. A history of art in ancient Egypt . the portico was outside it wasso placed because there was no roomfor it within. When the temple wasreduced to a single narrow chamber,so small that there was no roomfor columns and that the walls couldsupport the roof without help, thecolonnade was relegfated to the ex-terior, where it served to give im-portance to the cella, and to clotheand beautify it. The peripteral arrangement, which is a constant principle inGreek architecture, is no more than a rare accident in that ofEgypt. But in spite of this difference the similarity, which mightbe cal
. A history of art in ancient Egypt . the portico was outside it wasso placed because there was no roomfor it within. When the temple wasreduced to a single narrow chamber,so small that there was no roomfor columns and that the walls couldsupport the roof without help, thecolonnade was relegfated to the ex-terior, where it served to give im-portance to the cella, and to clotheand beautify it. The peripteral arrangement, which is a constant principle inGreek architecture, is no more than a rare accident in that ofEgypt. But in spite of this difference the similarity, which mightbe called a chance likeness, if the word chance had any place inhistory, is full of interest for the historian of art. The following facts are sufficient to prove that it was the smallsize of these peripteral temples that first suggested the externalsituation of their colonnades. As lone as the cella was laro-eenough to admit supports of the ordinary diameter without encum-bering the space or destroying its proportions, we find the columns. Fig. 232.—Temple of Amenophis Eilithyia ; from Lepsius. ^ See Lepsius for plans of these buildings; Denkma^ler. part i. plates 125, 127,and 128. VOL. I. 3 F 402 A History of Art in Ancient Egypt. inside. Of this the temple of Amenophis III. at Eilithyla, aplan and section of which we take from Lepsius (Figs. 232 and233),^ is an instance. It is prefaced by a chamber, very ruinous,and wider than it is deep. It is now difficult to say whether thiswas an uncovered court or a hypostyle hall.^ Immediately abut-ting upon it comes the naos, a rectangular chamber measuringinternally 28 feet by 22 feet 6 inches. The roof might very pos-sibly have been supported by the four columns, as their baseswere 4 feet in diameter. A niche contrived in the further wallof the naos acted the part of a secos. Here too we find a very simple form of temple, but the naosbeing large enough to admit, and even to demand, the use ofinternal columns, it never entered the
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