects found in the ante-chamber. The public should be warned not to believe some of the extraordinary stories emanating from Luxor, The latest of these mentions the discovery of a wonderful papyrus, purporting to give the story of the robbery of the tomb, but the truth is that no papyrus whatever has been discovered, NILE BANKS NEAR LUXOR. "LONDON, Feb. 12. “Presumably it was within easy stroll of hereabouts that Moses was hidden in the bulrushes,” is one opinion of the meaning of the animals represented m the hunting scones on the various chests taken from the tomb of Tutankhamen. These animals are so often ostriches, giraffes, or elephants, that the theory that Stian civilisation originated in thenar is unnecessary, as there is no question that great changes occurred in the face of the land in tin* region. The banks of the Nile, which are now bare, must formerly have been covered with papyrus and other vegetation, which explains the references in the well-known hymn of Akhnaton, that “birds that flutter in their marshes” on the same reedy waters that sheltered Moses. Among the odds and ends brought out to-day are some dried dates in a red pottery dish, exactly like the well-known pottery made to-day at Assiut.