Part 22

_March 29th._ We ascended the mountain which interrupts the road along the shore. On its summit I saw fragments of very small Egyptian columns and capitals, lying near some Arab structures. I observed no ancient edifice near them. The rock on the southern side of the mountain is granite and feldspath; on the northern side, it is sand-stone. At the end of two hours we again reached the banks of the river, at the village of Tafa, close to the spot where the rock projects perpendicularly into the water. Here are the ruins of two small temples: one of them consists of an apartment ten paces square, the roof and one side of which are in ruins; two columns are yet standing in it, two feet in diameter, with the palm-leaf capitals. Adjoining this apartment was [Illustration] the adytum, the foundations of which only remain. The winged globe is over the entrance into the adytum; but I saw no other sculptures, nor any hieroglyphics. The Greeks, as usual, have painted their saints upon the walls; and a Greek almanac, and several badly written inscriptions, are also visible upon them. The other temple is a [Illustration] small square apartment, quite entire, with six pillars in it, similar, in size and shape, to those just mentioned. The winged globe over the gates is the only sculpture of any kind about it. Around these two buildings are numerous remains of the private dwellings of the ancient inhabitants, consisting of thick and strongly built walls of stone; this material, from its greater proximity, having been frequently used in Nubia instead of bricks.

The peasants of Tafa (no doubt the ancient _Taphis_) relate that they are the descendants of the few Christian inhabitants of the city, who embraced the Mahommedan faith, when the country was conquered by the followers of the Prophet; the greater part of their brethren having either fled, or been put to death on that event taking place. They are still called Oulad el Nusara (اولاد النصَارَي); or the Christian progeny. On the east bank are some ancient remains, on the site of _Contra Taphis_.

From Tafa northwards, as far as Dehmyt, the shore bears the name of Wady el Mebarakat (وادي المباركات).The Arabs Mebarakat are a tribe of Kenous. The uncultivated fields here are overgrown with Senna-mekke. At three hours we passed Hindau; four hours, Kardassy, where, close to the water, is a large stone inclosure, about one hundred and thirty paces in length, by one hundred in breadth; in its area are heaps of ruined dwellings built of stone. The entrance into this inclosure is by a large gateway, similar in shape to that in the front of the temple near Merowau.[58] The walls are about ten feet in thickness, and are faced on either side with hewn stones, having the centre filled up by small ones thrown in confusedly, without cement; these walls were certainly intended for defence; it was, perhaps, a station of the Romans, against the Blemmyes. I searched in vain for remains of hieroglyphics or sculptures. About a mile farther down the river, upon the top of a hill, are the ruins of a temple, resembling in its construction that of the hawk-headed Osiris at Philæ. There remains no part but the portico; [Illustration] it consisted originally of eight columns, of which six are still standing; these are partly united with each other by a wall, rising to half their height, and inclosing the whole of them. Of the stones which formed the roof, one block only remains; it is at least sixteen feet in length, and reaches the whole breadth of the temple. Over four of the columns the architraves still remain; the capitals of the two others are formed by four faces of Isis, with the same head-dress as at Tintyra, but with countenances more juvenile and less grave; the ears are very peculiar, [Illustration] and of the annexed form. There is a sculptured figure on one of the columns only; the others bear traces of having been covered with hieroglyphics.

To the S. W. of the hill on which the above temple stands, and close to the river, are some very extensive quarries of sandstone, from whence the materials were probably taken for the erection of the sandstone temples at Philæ and Parembole, where the rocks are entirely of granite. In walking through the quarries, I came to a spot where a niche is cut in the levelled side of the rock; within it is a stone bench, which may have been the pedestal of a statue; small winged globes are sculptured above it. This niche seems to have been used by the ancient Egyptians, and subsequently both by the Pagan and Christian Greeks, as a shrine, at which they offered up their prayers to the deity for the preservation of their own health and that of their friends. Several heads of Greek saints are sculptured in the rock on both sides of the niche; and I also observed whole length figures, and small heads of sphinxes only three or four inches in length, representations, perhaps, of similar images of gold or silver offered to the Pagan deities. The adjoining rock is covered with a great number of Egyptian and Greek inscriptions. Of the latter, which are much more numerous than the Egyptian, I selected the following, as being the most interesting, from their purport.

There is also a Latin inscription, of which I could only make out the two words, FABIO . CVM. There are small niches in several other parts of the rocks of this quarry, with the winged globe over them; but I saw no inscriptions upon any, except that abovementioned.

