EGYPTIAN ARCHITECTURE IN the practice of architecture, Upper Egypt appears to have borrowed nothing from any other nation; it is the result of a powerful people attaining their objects by the simplest means. Their most ancient buildings are com posed merely of tapering walls, with pillars of huge di mensions placed in the intermediate spaces, to support a roof constructed with large flat stones, all of the kind of stone found in the immediate neighbourhood; that is to say, in a few instances of calcareous, but chiefly of fine sandstone ; for, as we have formerly remarked, it was not until after the translation of the empire to Thebes, that granite was employed, excepting in obelisks and colossal statues. The workmanship of Karnac and others of the ancient buildings, has also a rudeness which be speaks an infancy of the arts. Yet even in this earliest stage, the columns are representations of bundles of the lotus (_or lily of the Nile): and the sculptured hierogly phics are wholly taken from Egyptian mythology, astro nomy, historical events, and agriculture; they have evi dently arisen from the peculiar situation and circumstan ces of that particular people; and so far were the Egyp tians from being influenced by the practice of the neigh bouring nations, that the outlines of the facades and sculptures found in their apparently oldest temples were, with some improvement in the workmanship, preserved nearly the same, till the destructive inroad of Cambyses.
In our historical sketch, the principal circumstances relating to Karnac, Luxor, and the Menmonium, were briefly described : These, from the nature of the sculp tures and distribution of the apartments, have by some been supposed to have been royal edifices. At all other places, the ancient buildings are considered as having been appropriated to religious purposes. But, from the accounts handed down respecting the nature of the autho rity exercised by the Egyptian priesthood, it is probable that even at Thebes the palace and temple were united. We shall therefore proceed to mention the principal di mensions and features of the most noted of these ancient buildings, and introduce such observations as, with the aid of the annexed Plates, will enable the reader to form a tolerably distinct idea of their mode of construction and appropriation.
TExTVRA, (see Plate CXLVIII.) which contained the most perfectly executed of the Egyptian temples, is situated upon the Lybian shore of the Nile, at the dis tance of about half a league from the river. The prin cipal temple was consecrated to Isis. The facade is 72 paces in breadth, 145 in depth, and 70 feet in height. A doorway, of elegant form and workmanship, conducts into a portico 60 paces by SO, supported by 24 columns, seven feet diameter, and 55 in height. This portico has zodiacs painted on the ceiling. The hall, which suc ceeds the portico, is 24 paces square. It is supported by six columns, whose capitals are each composed of four figures of the head of Isis with the ears of a cat (see Plate CL. Fig. 2.); the second hall is 24 paces by 10 ; the third is of the same dimensions. The apartment which succeeds the last ball is 24 paces by 6, and is insu lated by a space on each side of it ; this is probably the sanctuary. In the before mentioned second hall, there arc two staircases, which lead to the terrace or roof; the steps are each 20 inches broad, and 2 inches high; upon this terrace there is a small apartment 9 feet square, having a very full and perfect zodiac painted on the ceil ing. In one of the interior courts of the temple, there is a zodiac which occupies one half of the ceiling of the last mentioned hall, which seems entirely devoted to astronomy ; the zodiac is divided from another astrono mical picture by the figure of a woman. Behind this great temple is a small one, also consecrated to Isis ; it is about 17 paces square. To the right of the door of the great temple, is a periptere temple about 34 paces square, dedicated to Typhon : Fifty paces from the north door is another periptere temple, which appears never to have been finished.