The Century illustrated monthly magazine . tinued,meanwhile, to discover an apparently inex-haustible supply of massive slabs closely cov-ered with small figure subjects; the spacesabove, below, and between the figures beingfilled in with minutely executed hieroglyphicinscriptions. These bas-reliefs formed part ofone vast historical tableau, or series of tab-leaux, representing an important religious cere-mony. Here, also, jammed in between slabsand roofing-blocks, or lying prostrate underpiles of debris, were the shattered remainsof an extraordinary number of statues ofall sizes, of all mater
The Century illustrated monthly magazine . tinued,meanwhile, to discover an apparently inex-haustible supply of massive slabs closely cov-ered with small figure subjects; the spacesabove, below, and between the figures beingfilled in with minutely executed hieroglyphicinscriptions. These bas-reliefs formed part ofone vast historical tableau, or series of tab-leaux, representing an important religious cere-mony. Here, also, jammed in between slabsand roofing-blocks, or lying prostrate underpiles of debris, were the shattered remainsof an extraordinary number of statues ofall sizes, of all materials, and, as it seemed,of all periods — heads without trunks, trunkswithout heads, feet and pedestals withouteither heads or trunks. This hall had been awalhalla of sculptured kings and gods, thewhole magnificent structure having comedown apparently with one tremendous crash,and entombed them as it fell. As fragmentafter fragment was dragged out, nine in everyten proved to be indorsed with the oft re- 332 BUBASTIS: AN HISTORICAL HEAD OF RAMESES 11. WITH THE ATEF-CROWN. peated insignia of Rameses II. The remainsof four pairs of colossal portrait-statues of thisone Pharaoh were here identified in the courseof a few days — two in black granite of greatsize, the eyes seven inches in length; two ingray granite, two in green granite, and two inred granite; besides fragments of several hugegroups representing the king standing or en-throned, now with a goddess, and sometimesas the third member of a divine triad. Otherstatues of the same Pharaoh were of heroicsize, and some of life size • to say nothing ofinnumerable heads belonging to statues whichhad been broken up for building-material at alater period. Among these, one was especiallynoticeable for the exquisite modeling of theface and the delicacy of its execution. It hadbelonged to a life-size figure in red granite,representing Rameses II. as a youth of abouteighteen or twenty years of age, crowned withan elaborate
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Keywords: ., bookauthornicolayj, bookcentury1800, bookdecade1890, bookyear1890
