Page:The Building News and Engineering Journal, Volume 22, 1872.djvu/498

 476 THE BUILDING NEWS. June 14, 1872. —_—_—_—_—_—_—_——_-_’“?“ wOO®@_C 06—0—0>—>—>—>—"F00eFuo>oqj»>>q>..SS—S—SS——S—___L_——_—_—_———— Lloyd concluded his remarks by expressing his regret that Mr. Wood was not himself present to explain the fragments to the visitors. But it was expected that Mr. Wood would be in England in a day or two, and then more would be known. Mr. WArernouss, on behalf of himself and the visitors generally,expressed his thanks to Mr. Newton and Mr. Lloyd for the interesting remarks they had made, and he hoped that the Institute of Architects would do something towards furthering the work in which Mr. Wood, Mr. Newton, and Mr. Lloyd were engaged. One of the most interesting points to be settled was that bearing on the decoration of the columns with sculpture, as pointed out by Mr. Newton. (Applause.) Mr. Newron said he had to thank the visitors for the kind way in which they had received the remarks which he had made. He only regretted that Mr. Wood himself was not present, although he was ex- pected the next day (Wednesday). The further continuance of these excavations was not a certainty ; it depended very much upon the expression of public opinion on the matter: he meant a cultivated and enlightened public opinion, not the mere chatterings of the press. He believed thut if proper representa- tions were made respecting the matter to the Govern- ment by such a body as the Royal Institute of British Architects, they would be favourably received, and he thought the Government would help in the matter. The work was one which would eminently justify further expenditure. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Luoyp, in thanking the visitors for the kind way in which his remarks had been received, urged still further what Mr. Newton had said. It was greatly to be desired that a cultivated public opinion should be brought to bear upon the Government, and that as soon as possible. The exquisite beauty of the work, and the great historical interest attaching to it, made the subject one of special importance, and as the work had been so well begun it ought to be carried on, The further Mr. Wood had proceeded in his excavations the more strongly was exempli- fied the importance of the architects of England giving their valuable aid in the matter. (Hear, hear.) He trusted that the Institute would take some active teps in its official capacity to enable the work to be carried on. (Applause ) Mr. Arrnur Cates thought they ought not to separate without taking some steps to give practical effect to the suggestions which had been thrown out by Mr. Newton and Mr. Lloyd. As Mr. Water- house was present, he would suggest that that gen- tleman should be asked, as a member of the Council, to take the earliest opportunity of bringing the matter before the Council of the Institute, and to represent to the Council the extreme importance of the matter. The advanced stage of the discoveries, and the very great historical interest of the build- ing, were points which he was certain would deter- mine the Council to take the matter up in earnest. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Warernouse said that he would gladly comply with the request, and as another member of the Council, Mr. St. Aubyn, was also present, he would no doubt give his assistance in the matter. The Council of the Institute had already taken up the question of the preservation of the ruins of Baalbec, and he saw no reason why they should not take up with equal energy the recovery of the ruins of the Temple of Diana at Ephesus. (Hear, hear.) Mr. Cares urged that whatever was done should be done promptly, as Government was slow to move in these matters. EGYPTIAN AND ASSYRIAN ANTIQUITIES. Mr. Samvet Biren, LL.D., Keeper of the Egyp- tian and Assyrian antiquities of the Museum, next conducted the visitors over the departments under his care. Beginning with the Egyptian antiquities, one of the earliest objects noticed was a small sphinx, which was found near the paws of the great Sphinx. This was of great antiquity, belonging, in all probability, to the fourth dynasty. A colossal foot, supposed to be the foot of a statue of the god Serapis, and dis- covered by Caviglia, was next examined. The cele- brated Rosetta Stone, which, Dr. Birch said, had afforded a key for reading the papyri and inscrip- tions of the Egyptians, was a subject of much interest. The middle portion of the writing or engraving on the stone was in the Domitic characters, but the upper and lower portions were in the Coptic lettering. The date of this stone was 198 w.c. Another and more perfect stone than the Rosetta Stone was that known as the Tablet of San, or the Decree of Canopus, which belonged to the Ptolemaic period. A plaster cast of this stone was examined, the original being in one of the Continental museums. A couple