Page:History of Architecture in All Countries Vol 1.djvu/154

 122 EGYPTI.VN ARCHITECTURE. Part I. 1^ founder, one of Avhich, Avhen broken, became in Greek, or rather Roman times, the vocal Menmon, whose plaintive wail to the rising sun, over its own and its country's desolation, forms so prominent an incident in the Roman accounts of Thebes.i Not far from this stands the great temple known as that of Medinet-Habou, built by the hrst king of the 19th dynasty. Its dimensions are only slightly inferior to those of the Rhamession, being 520 ft. from front to rear, and its pro- pylon 107 ft. wide. Its two great courts are, however, inferior in size to those of that build- ins. The inner one is adorned by a series of Caryatide figures (Woodcut No. 24),which are inferior both in conception and execution to those of the ])revious reigns; and indeed throughout the whole building there is an absence of style, and an exaggeration of de- tail, which shows only too clearly that the great age was passing away Avhen it was erected. The roof of its hypostyle hall, and of the chambers beyond it, is occupied by an Arab village, which would require to be cleared away before it could be excavated ; much as tins might be desired, the details of its courts would not lead us to expect anything eitlier very beautiful or new from its disinterment. Further down the river, as already mentioned, stood another temple, that of Gournou, built by the same Manephthah who erected the great hall of Karnac. It is, however, only a frag- ment of what may be called the residential part of a temple. The hypostyle hall never was erected, and only the foundations of two successive pylons can be traced in front of it. In its present condition, therefore, it is one of the least interesting of the temjjles of Thebes, though elsewhere it woulil no doubt be reofarded with wonder. Another building of this age, attached to the southern side of the great temple of Karnac, deserves especial at- tention as being a perfectly regular building, erected at one tune, and 25. South Temple of Karnac. Scale lOU ft. to 1 in. 26. Section on A B of above. Scale 50 ft. to 1 in. 1 Tacitus, Ann. II. CO.