Dr. Franklin’s kite.--Some sailors ascend Pompey’s Pillar
by means of a paper kite.--Removal of the obelisk from the
Island of Philoe.--It falls into the Nile.--Ingenious method
of raising it.--It is launched down the cataract.--Arrives in
safety in Rosetta.--Belzoni goes to Beban el Malook.--Completes
his drawings and models of the Tomb.--Bids final adieu to
Thebes.--Traverses the Western Desert in search of the Temple
of Jupiter Ammon.--Procures a donkey at Benisoeuf.--Reaches the
Lake Mœris.--Rose-trees in profusion.
“Mother!” exclaimed Bernard, running into the breakfast room where his
mother was seated, and throwing his straw hat on the sofa, “Do you know
what I have been thinking about?”
“Indeed, my dear,” said Mrs. A. “your employments are so various, and
your thoughts are generally dependent upon them, I suppose, that I
feel at a loss to imagine.”
“I have been thinking,” said he, “that when I am older I shall get Owen
or father to teach me how to swim, and that I shall fly my kite whilst
I am in the water, as Dr. Franklin did when he was a boy. How do you
approve of my plan?”
MRS. A.--I own that I think some little danger would be attached to
it, just at present however. Dr. Franklin was a native of Boston,
and was taught the practice of swimming when very young, so that he
was particularly expert and skilful in this as in almost every other
respect. But what led you to think of him now?
BERNARD.--Owen and I are just come from the park, where we have been
flying our new kite; and Owen has been telling me how much pleased
Dr. Franklin was with his new method of swimming. Do you remember it,
mother? He one day wished to amuse himself with his kite and to enjoy
at the same time the pleasure of swimming, so he got into the water,
and lying on his back, held the end of the string in his hands and went
along in such a delightful manner. I wish I had been Dr. Franklin! He
engaged a boy to carry his clothes round the pond, to a place which
he pointed out to him on the other side, whilst he in the mean time
crossed the pond with his kite flying high in the air. Was it not a
clever idea?
MRS. A.--He managed to do two things at once, certainly. But I do
not admire Dr. Franklin for his new mode of swimming only. He was
clever whilst a boy, and when grown up became a very useful character,
and rendered great services both to his own country and the world at
large: however, I would advise you not to attempt to imitate him in the
exploit that has pleased you so much, until you have acquired a little
of his experience.
I can, if you please, tell you of another achievement performed by
means of a kite.
You have perhaps heard of Pompey’s pillar. It is not far from
Alexandria, the place at which Belzoni landed when he went to Egypt,
and it is supposed that this column was erected to the memory of the
great Roman warrior. Pompey was killed as he was going to that country,
you know, soon after he had stepped into the little bark.
The column called Pompey’s Pillar is one hundred and ten feet high. It
has suffered little or no injury from time. It is of the Corinthian
order, which is at once simple and beautiful. Pompey was killed B.C.
48. The time of the erection of the pillar is scarcely known, but it
was named after him in the fifteenth century, when learning began to
revive from a torpid state in which it had long languished, and men of
science bestowed names on all the monuments.
The pedestal has been somewhat damaged by the instruments of
travellers, who are anxious to possess a relic of this antiquity; and
one of the volutes of the column was immaturely brought down a few
years ago by the ingenuity of some English captains. So I have heard;
however, I cannot vouch for the truth of my story farther than the
authority of Mr. Irwin, the traveller who relates it.
A strange fancy entered the thoughts of one of those seamen as they
were coasting about in the harbour of Alexandria, and the eccentricity
of the idea caused it to be immediately adopted, for its apparent
impossibility only made them the more anxious to put it into execution.
They ordered out the boat and with proper implements pushed ashore,
intending to drink a bowl of punch on the top of Pompey’s Pillar. They
arrived at the spot, and many contrivances were proposed to accomplish
the desired project.
But their labour was vain; and they began to despair of success, when
the genius who struck out the frolic happily suggested the means of
performing it.
A man was despatched to the city for a paper kite. The inhabitants
were by this time apprised of what was going forward, and flocked in
crowds to be witnesses of the address and boldness of the English. The
governor of Alexandria was told that some sailors were about to pull
down Pompey’s pillar; however, he politely left them to themselves,
saying that the English were too great patriots to injure the remains
of Pompey. The kite was brought, and the wind being in the right
direction, it flew so directly over the pillar that when it fell on the
other side the string lodged upon the capital.
[Illustration]
The chief obstacle was now overcome. A thick rope was tied to one end
of the string, and drawn over the column by the end to which the kite
was fixed. By this rope one of the sailors ascended to the top (sailors
are used to run up the shrouds, you know, and this was somewhat
similar;) in less than an hour a kind of rope ladder was constructed,
by which the whole company went up, amidst the shouts and claps of the
astonished multitude.