In four hours and a half, we passed Wady Hadyd; opposite to which, on the east side, is Wady Sahdab (وادي سهداب). On a rocky hill stands an insulated column, the only remains of a small temple, whose ruins are spread about; several small sepulchres are excavated in the declivity of the hill, and heaps of rubbish indicate an ancient city. Five hours, Djara (جعره). The shore from Tafa to this place is well cultivated. Five hours and a half, Dehmyt, where the Wady Mebarakat terminates. The eastern Dehmyt is better cultivated than the western. Here are the foundations of a small square edifice built of massy stones; with a thick mud wall running parallel to the hills, and the course of the stream, for about fifty yards; it was intended, perhaps, as a barrier against the sands of the desert. In six hours and a half we came to Merys (مريس); opposite to it, on the east side, is the village Syale. There is an island in the river, with several brick ruins on it. The rock is granite, and continues so all the way to Assouan. The road from Syale lies over a sandy plain, with insulated hills of granite, which separate it from the river. On the east side, to the north of Syale, is the village of Abdoun. At seven hours and a half is Debot (دبوت), consisting of several villages lying on both sides of the river. At seven hours and three quarters is a hill, overhanging the shore, and forming part of Wady Debot, on which are the ruins of an Arab town; the houses are of brick, and seem to have been extensive, and well built. In the river are several large granite piers. At the end of eight hours, we halted for the night at a small hamlet. The Mamelouks remained in this neighbourhood several months, till the advance of Ibrahim Beg compelled them to retire: during that period, fodder became so scarce, that they were obliged to feed their camels upon the palm-leaves: they stripped all the date trees of their leaves in this vicinity, and as far south also as Wady Halfa, so that the Nubians were a whole year without any produce from the trees.

_March 30th._ After a ride of half an hour, over a well cultivated plain, we came to the temple of Debot, which stands upon the site of the ancient _Parembole_.

The temple is approached through three high, insulated gateways, with projecting cornices, like that near Merowau. The distance between the first and second gateway is twenty paces; ten paces between the second and third; and fifteen paces between the third and the pronaos of the temple. In front of the pronaos are four columns, with a wall half their height. Along the centre of three of the interior walls of the pronaos is a compartment of sculpture, the other parts of the walls being quite bare; a peculiarity I saw no where else. Adjoining the pronaos to the left is a square chamber, the walls of which project beyond the side of the temple, and destroy its symmetry. There are no sculptures of any kind on the walls of this apartment.

The cella is an oblong square; its walls are covered with hieroglyphics and sculptures: on one side of it is a dark apartment, opening into the pronaos, and on the other side is a staircase leading up to the top of the temple: below the staircase are several small rooms. The adytum, which is entered through a narrow chamber, three paces in breadth, is ten feet in length by nine in breadth; in its posterior wall are two fine monolith temples of granite, the largest of which is eight feet in height by three in breadth; the winged globe is sculptured over each of them. They appear to have been receptacles for some small sacred animals, perhaps beetles. The places are yet visible where turned the hinges of the door, which shut up whatever was contained within. These monolith temples are similar to those at Philæ; but differ in their construction from that at Gaou (_Antæopolis_), which is much larger:[59] nor are there any hieroglyphics in the interior, whereas that at Gaou is covered on the inside with inscriptions and sculptures, some of the latter representing scarabæi. On each side of the adytum at Debot is a small room, communicating with the narrow chamber behind the cella; the walls of both are without sculptures, but contain some secret recesses, similar to those at Kalabshe, and which were destined, probably, for the same purposes. One of these rooms had an upper story, like the one at Kalabshe, but it is now ruined; the other apartments of the temple are in good preservation. The sculptures on the inside walls are much defaced; but some faint remains of their colouring are yet visible. There are no sculptures whatever on the exterior walls. A wall, now in ruins, had encompassed the whole of this temple, including the three gateways in front of it. I observed in the broken-up floor of the pronaos deep stone foundations, upon which the temple is built. I should not be surprised if subterraneous rooms were discovered here, as well as in other Egyptian temples: they would be quite in the spirit of the Egyptian hierarchy.

The temple of Debot appeared to me to have been built at an epoch when the arts had begun to decline in Egypt. Its columns and sculptures are imitations of those at Philæ, but far inferior in beauty, to their models: the small temple at Merowau seemed to be about the same age, though of more careful execution. We thus find in Nubia specimens of all the different æras of Egyptian architecture, the history of which indeed can only be traced in Nubia; for all the remaining temples in Egypt (that of Gorne, perhaps, excepted) appear to have been erected in an age when the science of architecture had nearly attained to perfection. If I were to class the Nubian temples according to the probable order of their erection, it would be as follows: 1, Ebsambal. 2, Gyrshe. 3, Derr. 4, Samne. 5, Ballyane. 6, Hassaya. 7, Seboua. 8, Aamara, and Kalabshe. 9, Dakke, and Meharraka. 10, Kardassy. 11, Merowau. 12, Debot. 13, Korty. 14, Tafa.

