Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/465

 NILE 451 a few scattering date palms, which are the prin- cipal dependence of the Nubians. The rise of the Nile during the annual inundation is in some parts of this region as much as 30 ft., but the height of the banks is such that the adja- cent land derives but little benefit from the overflow. When the river is low the fields are irrigated by water wheels of clumsy construc- tion. At the boundary between Nubia and Egypt is the island of Philas, where the Nile is 3,000 ft. broad. The island is about a quarter of a mile long, and is covered with picturesque ruins of temples, almost entirely of the times of the Ptolemies and of the Roman emperors. Immediately below Philae is the first cataract, the last in descending the river, which extends to Asswan, and to the island of Elephantine The ridge of granite by which they are formed crosses the river and extends into the desert on either side. The rocks are much more rugged than those of the second cataract, and rise to the height of 40 ft. There are three principal falls ; at the steepest, which is about 30 ft. wide, the descent is about 12 ft. in 100. The entire descent in a space of 5 m. is 80 ft., and the whole constitutes a series of rapids rather than falls, the highest single fall not exceeding 6 ft. The channel has been widened, and may be passed by boats at all seasons. From the quarries on the banks were derived the colossal statues, obelisks, and monoliths which are found throughout Egypt. The isl- and of Elephantine", in lat. 24 5', just oppo- site Syene, is fertile and covered with verdure. From Asswan to the Mediterranean, a distance of 700 m., the Nile runs down a gentle decliv- ity of about 300 ft. The valley through which it flows till it reaches the apex of the delta varies in breadth, with an average of V m., the greatest width being llm. A short dis- tance below Asswan begins a district of sand- stone, which extends nearly to lat. 25. This part of the valley is narrow and barren. Near lat. 25 is Edfoo, the ancient Apollinopolis Magna, which stands on the left bank, and contains two famous temples built by the Ptol- emies, the largest of which is the best pre- served of all the edifices of the kind in Egypt. AtEsne, the ancient Latopolis, on the left hank, 30 m. N. W., the valley of the river expands to the width of nearly 5 m. Here are the remains of a magnificent temple built by the Roman emperors. Still lower down the rocks of Je- belain or the "two mountains" approach so near each other on opposite sides, that the riv- er occupies nearly the whole valley. Here the sandstone disappears, and is succeeded by limestone hills, which border the river till it reaches the delta. There is from this pokit a wider interval of fertile land, especially on the W. side. Fifty miles below Edfoo, in lat. 25 38', stand the magnificent ruins of Thebes, the ancient capital of Upper Egypt. Here the river is 1J m. wide, and is divided by islands. On the right bank are the modern vil- lages of Luxor and Karnak, on the left Medi- net Abu and Goorna. From Thebes the trav- eller descending the river passes numerous ruins, at Medamot, at Koos or Apollinopolis Parva, and at Coptos on the right bank ; and on the left bank, 38 m. below Thebes, reaches Denderah, the ancient Tentyra, where are seen the majestic remains of the temple dedicated to Athor or Aphrodite, or, as some believe, to Isis, one of the most impressive of Egyptian monuments. Not far below this the river bends W., and at How or Diospolis Parva on the left bank begins the canal or ancient branch of the Nile, called the Bahr Yusuf or river of Joseph, which flows between the river and the Libyan hills to the entrance of the Fayoom. Not far distant is Abydos or This, one of the most ancient cities of Egypt, the birthplace of Menes, the first of the Pharaohs. Beyond this are Chemmis or Panopolis on the E. bank ; Si- oot, the ancient Lycopolis, on the W. bank ; and a little lower down, on both banks, the grottoes of Manfaloot, the sepulchres of embalmed dogs, cats, and crocodiles. Still lower are the ruins of Hermopolis Magna oil the W. side, and on the E. side the remains of Antlnoe, built by Hadrian in the Roman style. North of Anti- noe, on the E. bank, are the famous grottoes of Beni-Hassan, about 30 in number, excavated by the kings of the 12th dynasty, containing paintings of scenes in the civil and domestic life of the ancient Egyptians, from which mod- ern Egyptologists have derived most of the existing knowledge of the manners and cus- toms of that people. From this point the course of the river presents no remarkable feature till it reaches Beni-Sooef in lat. 29 9', where the Libyan chain of hills begins to retire from the river, bends N. W., and again returning toward the river encloses the prov- ince of Fayoom, in which were the lake of Mceris, the labyrinth, and the city of Crocodi- lopolis. The next objects of interest in de- scending the stream are the pyramids of Da- shoor and Sakkara, and finally the great pyra- mids of Gizeh, the royal sepulchres of ancient Memphis. The site of this ancient city is marked by the mounds of Mitrahenny. A few miles lower down, on the E. bank, is Boolak, the port of Cairo, which was originally on an island. A little above Cairo the double chain of hills between which the Nile has so long flowed terminates, those on the E. side turning off toward the head of the Red sea, and those on the opposite side returning toward the northwest. From this point the Nile expands, and its current slackens, and soon begins to flow sluggishly in separate branches, though at Rosetta, only 6 m. from the sea, the water is perfectly fresh except after long prevalence of northerly winds. Twelve miles below Cairo is the apex of the delta, the point of separation, which in ancient times was 6 or 7 m. higher up. Thence the delta extends 90 in. seaward, a broad and perfectly level alluvial plain, without a hill, rock, or natural elevation of any kind. Anciently the Nile traversed the delta by seven