stag*, kebsh or wild sheep, hare, and porcupine †;

No. 327.

A chasseur shooting at the wild oxen, accompanied by his dog, fig. 3.

of all of which the meat was highly esteemed among

*Probably the same as the Cervus barbarus.

+ I have not found this animal in Egypt. It is eaten in Italy, and sold in the markets of Rome and other places.

I

2

14

the delicacies of the table. Others, as the fox, jackal, wolf, hyæna, and leopard, were chased as an amusement, for the sake of their skins, or as enemies of the farm-yard; and the ostrich held out a great temptation to the hunter from the value of its plumes. These were in great request among the Egyptians for ornamental purposes; a religious veneration for them, as the symbol of truth, enhanced their value; and the members of the court on grand occasions failed not to deck themselves with the feathers of the ostrich. The labour endured during the chase of this swift-footed bird was amply repaid; even its eggs were required for some ornamental or religious use, and these, with the plumes, formed part of the tribute imposed by the Egyptians on the conquered countries where it abounded. The purposes to which the eggs were applied are unknown; but we may infer, from a religious prejudice in their favour among the Christians of Egypt, that some superstition was connected with them, and that they were suspended in the temples of the ancient Egyptians, as they still are in the Churches of the Copts.*

The subjects of the chase in the sculptures are frequently represented with great spirit. The character of the animals is maintained with wonderful truth, and, though time and the hand of man have done much to injure them, sufficient re

*They consider them the emblems of watchfulness. Sometimes they use them with a different view: the rope of their lamps is passed through the egg, in order to prevent the rats coming down and drinking the oil, as we were assured by the monks of Davr Antonine

mains to evince the skill of the Egyptian draughtsmen. Distance and locality are not so well defined, and the archer, like all Egyptian figures, offends against every rule of drawing and perspective; but the action of the dogs and of the flying antelopes is spirited, and shows how successfully the effect was given by simple outline.

It is singular that the wild boar is never represented among the animals of Egypt, since it is a native of the country;-and is even eaten at the present day, in spite of the religious prejudices of the Moslems*, by many of the inhabitants of the districts. where it lives: nor can I suggest any reason for this omission, except from its not frequenting those parts where the scenes of the chase are laid, being confined to the low marshy spots about the north of the Delta, and the banks of the Lake Moris. In the Thebaïd it was unknown; the sculptures or paintings of Diospolis relate principally to the vicinity of Upper Egypt, and the monuments of the Delta and the lower country are too few to enable us to say if it was omitted there. Nor is the wild ass met with in the paintings, either of Upper or Lower Egypt, though it is common in the deserts of the Thebaïd.

Many other animals are introduced in the sculptures, besides those already noticed, some of which are purely the offspring of disordered imagination: and the winged quadrupeds, sphinxes, or lions, with the head of a hawk, or of a snake,

* That is, followers of Islám. Need I add, they never call themselves Mahometans, which is an European misnomer?

Thebes.

No. 329. To the left of A was the chasseur in his chariot shooting with the bow, now defaced. Figs. 1, 9, 15, 18. Gazelles. 2, 11. Hares. 3. Female hyæna, with its young. 4, 15. Foxes. 5. Porcupine. 6. Hyæna arrived at the top of a hill and looking towards the chasseur. 7. The ibex. 8, 14. Hounds. 12. Ostriches (defaced). 16. The oryx.

19. Wild oxen.