To the eye below, the capital of the pillar does not appear capable
of holding more than one man upon it; but our seamen found it could
contain no less than eight persons very conveniently.
No accident happened during their ascent to this giddy height for they
were sailors, and used to look down from the tall masts.
The only injury sustained by the pillar, was the loss of the volute
I mentioned before, which descended with a thundering sound, and was
brought to England by one of the captains. They reported that one
foot and an ankle of a statue were still remaining upon the monument,
probably of Pompey himself.
I cannot say that I am sure such a thing did really and actually
happen. I can only depend on what I have heard from others. But the
adventurers themselves have left a memento of the fact, by the initials
of their names painted in large black letters just beneath the capital.
BERNARD.--Well, it is a very amusing anecdote, mother! Kites are very
ingenious--as ingenious as the _somebody_ who thought of the plan.
Without kites, they could never have got to the top of Pompey’s pillar.
You know, mother, that Belzoni was at Alexandria. Did he see the pillar?
MRS. A.--I cannot tell, my dear; I do not recollect that he mentions
it: but he was at Alexandria more than once, for he took the obelisk
thither which he discovered in the island of Philoe.
EMILY.--Do, dear mother, tell us something about that obelisk: I was
quite interested to know what became of it. Belzoni left it in the
island of Philoe, on his return from Ybsambul, and gave the Aga four
dollars to pay a guard for it, till he could procure a boat to convey
it down the Nile.
OWEN.--The obelisk was lying among several blocks of stones; it was
made of granite, and was twenty-two feet long. Go on, if you please,
mother.
MRS. A.--I dare say you recollect that we left Belzoni at Gournou. He
did not remain there very long, but went up the Nile to Assouan.
The old town of Assouan stands on a hill which overhangs the river, and
is on the opposite side of the Nile to the first Cataract, and Philoe
is in the Nile between them.
Belzoni went to this island, to take a view of the bank where he had to
embark the obelisk. In a few days he set the men to work, and procured
a boat to put it in. The greatest difficulty seemed to be to persuade
the captain to have the boat launched down the Cataract, which it
necessarily must be, with the obelisk on board. However, the promise
of a handsome present procured an assurance that he would accomplish
the undertaking. He had some little trouble to procure a few sticks or
small poles from Assouan, as there is no wood in these places, except
what they procure from Cairo. He had also some difficulty in removing
the obelisk from its situation; but once put on its way, it soon came
to the water side.
Belzoni gave orders for a sort of temporary pier to be made of large
blocks of stone. When finished, no doubt arose of its being strong
enough for the weight it had to support. But, alas! when the obelisk
came gradually on from the sloping bank, and the heavy mass rested
on it, the pier, with the obelisk and some of the men, took a slow
movement, and, to Belzoni’s dismay, descended majestically into the
river.
[Illustration]
EMILY.--Now it is there, it is done for! But how much mortified poor
Belzoni must have been! Why did he not make himself sure that the pier
was quite secure?
MRS. A.--He had no reason to doubt but what it was. It is true he was
not present during its erection, because he was gone to examine a
passage in the Cataract, down which the boat would have to be launched;
and now it was too late. When he fixed his eyes upon the spot where the
pier set off into the Nile, he observed that the stones which were to
serve as a foundation on a sloping back, had been only laid on the
surface of it, so that it was almost impossible for the obelisk to do
otherwise than press it down into the river.
OWEN.--Well, it was a very unfortunate thing; and all these reflections
are now of no use! The obelisk from Philoe is there, and there it must
stay!
MRS. A.--Belzoni was not quite so full of despair as you are, Owen. He
was certainly extremely mortified at this unfortunate occurrence, and,
being only three yards off when it happened, he stood for some minutes
in confusion and astonishment. At length, the loss of such a piece
of antiquity, and the blame that would be attached to him by other
antiquaries, occurred to his recollection, and he resolved to try what
could be done. He generally succeeded in whatever he undertook; and
often proved the truth of our motto, “_Labour conquers all!_”
The obelisk was still peeping a little above the water. The labourers
were of various humours: some were sorry, not for the obelisk, which
was no loss to them, but for the loss of what they might have gained
in future operations, by passing it down the Cataract: others were
laughing, probably at the evident disappointment expressed in the
countenance of our friend. Some went one way, and some another; and he
remained alone, absorbed in thought, contemplating the little part that
projected out of the water, and meditating upon the possibility of once
more placing it upon the dry land.
He reflected, indeed, that he was as badly off as he had been with
Young Memnon, in being destitute of any instruments; and that the
palm-leaf ropes which he had with him were broken, and old, and of
little use. However, he soon made up his mind to have the obelisk taken
up at all events; and accordingly ordered the men to come the next
morning, and sent to Assouan to procure some new ropes for the purpose.
