magnificence of which poets and historians have alike been eager to describe. Citations from the ancients, who faw this city, will give you, Sir, an idea of what it formerly was; and an exact account of the monuments, still in being, will enable you to judge what degree of credit thofe recitals deferve. The dotted line in the map, paffing by Carnac, Luxor, Medinet-Abou, and Gournou, will indicate what the extent was of this once famous city. "The great Diofpolis," fays Diodorus Siculus (q), "which the Greeks have nam"ed Thebes, was fix leagues in circumfe rence. Bufiris, who founded it, adorned "it with magnificent edifices and prefents. "The fame of its power and wealth, cele"brated by Homer, has filled the world. "Its gates, and the numerous veftibules of "its temples, occafioned this poet to give "it the name of Hecatompylis. Never was there city that received fo many offerings, "in filver, gold, ivory, coloffal ftatucs " and obelisks, each cut from a single ftone. Four principal temples are especially ad (9) Lib. I. VOL. II. D "mired "mired there, the most ancient of which 66 was surprisingly grand and sumptuous. It "was thirteen ftadia in circumference (r), "and furrounded by walls, twenty-four feet in thickness, and forty-five cubits high. The "riches and workmanship of its ornaments "were correfpondent to the majesty of the "building, which many kings contributed "to embellish. The temple ftill is standing, but it was ftripped of its filver, gold, ivory, and precious ftones, when, Cambyfes fet fire to all the temples of Egypt." I have only quoted the principal facts which that hiftorian writes concerning the flourishing ftate of Thebes, they being fufficient to convey an idea of its beauty; what I fhall cite from Strabo will give a picture of its decline, fuch as it was eighteen centuries ago. "Thebes, or Diofpolis, prefents only re"mains of its former grandeur, dispers"ed over a space eighty ftadia in length. (r) Diodorus Siculus includes the fphinx-avenues, and the porticos, edifices, and courts which are built round the temple, properly fo called; and we fhall find he was very near the truth. "Here "Here are found a great number of tem ples, in part deftroyed by Cambyfes its "inhabitants have retired to fmall towns, "eaft of the Nile, where the prefent city is "built; and to the western fhore, near Memnonium (s), at which place we ad"mire two 'coloffal ftone figures, ftanding on each fide; the one entire, the other in "C part thrown down, it has been faid, by an earthquake (t). There is a popular opi"nion that the remaining part of this ftatue, towards the bafe, utters a found once a day. Curiofity leading me to ex"amine the fact, I went thither with Ælius "Gallus, who was accompanied by his numerous friends, and an escort of foldiers. "I heard a found, about fix o'clock in the morning, but dare not affirm whether it proceeded from the bafe, from the coloffus, or had been produced by fome perfon prefent; for one is rather inclined to fuppofe << a thousand different caufes, than that it (s) Strabo calls the temple, near which was the ftatue of Memnon, Memnonium. (t) Strabo is the only ancient writer who attributes the fall of this coloffus to an earthquake; the reft all fay it was thrown down by order of Cambyfes. "fhould be the effect of a certain affemblage "of ftones. Beyond Beyond Memnonium are the "tombs of the Kings, hewn out of the "rock. There are about forty, made after "a marvellous manner, and worthy the at"tention of travellers: near them are obe lisks, bearing various infcriptions, de fcriptive of the wealth, power, and exten"five empire, of thofe fovereigns, who reign"ed over Scythia, Bactriana, India, and what " is now called Ionia. They alfo recount the "various tributes thofe kings had exacted, "and the number of their troops, which "amounted to a million of men." Before I tell you, Sir, how many of the monuments, defcribed by thefe hiftorians, ftill exift, it is neceffary to inform you of the diftribution of the ornaments, veftibules, courts, and edifices of the Egyptian temples, left we fhould lofe ourselves amidst their ruins. "In front of each of the temples of Egypt "is a paved avenue, a hundred feet wide, and "three or four hundred in length. Two rows "of fphinxes, twenty cubits or more diftant "from each other, adorned the fides of thefe 66 avenues, at the end of which porticos were "built, "built, but not in any fixed number. These porticos lead to a magnificent open space, "which fronts the temple. Beyond is the "fanctuary, which is fmaller, and in which no human figures are ever fculptured, and very feldom thofe of animals. Walls, "of an equal height with the temple, form "the fides of this open fpace. These walls "run in diverging lines, and are wideft at "the end farthest from the temple by fifty "or fixty cubits. They abound in fculptured figures, after the manner of the ancient "Greek and Etrufcan works. There is ufual ly a fpacious edifice, fupported by a prodigious number of columns, beside these temples (u)." Having nothing to confult but monuments mutilated, by men or by time, I hope the above defcription will fupply the imperfection of mine. Thus guided, let us advance to the fouth of Carnak, where we find the remains of one of the four principal temples mentioned by Diodorus Siculus. Here are eight entrances, three of which have each a Sphinx, of enormous fize, standing in front; with two coloffal ftatues, on each fide the fphinx, which are each cut (u) Strabo, lib. 17. from |