At a short distance from the temple of Parembole, we ascended the sandy mountain; and after a ride of one hour, again reached the river at Wady Shamet el Wah: here is a small ferry-boat, by means of which, as I wished to visit the island of Philæ, I determined to cross over to the eastern shore; for there is no road fit for camels along the western bank, the common route from Debot lying directly over the mountain to the shore opposite Assouan. Having no inflated goat-skins to tie to the necks of the camels, we fastened cords round their bodies, and towed them across, along side the boat; but as the boat was very leaky, and had only two boys for rowers, we were more than a quarter of an hour in crossing the river, and one of the camels reached the shore in an almost lifeless state. There are only six ferry-boats between Philæ and Derr; these are at Debot, Kalabshe, Dehmyt, Gyrshe, Dakke, and Seboua. There is none south of Derr, as far as the frontiers of Dóngola. The owners of the boats take from every peasant a handful of whatever provision he happens to carry with him, or an armful of straw, &c.; women pass free. We landed at Sak el Djemel, the same place where I had slept on the night of my departure from Assouan; and from thence we recrossed the mountain towards Philæ by the same road as before.

It was about mid-day when I visited this celebrated island. The inhabitants of Birbe, a small village on the eastern shore, keep a boat for the conveyance of passengers to it, the ruins being often visited, and few of the Egyptian merchants, whom business brings to Assouan, returning without seeing the Cataract and Philæ. As there is no regular government in this part of the country, the people of Birbe have taken advantage of the necessity which the stranger is under of employing their boat, and make exorbitant demands upon him. On approaching the ferry, he is immediately beset by half a dozen of them, calling themselves the owners of the boat, and requiring their fare, while an equal number, representing themselves as the lords of the island, demand a compensation for permission to visit it. When I stepped into the boat, the people, who took me for a messenger from the Pasha on my way to Derr, crowded about me, and asked six piastres for carrying me over, and allowing me to see the island. This was certainly a trifling sum, for permission to examine the most precious remains of antiquity in Egypt; but I was determined, for once, not to be imposed upon by these extortioners, and offered them one piastre, to be divided amongst them;[60] on their refusing to take it, I gave my clothes to my guide, and putting my pocket-book into my turban, swam over to the island. I had scarcely landed when the boat came after me; and they were very glad afterwards to take the piastre for carrying me back again. On a second visit, two days afterwards, I found them more reasonable in their demands. I have been told of instances where they extorted upwards of twenty piastres from strangers, by threatening to return with the boat to the main land, and leave them upon the island. Birbe is under the government of the Nubian chiefs. The territory of Assouan, belonging to Egypt, commences to the north of Philæ.

I forbear making any remarks upon Philæ, or the adjoining island of Bidge, as the great French work on Egypt has so thoroughly described all the antiquities of that country.

I returned late in the evening to Assouan, where I found my servant, who had begun to despair of my return. During the thirty-five days I had been absent, I had rested only one day, on my first reaching Derr; being in consequence a good deal fatigued, no less than the camels, I determined to devote a few days to repose; I therefore hired a room in the Okale, or public carawanserai, where I remained five days, in the course of which, I visited at my leisure the invirons of the town; the bed of the river was almost dry between Assouan and the island of Elephantine, where I generally passed the morning. The nilometer of Elephantine will continue to puzzle the researches of travellers, as long as the high banks of the river are covered with rubbish. The nilometer built by the Calif Maouya is still extant. Near the extremity of the pier which forms the harbour of Assouan is a square aperture as low as the river, with steps at the bottom, by which the rise of the water might have been easily determined; it now bears the name of Mekyas, (Nilometer). This pier is not, as has been supposed by some travellers, a Roman bridge, but a Saracen erection.

On the western shore, somewhat to the north of Assouan, is an ancient convent; it stands on the declivity of the sandy hill upon the summit of which is the saint’s tomb generally known by the name of Kobbat el Howa, or the airy cupola. In the rocks below the convent are several ancient temples and sepulchres, hewn out of the rock, which have not been mentioned by any traveller. They are interesting on account of their antiquity: each of them consists of a square chamber, covered with hieroglyphics, in which are square pillars, without capitals; the largest of these pillars measure two feet and a half, and are fifteen feet in height; they are all of very rude workmanship: in some of the temples are four, in others, six, or eight pillars. The Greeks have made chapels of almost all these temples. Large sepulchral excavations remain in several of them.

