.
"It is evident to me, as it must be to all who have thoroughly examined
Egypt or have an accurate knowledge of the Egyptian monuments existing
in Europe, that the arts commenced in Greece by a servile imitation of
the arts in Egypt, much more advanced than is vulgarly believed, at the
period when the Egyptian colonies came in contact with the savage
inhabitants of Attica or the Peloponnesus. Without Egypt, Greece would
probably never have become the classical land of the fine arts. Such is
my entire belief on this great problem. I write these lines almost in
the presence of bas-reliefs which the Egyptians executed, with the most
elegant delicacy of workmanship, seventeen hundred years before the
Christian era. What were the Greeks then doing?"

The sculptures of the monument of El Asaffif are ascertained to be more
than three thousand five hundred years old.

ANCIENT THEBES.

Thebes, an ancient city and capital of Egypt, and the oldest city in the
world, was situated in Upper Egypt, on both sides of the Nile, about two
hundred and sixty miles south of Cairo. Thebes is "the city of a hundred
gates," the theme and admiration of ancient poets and historians, and
the wonder of travelers--"that venerable city," in the language of Dr.
Pocoke, "the date of whose destruction is older than the foundation of
other cities, and the extent of whose ruins, and the immensity of whose
colossal fragments still offer so many astonishing objects, that one is
riveted to the spot, unable to decide whither to direct the step, or fix
the attention." These ruins extend about eight miles along the Nile,
from each bank to the sides of the enclosing mountains, and describe a
circuit of twenty-seven miles. The most remarkable objects on the
eastern side are the temples of Carnac and Luxor; and on the western
side are the Memnonium or palace of Memnon, two colossal statues, the
sepulchres of the kings, and the temple of Medinet Abu. The glory of
Thebes belongs to a period prior to the commencement of authentic
history. It is recorded only in the dim lights of poetry and tradition,
which might be suspected of fable, did not such mighty witnesses remain
to attest their truth. Strabo and Diodorus Siculus described Thebes
under the name of _Diospolis_ (the city of God), and gave such
magnificent descriptions of its monuments as caused the fidelity of
those writers to be called in question, till the observations of modern
travelers proved t