of inter- columnar slabs, introduced between the pillars of the temples to exclude the people, were pointed out. The holes in the face of one of them were supposed to be for the purpose of facilitating the removal of the slab. A large sarcophagus found at Alexandria, and known as the sarcophagus of Nekhtherhebi or Nectanebus, was next pointed ont. Inside this were formerly other smaller sarcophagi. The material of which it was made was a sort of béeton agglomere, moulded into shape. On the surface was a long and elaborate countersunk inscription, describing the passage of the sun through the hours of the night. Dr. Birch explained that the Egyptians believed that during the night the sun passed through Hades, attended by his satellites. Parts of the inscription read quite like passages in Dante’s “Inferno,” The Egyptian mythology was a solar mythology. An interesting conversation here took place on the sub- ject of the Egyptian mythology, some members of the party broaching theories of their own as to the development of some of its phases. The question also was raised as to the relative antiquity of the Egyptian temples and those of the Buddhists in India, Dr. Birch saying that the monumental remainsof Egypt were of far greater antiquity than those of India. He knew of no monumental remains in India dating further back than the time of Alexander the Great, though the literary remains of that country were of course a very great deal older. Coming to the obelisk of Nectanebes, Dr. Birch remarked that in every instance the Egyptian obelisks were inscribed as having been capped; in what manner this was done it was not easy to form an opinion: probably the capping consisted of nothing more than a thin plate of gold laid on the top. What the column was to the Romans for triumphal purposes the obelisk was to the Egyptians. The earliest obelisks were small, and were found in tombs of the time of Cheops, but no large obelisk was found of earlier date than the twelfth dynasty. Obelisks were used for sepulchral purposes at first, and afterwards for votive purposes. Dr. Birch pointed out on some of the obelisks and other works how the name of the god Ammon had been obliterated on the rising of the heresy of the dise-worshippers, and how, in many cases, it had been restored when the heresy died out. Next were noticed the sarcophagus of Hapimen, and the sarcophagus of Ankhsenpiraneferhat, the latter a very fine work in black limestone, and very beauti- fully and elaborately inscribed. In noticing some of the Egyptian sculpture, Dr. Birch pointed out its architectonic character, and its suitability for so monumental a style of architecture as that with which it was associated. Attention was directed to a sitting caryatide, one of a series which carried the cornice of a colonnade. A monster scarabieus, found at Constantinople, was next examined, Dr, Birch explaining that with the Egyptians the scarabeus typified the creative principle. The statue of Seti Menephtah II. was pointed out as exhibiting a marked advance in art. Until the time of the Plotemies Egyptian art never emancipated itself from its trammels, except in private life, although at the time of the fourth dynasty portraiture in sculpture was far more satisfactory in character than it was at a later period. The large statues of Rameses IT. and of a queen (probably wife of Rameses II.) were next examined. Dr. Birch next conducted the party to the colossal statue of Sesostris, which he said was the largest monument in Europe, and must have been, when complete, 30ft. or 40ft. high. When complete, it probably had a sitting posture. This statue is supposed to have been the one placed before the Temple of Ptah at Memphis. Two lions, sculp- tured under Memnon, attracted much attention. They were sculptured under Memnon, and Dr. Birch considered them the finest lions to be found in Egyptian art. They were conven- tionally treated. Special attention was directed to the capitals of some columns found at Tel-el- Yahoudeh. They were of rough limestone, with small pieces of coloured glass and tile inserted into them in such a way as to form an enriched band of ornamentation. A competent writer had given it as his opinion that these caps were executed by the Jews while in captivity in Egypt, and that they were copies of similar details in the Second Temple at Jerusalem. In answer to a question, Dr. Birch said he believed there was no connection between Egyptian and Mexican antiquities. The attention of the visitors was directed to a colossal bust of Thothmes III., the great builder of Karnak, and who built what was known as the granite sanctuary. A small column from an Egyptian temple, quite per- fect, was examined, its construction being based upon the form of the papyrus stem and buds. A statue of Betmes, dating from the fourth dynasty, was pointed out as showing the difference in the character of the features