The labourers were excellent watermen, and could bear the water the
whole day without difficulty; so Belzoni had the advantage in this
respect. The following morning the work commenced. Several men entered
the river, and made a great heap of stones on the side of the obelisk
opposite to the shore, so as to form a bed for the levers to rest upon.
He then placed the levers under the obelisk, so that by their pressure
it was forced to turn round upon its axis, or, to be more particular,
one end of the long poles, called the levers, passed under the obelisk,
and a short distance from that end, they rested upon the rock of stones
which thus formed a fulcrum for the levers to turn upon; the men seated
themselves on the other extremity, and their weight caused the obelisk
to turn gently round and round, until it reached the dry ground.
Two ropes were also passed under it, and the men on shore pulled the
two ends of these ropes with all their might. At the side where the
levers were, some good divers were stationed, who were ready to put
large stones under the obelisk as it rose, that it might not return to
its former situation.
You can fancy how busy they all looked. The men at the ropes were
pulling with all their strength; those on the rocks were rising and
sitting, to make the levers act; and the divers were placing stone
after stone, whilst the obelisk was gradually rising and moving round
at each turn by its own weight. So they go on, until, to Belzoni’s
great joy, he beholds it once more on _terra firma_. Where it was in
the course of two days; but another difficulty awaits it before it
reaches Alexandria, and that is descending the Cataract.
It was yet to be embarked, and this time the operation was performed
by means of a bridge of palm-trees, thrown from across the boat to
the land under the obelisk, which was then turned on the bridge, and
placed on board; when in the centre of the boat the trees were moved
from under it; and no sooner was this done than the party set off with
the obelisk, to have it ready to be launched down the Cataract the next
morning.
It had to descend the greatest fall of water in the Cataract. When the
inundation is half high in the Nile, it is a column of water about
three hundred yards in length, which falls among rocks and stones
projecting in various directions. The boat was brought to the margin of
the cascade; a strong rope, or rather a small cable, was fastened to a
large tree, the end of which was passed through the beams of the boat,
so as to be slackened or stopped at pleasure. In the boat there were
only five men; and on the rocks on each side of the cascade a number
of others in various places, with ropes attached to the boat, so as
to put it either to one side or other, as it required, to prevent its
running against the stones; for you know if it had been touched ever so
slightly, with such a weight on board, and in such a rapid stream, the
boat would probably have been dashed to pieces.
[Illustration]
The rope Belzoni had got from Assouan was only sufficient to check its
course, and when the boat was moving so rapidly, any attempt to _stop_
its progress would have made the water run in and sink it in a moment.
Under these circumstances, all depended upon the dexterity of the
men who were posted in various parts to pull or slacken as necessity
required. Belzoni did not fail to use all the persuasion possible, and
the wild people, as he calls them, were upon this occasion as careful
as so many pilots.
The Reis, or owner of the boat, was in great distress, thinking it
would certainly be lost. He had engaged his vessel merely because it
happened that his trade failed; but when he saw the danger it was in,
he cried like a child, and begged Belzoni would relinquish his project
and return his boat to him in safety.
Tears were certainly useless and not very manly, but we must remember
that his livelihood, poor fellow, depended on his boat. When he saw
it on the point of being launched, he threw himself with his face to
the ground, and did not rise till it was out of danger. When all was
ready, Belzoni gave the signal to slacken the cable.
The boat moved forwards with great rapidity. The men on land slackened
the rope, and it continued its course till it reached the end of the
Cataract.
The poor Reis was delighted; he did not lie on the ground any longer,
but went full of joy to congratulate himself and Belzoni. The workmen
altogether seemed pleased at the good success of the attempt, even
independently of the interest they might derive from it. This was
gratifying to our antiquary, for it is not very often that such
feelings enter the bosoms of the Arabs.
Having only two or three places of little danger to pass, they arrived
safely at Assouan on the same day. Belzoni immediately prepared to
depart from thence to Thebes; he quitted the boat, travelled by land,
and took up his old residence at the tombs in Beban el Malook.
The obelisk proceeded to Luxor, and from thence to Rosetta, where it
remained some time.
Belzoni had written to Mrs. Belzoni, to tell her that he could not go
into Syria, and she had in consequence returned from Jerusalem, and now
waited to welcome his arrival in the valley.
