ritten it himself; this was the way by which
Egyptians made these inscriptions sound as if the dead themselves spoke
to those who were still alive. This sculptor's name was Martisen, and he
lived about forty-four centuries ago. Brugsch-Bey, a very learned writer
on Egypt, says: "He calls himself 'a master among those who understand
art, and a plastic artist,' who 'was a wise artist in his art.' He
relates in succession his knowledge in the making of statues, in every
position, according to prescribed use and measure; and brings forward,
as his particular invention, an etching with colors, if I have rightly
understood the expression, 'which can neither be injured by fire nor
washed off by water; 'and, as a further explanation of this, states that
'no man has arisen who has been able to do this except himself alone and
the eldest son of his race, whom God's will has created. He has arisen
able to do this, and the exercise of his hand has been admired in
masterly works in all sorts of precious stones, from gold and silver to
ivory and ebony.'"

There is no doubt but that Martisen and his son, who was named
Usurtasen, were sculptors at the time when Egyptian art reached its
highest point.

The earliest works of Egyptian sculpture are the bas-reliefs found in
the chambers of the tombs; the walls are almost covered with them, and
they are painted with colors which are still bright and fresh, though
more than four thousand years have passed since they were put on. The
subjects of these reliefs are taken from the life of the persons buried
in the tombs, and even their possessions and occupations are thus
represented. These sculptures were made by tracing the designs on the
stone and then cutting it away between the figures. The mode of
arrangement in these reliefs does not satisfy our ideas of what it
should be. It seems as if the artists had no plan of their work in their
minds--no aim as to what the effect should be when finished. On the
contrary, the reliefs impress us as if the sculptors made one figure,
and then added another and another in such a way as to represent the
fact they wished to tell without any attention to the beauty of the
whole; and so it does not seem as if there was any unity in them, but as
if the large bas-reliefs were made up of disjointed parts which in one
sense really have no relation to each other.

The same is true of the Egyptian statues. It appears as if the different
parts might have been ma