A pilgrimage to the temples and tombs of Egypt, Nubia, and ...

IBIS MUMMIES. 309
on the spot, to satisfy my curiosity ; tlie other
I shall preserve untouched. Tliey are enclosed
in earthen vessels, exactly like a chimney-pot,
the aperture of which is sealed up with a strong-
cement; and the embalmed bird is rolled up in
innumerable bandages of linen, strongly impreg-
nated with bituminous preparation. Although,
upon taking off these cerecloths, I found some
of the larger feathers and all of the bones of the
Ibis entire, the moment the air reached them
they crumbled into dust. No traces of sacred
writing, or of any other emblem, did we discover
in this mummy.
The Pyramids of Sakkara lose very much upon
being approached ; their size is by no means
overwhelming, and they are built in layers of
masonry of very rough construction, and bear
no trace of ever having had a smooth outward
casing. One of them is in so degraded a con-
dition, that it would be difficult to decide
whether it were a construction or a natural
mound of stones. It looks like one of those
primeval graves upon which every passer-by
religiously casts a protecting stone, until the grey
cairn swells into a lofty pile. And may not
those rude cairns have first suggested the idea
of the Pyramids? I should say that those of
VOL. I.
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