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LETTER XIX.

Valley of the Dead.-Entrance to the Tombs of the Pharaohs.-Explorations of Belzoni.-Interior of the Tombs.-Ancient Furniture.-Descent into the "Bottomless Pit."-A March by Torchlight.-A grand Finale. -Fruitless Negotiations." Nothing venture, nothing gain."-A Hunt for Antiquities.-The Result.

At anchor off Memphis,

It is now two entire weeks since we have communed to. gether. Since which time our boat has been leisurely floating down with the current, landing us at all the interesting points on the river. Occasional heavy head winds caused us to lie by several times.

We are now at anchor, waiting the return of a messenger sent to Cairo to ascertain the state of health of the place before we venture to mix with its squalid population at this warm season. In the mean while, I cannot employ my time more agreeably than by taking a retrospect of the past fortnight for your amusement.

We parted last at Thebes, where I proposed to you to accompany me one evening to the Tombs of the Kings. We were prevented from accomplishing our purpose by the fa tigues of our last day at Thebes, and the interruption of company to dinner the same evening. I will, therefore, give you now but a short and imperfect sketch of my visit to those interesting monuments.

Shortly after our arrival at Thebes, we set out early one morning to visit the tombs. We loitered by the way, so that we did not arrive at the entrance of the Valley of the Dead until midday.

When we reached that point where the line of mountain wall turns from west to south, we entered a gorge which runs for a short distance towards the west, and then sudden

ly turns to the south, leaving between us and the plain of Thebes, on the left, a high range of mountain, perfectly bare of vegetation.

Indeed, the whole valley and the mountain on both sides are not only entirely devoid of vegetable life, but when the meridian sun pours its vertical beams into this narrow rocky valley, it seems as if a river of flame flowed through it, threatening to annihilate whatever of animal life dared venture to stem its current.

Not a breath of air can penetrate this deep dell, enclosed on all sides by high cliffs of rock. The rays of the sun are poured upon the head, reflected from the sand below into the face and eyes, and reverberated from the sides of the mountain as from a furnace seven times heated. Formerly there was no access to this basin of fire; but a passage was cut through the lowest point of rocks to facilitate the ingress of processions.

From the entrance of the valley to its extreme head, where the tombs are situated, is about two miles, with just sufficient room between the inclined bases of the mountains for a horsepath.

Arriving at the entrance of the tombs, we found that they were under the east mountain, and their shafts running directly towards the plain of the city. The level of the upper part of the valley is considerably higher than the rocky flat on which stand the Memnonium and the other temples.

The first object that presented itself to our view was an inclined passage-way, cut in the sloping side of the base of the mountain, about twelve feet wide and open at top. When this passage reaches far enough into the rock to show a per. pendicular face in front of about twenty feet, then commences the mining operation. Here is an ornamented doorway, eight feet wide by ten feet high, with the usual winged globe over it.

The tunnel hence has a more rapid descent for about one

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This pas

hundred feet, with little chambers on each side. sage has its sides highly sculptured and beautifully painted. The ceiling is black, with white stars. The whole length

of several of the various tombs is three to four hundred feet from the outer door. At the end of the first gallery commences a flight of steps, which lead down to a square cham. ber about twenty feet diameter, the roof supported by col. umns of native rock left for that purpose. Other flights of steps conduct to similar chambers, of which, in some cases, there are a dozen or more (one lower than the other) before one reaches the great state chamber, in which is found an enormous granite sarcophagus, that once held the body of one of the long line of Pharaohs who ruled over Egypt.

This royal chamber in one tomb is thirty feet by twenty, and twenty-seven feet high, with no supporting columns: but the roof is cut in the form of a high arch. In this cham. ber, in the tomb discovered by Belzoni, the sarcophagus was made of semi-transparent alabaster, covered within and without with elegant bas-relief. This sarcophagus now belongs to the King of England. When it was removed, a secret passage was discovered, leading down in an inclined direction towards the plain of the Memnonium. Belzoni follow. ed it three hundred feet, until he was prevented from going any farther by the rubbish with which it was encumbered. He was then about seven hundred feet from the western base of the hill; and, if the gallery continues in the same direction, it would open into the great Valley of the Assaseif. It is a pity that he had not completed his exploration, and solved the problem of an entrance from the temples to all the tombs.

From the extraordinary quantity of ornament lavished upon the walls and ceilings of all these chambers, it has been suggested that it was never intended that, after each mon. arch had been laid in his granite sepulchre, the tomb should be closed upon him for ever, but that these chambers were

used by the priests for some part of their mysterious wor. ship, or for worse purposes. My opinion is, that after the great state procession, when the body of the sovereign was carried round through the valley of fire (which I have de. scribed to you as a sort of purgatory), and taken into the tomb by the entrance tunnel, the door to the tunnel was then for ever closed to the public, as all other tombs are. The secret passages from the temples gave the sensual priest. hood access to these beautiful halls, directly from their temples and cloisters.

There is a hackneyed quotation used by every traveller, from Bruce down to the last John Bull who has visited those tombs; it is, however, so apposite, that I cannot refrain from repeating it. The words are from Ezekiel, when he alluded to the heathen practices of the Jews in subterranean places. "Then he said unto me, Son of man, dig now into the wall: and when I had digged into the wall, behold a door. And he said unto me, Go in, and behold the wicked abominations that they do there. So I went in and saw; and behold, every form of creeping things, and abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed upon the wall round about." With respect to these tombs, or rather saloons, wherein were held the profane orgies of a corrupt priesthood, the passage of Ezekiel is so graphic and so appropriate, that every one who enters them is peculiarly struck with the words of the inspired writer.

For me to attempt to give anything like a description of the "abominable beasts," and curious devices with which the walls are covered, would be an endless task, even if my descriptive powers were adequate to it. I must refer you to Belzoni's own account of the extraordinary discovery he made of a tomb which had not been visited probably since the time of Cambyses. There were originally forty-seven of these extraordinary excavations, which have been lost for centuries, except twenty-one. These are much injured and

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defaced by the Arabs, but the last was as perfect as when first closed. Those remaining have their entrances hidden by accumulations from the disintegrated rocks above, which have choked up the galleries that lead to their outer doors. There is a rich field, therefore, remaining for future antiquarian harvests.

It appears that the rock in which these tombs are excavated is a sort of soft limestone, nearly white. When the walls were cut down smooth, the fissures were filled up with stucco before the sculptures were executed. These sculptures are in very low relief, and beautifully coloured; the colours as fresh as if laid on yesterday. One chamber appeared to have been just excavated when the idol worship of Egypt received its quietus. The walls are only rough hewn. Another chamber is just ready for the sculptor. All the figures are outlined with red chalk, the fine strokes of which are as perfect as when the artist's hand left them. In the little side chambers of the gallery leading to one of the tombs are some curious paintings, representing articles of household furniture, ornament, &c. Among which I saw sofas, ottomans, tabourets, and couches, of forms very simi. lar to many now in use. Two large fauteuils were of such exquisite form and so richly carved, that I could not consent to leave them behind, but wanted the gentlemen to cut them from the wall and take them away with us. However Goth. ic and barbarous this act would have been, we had numer. ous precedents for it in the theft of former travellers of very scientific notoriety. They were not driven, however, to this Vandalian measure in order to gratify me, for a very tal ented young Irish gentleman whom we met at Thebes volunteered to copy them for me. The fauteuils which these drawings represent appear to have been covered with the richest plaid velvet, with raised figures. The carvings were gilt. From the taste displayed in the designs, I should pro. nounce them to be Greek in any other part of the world