I once told you, as you perhaps recollect, that the entrance into the
newly-discovered tomb was situated under a small torrent of water,
which, when it rains, runs into it. This is not often the case in
Egypt, but it so happened that whilst Belzoni was absent up the Nile
it did rain, and consequently the water ran into the tomb, carrying
with it a great deal of mud, and damaging some of the figures. However,
this disaster could not be remedied. Belzoni completed his models and
drawings, and with some difficulty removed the great sarcophagus and
put it into a strong case. The place it had to pass to reach the Nile
was rather uneven for more than two miles, but it was conveyed on
rollers, and put safely on board. Under this sarcophagus there was a
staircase communicating with a subterraneous passage leading downwards,
three hundred feet in length; at the end of which a quantity of rubbish
had fallen in and choked up the passage. Belzoni conjectured that this
formed another entrance to the tomb, though it must have been closed
after the sarcophagus was placed there, as there was a wall built just
under the sarcophagus, and large blocks of stone were placed on a level
with the floor which completely cut off all communication between the
chamber and the subterraneous passage.
Our traveller was now about to bid a final adieu to Thebes. Before he
embarked he retraced the scenes which had yielded him so much delight;
he paid a melancholy visit to the magnificent remains of ancient
grandeur; gazed for the last time upon the temples and columns which
have triumphed over the corroding influence of the universal ravager;
and beheld the valley, the place in which his labours had been crowned
with so much success, with painful feelings and mingled emotions
of pleasure and regret. He left the spot so long known, and so long
endeared to him, in January 1819, and arrived in Cairo the following
month. At this place they stopped only a few days, and continued
their voyage to Rosetta, where, taking the obelisk with them, they
re-embarked on board a djerm, and arrived in the course of a short time
at Alexandria, whence they intended to take passage for Europe.
They did not quit Alexandria immediately, and if you please we may yet
accompany our friend in another journey that he took to visit a temple
in the western Desert: we have not yet been on that side of the Nile.
The temple of Jupiter Ammon had been an object of search for a long
time, and by more than one traveller, but the true spot where it
existed had not yet been fixed upon, and to discover this, as well as
to visit some pyramids, and search for the famous Labyrinth, presented
grand attractions to Belzoni.
Jupiter Ammon was one of the gods in the Egyptian Mythology. He was
worshipped under the figure of a ram, and this temple was dedicated to
him.
Having left Mrs. Belzoni in Rosetta, our traveller took a small boat
and proceeded to Benisoeuf, where he arrived in nine days. You will
find this place on the map a long way south of Cairo.
Belzoni was accompanied by a servant and a Moorish Hajji, which is a
title given to those Mohamedans who have made the pilgrimage to Mecca.
This one was just returned from Mecca and begged to be allowed to join
him. At Benisoeuf they procured donkeys to take them as far as the Lake
Mœris. They set off on the same day, and directed their course through
a large plain of cultivated land, of corn and other products of the
country. This plain was all under water at the time of the inundation,
excepting the scattered villages which appeared like little islands as
I have before described. A few miles from the Nile the mountains on the
west are but low. They open and form a valley into a province called
the Paioum; and it was at this entrance our party arrived on the first
night of their journey.
They took their station under some date trees near a canal that passes
through the valley about two miles from the first pyramid. Here, after
a little repast Belzoni went to sleep on his usual bed, a mattress thin
enough to serve as a saddle when folded up, but forming, when laid on
the soft ground, as comfortable a bed as he could desire. The servant,
the Hajji, and the donkey drivers kept watch in their turn, and this
plan was pursued during the whole of the journey.
The next morning Belzoni again set off, and soon arrived at the
pyramid. He found it was composed of burnt bricks, and about sixty
feet in height, affording a fine prospect from the top. Our party then
continued along the hills till they were opposite another pyramid of
about the same size, surrounded by smaller tombs, and the remains of
a magnificent Egyptian temple. The whole country was very fertile, and
interspersed with plantations of fruit trees and roses.
This place is celebrated for the making of rose-water, which is sold
in Cairo, and all over the country, for the use of the great people,
who continually keep their apartments sprinkled with it, and present it
also to any stranger who visits them.
You remember that when we were talking of the customs of the Egyptians,
I told you that a slave generally carries a silver plate in which
essences are burning to perfume the beard and sprinkle the visiters
with them. For this purpose they use rose-water procured from the roses
that grow in the valley around the Faioum.
Next morning a soldier joined the party as guide, and they advanced
towards the lake Mœris, but arrived only at Senures that night, a
village ten miles from it.
EMILY.--How very convenient maps are, mother; I can trace their route
so well. Here is Benisoeuf on the Nile, where they hired the donkeys;
and here is the chain of mountains, and a space left for the entrance
between them into the Faioum: they have only just to cross this
province to reach Birket Keroum, as the lake is called on the map; the
pyramids themselves are marked, and I believe I know the very spot
where the rose-trees grow, and the roses blow, but not to
“_Waste_ their sweetness on the desert air.”