The ruined convent of St. Lawrence, on the west side of the river, opposite to Assouan, little deserves the animated description which Denon has given of it. On a tombstone lying on the floor of one of its rooms, I read the following inscription, which I copied on account of the rude and uncommon appearance of the characters.

On the 9th of April, I returned to Esne.

I shall here subjoin a few general remarks upon the Nubians and their history;[61] my stay among them was too short to enable me to enter at length into the subject; and my observations were limited by my ignorance of the Nubian language, in which all conversation among the people, in my presence, was carried on.

I have already observed, that Nubia is divided into two parts, called Wady Kenous, and Wady el Nouba (often named exclusively Saÿd); the former extending from Assouan to Wady Seboua, and the latter comprising the country between Seboua and the northern frontier of Dóngola. The inhabitants of these two divisions are divided by their language, but in manners they appear to be the same.

According to their own traditions, the present Nubians derive their origin from the Arabian Bedouins, who invaded the country after the promulgation of the Mohammedan creed,[62] the greater part of the Christian inhabitants, whose churches I traced as far as Sukkot, having either fled before them or been killed; a few, as already mentioned, embraced the religion of the invaders, and their descendants may yet be distinguished at Tafa, and at Serra, north of Wady Halfa. The two tribes of Djowabere (جوابره) and El Gharbye (الغربيه), the latter a branch of the great tribe of Zenatye (زناتيه) took possession of the country from Assouan to Wady Halfa, and subsequently extended their authority over a great number of smaller tribes who had settled on the banks of the river at the period of the general invasion, among whom were the Kenous, a tribe from Nedjed and Irak.[63] The large tribe of Djaafere occupied the shores of the Nile from Esne to Assouan; a few families of Sherifs settled in the Batn el Hadjar; and a branch of the Koreysh possessed themselves of Mahass. For several centuries Nubia was occupied by these Arabs, who were at continual war with each other, in the course of which the kings of Dóngola had acquired so much influence over them, as to be able at last, to compel them to pay tribute. The Djowabere having nearly subdued the Gharbye, the latter sent an embassy to Constantinople, in the reign of the great Sultan Selym, to seek aid against their enemies, and they succeeded in procuring from the Sultan a body of several hundred Bosnian soldiers, under a commander named Hassan Coosy. By their means the Djowabere and people of Dóngola were driven out of Nubia, into the latter country; and to this day the more wealthy inhabitants of Dóngola derive their origin from the tribe of Djowabere. Some families of the Djowabere, however, remained peacefully behind, and their descendants, who are found chiefly at Derr and Wady Halfa, are still known by the name of their ancestors.

The Bosnian soldiers built the three castles, or rather repaired the existing fabrics, at Assouan, Ibrim, and Say; and those who garrisoned the castles obtained certain privileges for themselves, and for such of their descendants as should continue to occupy the castles, and the territory attached to them; one of these privileges was an exemption from all kind of land tax, which Selym had then for the first time imposed throughout his dominions; and as the country was thought incapable of affording food sufficient for the soldiers, an annual pension was likewise assigned to them out of the Sultan’s treasury at Cairo; the pay of the garrison of Ibrim was four purses, now equal only to £100., but then probably worth four times that sum. They were also made independent of the Pashas of Egypt. While the Pashas had any influence in Egypt, these pensions were paid; but the Mamelouks generally withheld them. Hassan Coosy, with his forces, chiefly cavalry, governed Nubia, while he lived, and was constantly moving from place to place; he paid an annual Miry to the Pasha of Egypt, but in other respects was independent of him. The descendants of such of the Bosnian soldiers as intermarried with the Gharbye and Djowabere tribes still occupy the territories assigned to their ancestors at Assouan, Ibrim, and Say; and they continue to enjoy immunity from taxes and contributions of every kind. They call themselves Kaladshy, or the people of the castles, but are distinguished by the Nubians by the appellation of Osmanli (Turks). They have long forgotten their native language; but their features still denote a northern origin, and their skin is of a light brown colour, while that of the Nubians is almost black. They are independent of the governors of Nubia, who are extremely jealous of them, and are often at open war with them. They are governed by their own Agas, who still boast of the Firmauns that render them accountable only to the Sultan.