[Illustration: FIG. 18.--Piece of furniture in the form of a house; Louvre.] [Illustration: FIG. 19.--House from a Theban wall painting; from Wilkinson, i. p. 361.] [Illustration: FIG. 20.--House with a tower, from a painting; Wilkinson, i. p. 361.] "Doors and windows opened generally in the middle. They opened inwards, and were fastened by means of bolts and latches. Some of them had wooden locks like those which are still in use in Egypt. Most of the inner doors were closed merely by hangings of some light material. For the decoration we must turn to the pictures in the rock-cut tombs. The walls of the houses were coated with stucco, and painted with religious and domestic scenes. The galleries and columns of the porch were coloured in imitation of stone or granite. The ceilings were covered with what we call arabesques and interlacing ornaments of all kinds, while the floors were strewn with mats woven of many-coloured reeds."[30] [30] We have borrowed this short description from a Review of M. GAILHABAUD'S _Monuments anciens et modernes, Style Égyptien. Maisons_. Those who require further details may consult Chapter V. of Sir GARDNER WILKINSON'S _Manners and Customs of the Ancient Egyptians_. [Illustration: FIG. 21.--Battlemented house; from Wilkinson, i. p. 362.] [Illustration: FIG. 22.--Decorated porch; from Wilkinson, i. p. 346.] [Illustration: FIG. 23.--House with inscription; from Wilkinson, i. 32.] [Illustration: FIG. 24.--House, storehouse, and garden; from Prisse, p. 218.] We shall describe the tasteful and convenient furniture which these rooms contained in our chapter upon the industrial arts. The flat roof seems to have been universal in Egypt. It added to the accommodation of the house, it afforded a pleasant rendezvous for the family in the evening, where they could enjoy the view and the fresh breezes which spring up at sunset. At certain seasons they must have slept there.[31] On the other hand the granaries, barns, and storehouses were almost always dome-shaped (Fig. 24). Those which had flat roofs seem to have been very few indeed. This we see in a painting which seems to represent the process of brewing. The Egyptians were great beer drinkers (Fig. 25). These brick vaults must have been very thick, and they were well fitted to preserve that equable and comparatively low temperature which is required for the keeping of provisions. The bas-reliefs often show long rows of storehouses one after the other. Their number was no doubt intended to give an idea of their proprietor's wealth. Some of them seem to have had their only opening half-way up their sides and to have been reached by an external incline or flight of steps (Fig. 26). A sketch made by M. Bourgoin in a tomb at Sakkarah shows us another form of granary. It (Fig. 27) is shaped like a stone bottle, it has a door at the ground level and a little window higher up.[32]