depicted. In that dynasty the features of the people were represented as broad and Buropean-like in their general contour, whereas in the works of the nineteenth dynasty the features were markedly Asiatic in type. An erect statue found in a tomb near the Pyramids by Caviglia attracted much attention, the general opinion of the visitors being that it showed a very great advance in art power, although its date was so early (fourth dynasty). The firm and erect attitude of the figure was rendered more striking by one foot being advanced and planted firmly on the ground. The visitors having inspected the cast of a head of a seated colossus of Rameses II., from the rock temple of Ibsambul, proceeded upstairs, where con- siderable time was devoted to the inspection of a large number of fragments of enamelled tiles and glass inlay ornament from Tel-el-Yahondeh. The examination of these fragments showed that the Egyptians were quite as well versed in the art of producing such work as ourselyes or any modern people. The manipulation was masterly, and the colours excellent. Having inspected one or two papyri of great interest and value, the company devoted a few minutes to walking through the rooms occupied by the Assyrian collections. Amongst the objects attracting the greatest amount of attention were thesculptured bas-relief wall decorations, show- ing the triumphs of Asshur-bani-pal over the Susians, and representing the construction of the Temple of Sennacherib. The visitors having spent rather more than three hours in the Museum, were now compelled to take leave of Dr. Birch, as they had to attend a meeting of the Conference at Con- duit-street. Before separating, however, Mr. Arruur Cares, on behalf of himself and the rest of the visitors, thanked Dr, Birch for his courtesy and kindness in devoting so much time to accompanying the members over the extremely interesting and valuable collections under his charge. (Hear, hear.) Dr. Birch’s explanations and remarks had beer so lucid and interesting that he only regretted that, there was not a larger attendance, although had the visitors been more numerous they would perhaps have been in each other’s way and would not have been able to hear all that Dr. Birch had said. The information which Dr. Birch had given them that day might serve as a basis on which to build up a further acquaintance with the remark- able works and history of the Egyptian people. He (Mr. Cates) had no doubt that on some future occa- sion Dr. Birch would be kind enough to repeat the courtesy he had shown that day, and accompany them over the collections again. (Applause.) Dr. Biren, in acknowledging the compliment, said that on any future occasion he should be only too glad to be of service to any of the gentlemen present. While the institution within whose walls they were then assembled was essentially one for the public in general, it was of the greatest importance that such special classes of the community as architects should have special facilities for studying its collections, and anything he could do in giving them such faci- lities would at all times be done willingly, for he should be glad to see increased zeal and interest evinced in the study of art history. (Applause.) The visitors then left the museum. AFTERNOON MEETING.—PROFESSIONAL PRACTICE. The Section of Professional Practice met on Tuesday afternoon, the President, Mr. T. H. Wyatt, in the chair, and the whole time of the meeting, which lasted from 1.30 till 5, and was numerously attended, was occupied by a discussion of a very practical and rather conversational character on certain proposed modifications in the Statement of Professional Practice and Charges of Architects, which was drawn up and issued by the Institute. These modifications were proposed by a Committee appointed at the meeting of the Conference last year, with the view to make the document as perfect a representation of the present practice of the profes- sion as possible. The President, in opening the meet- ing, read a written communication from Mr. C. F. Hayward, objecting to any modification. Mr. God- win supported the views of Mr. Hayward, and Pro- fessor Hayter Lewis, who had been chairman of the above-named committee, then explained that some modifications were found necessary in order to meet peculiarities of country practice, and that it had been at first intended to make these in the form of footnotes ; but the decided opinion of the solicitor to the Institute had been given against such a step; and hence the Committee decided to propose a re- vision of the whole. It was then decided to go through the document clause by clause, leaving the question of immediate adoption or postponement for a year to be dealt with at the close of the dis- cussion, The modifications suggested were neither nume- rous nor sweeping ; they were very carefully scruti- nised one by one, and in but few instances put to