Art-Jottings In Art-Studios.

centuries later , Eameses II . inscribed in the side spaces an address to the deity of the Stm . Of these two moiiarchs it may be interesting to quote from Bro . Wilson ' s book ( to which the reader is referred for further information ) , that Joseph died in the reign of this Thothmes III ., ancl that the sufferings of the children of Israel came to their culminating point in the reign of Eameses II ., and that the Exodus took jelaee by reason of the hardships inflicted upon them by that monarch . One other thing we

cannot pass over in silence : iu the engraved square on the pyramiclion , or tapered top of the obelisk , Thothmes is represented as kneeling before the deity of the Sun , the deity holding in his hands " the mystical Tau , " the symbol of eternal life . This unique specimen of the sculptor ' s art is interesting , if for no other reason , on account of the scenes that it has witnessed in its long and chequered career . Of the seven original obelisks at On , in the land of Goshen , one dates from about A . ir . 1 , 000 , 'i . e . 3 , 000 years before the Christian era , ancl therefore 5 , 000 years ago . The one of which we now speak is about 3 , 500 years old .

It strikes one with awe and almost dread , as gazing upon this monument of devotion , no less in the present than the past , to reflect that its companions witnessed tho arrival of Abraham , ancl later of Jacob , as well as the marriage of Joseph , at the capital of Goshen ; whilst itself stood before the temple in which Moses was instructed " in all the learning of the Egyptians . " And then to pass over centimes of neglect until it finds itself once more upright in the capital ( as one may well term it ) of the world .

What a work for a thoughtful man , and , above all , a Mason , to have accomplished ! what a gift wherewith to present his country ! Before leaving the Hieroglyphs we ought to mention that the incisions are not always left plain , or even burnished , as in the case of Cleopatra ' s Needle , but that they were frequently coloured ; sometimes in " monochrome , " or single tint ; at others in " polychrome , " in which a great variety of colours were introduced . Besides the specimens

of Egyptian Hieroglyphs already alluded to , the most remarkable are—that in honour of Khntunlietp , at Beuihassan , recording the investment of his family ; the campaigns of Ahmes against the Hyshos at El-Kab ; the annals of Thothmes III . at Kamak ; the campaign of Eamases II . against the Khita , ancl the treaty ; the account of the tank for gold-washing hi the time of Seti I . and Eameses II . at Kouban and Eedesich ; the starrisings on the tomb of Eameses V . ; the journey of the Ark of Khons to the Bakhtan , under Eameses X . ; and the account of Cambyses ancl Darius on the statue now in the Yatican at Eome .

Whilst speaking somewhat at length of these specimens of Egyptian art , we must not be unmindful that , as we have before mentioned , there is—at least from our present standpoints—more perfect specimens of pure Art extant iu the remains of the Aztecs or Mexicans . We say purer , because these specimens are absolutely pure picture-writing-, the names of monarchs , towns , ancl the like , being shown by objects that corresponded to their names ; no grammatical forms being used , the Art remained Art , aiid did not in any way approach the science of written speech . Ashoweverthese latter specimens

, , of the Hieroglyphs were rather picture than sculpture , we must leave the mention of them for a later number , whilst we must , for want of space , l-eserve for our next paper the remaining processes , pertaining or allied to Sculpture , employed for the purpose of decoration " in the flat . "