Page:A History of Art in Ancient Egypt Vol 2.djvu/426

 390 A History of Art in Ancient Egypt. silver. Incrustations in enamel or (loXowx^A pietra dura relieve the monotony of the metal surface. Some of these pieces seem to have been very large. Their decoration and design is rich and complex. Flowers and half-opened buds, lions' heads, masks of Bes and of negroes, birds, sphinxes, etc., are introduced. We may presume that such objects were made for presentation to the gods and preservation in treasure-houses ; few of them could have been put to any practical use. The great men of Egypt followed the example of Pharaoh in enriching the temples. The stele of Neb-oua, chief prophet of Osiris in the reign of Thothmes III., runs thus : " I have consecrated numerous gifts in the temple of my father' Osiris ; in silver, in gold, in lapis-lazuli, in copper, and in all kinds of precious stones." ^ § 4. Woodwork. The Egyptians made great use of wood. Under the Ancient Empire it furnished the material for all their lighter constructions, to which, by the help of colour, great variety and cheerfulness was imparted. Even in those early ages the cabinet-maker or joiner endeavoured to make his work artistic. Various articles of furniture had their feet carved into the shape of lions' paws, or the hoofs of oxen.^ To judge from certain stone objects preserved in the mastabas, wood, which was comparatively easy to work, must have afforded the material for those skilfully-made and complex pieces of furniture whose forms are preserved for us by paintings from the Theban epoch. ^ In these pictures the labours of the carpenter (Fig. 324), and those of the cabinet-maker (Pig. 325) are often represented. The specimens of furniture in our modern museums are mostly of a commonplace character, but they are interesting from the light they throw upon the methods of the Egyptian joiners (Fig. 326). The richness and elaboration of Egyptian furniture under the great ^ Mariette, Notice du Alusee, No. 93. ^ Lepsius, Denkmcekr, part ii. plates 36 and 90. •' Among such objects is a table for libations, which was found in a tomb at Sakkarah. It is supported by two lions, whose pendent tails are twisted round a vase. Mariette, Notice du Aiusee, No. 93.