The treatment of the hair was extremely elaborate and difficult, calling for the exercise of considerable skill and patience. Cut straight across the forehead, it was arranged with mathematical precision in several rows of fine plaits, the clubbed ends terminating immediately below the nape of the neck. As a coiffure of this kind necessitated an enormous expenditure of time and labour, all classes of society had recourse to wigs, the rich employing natural hair for the purpose, and the poor, wool. A typical example of a fashionable perruque took the form of a densely-braided mass which covered the head as efficaciously as a mat, one large plait coming down at either side of the face, and curving round on the shoulder in the shape of an elephant's trunk. The crown of the head was usually encircled by a slender golden fillet, which, in the case of a Pharaoh, or a royal lady, was twined about with the uræus, emblem of supreme sovereignty. The head of the sacred asp reared threateningly in the centre of the forehead. Cleopatra--not the famous Cleopatra of Mark Antony, but one of her five predecessors--is represented with the bare bosom, naked arms, circular collar, and skin-tight skirt common to her countrywomen. A noteworthy feature is that her dress, of bright blue and white material, shows horizontal stripes to the knees, where it is joined by a slightly fuller flounce with the stripes running vertically. It is supported by scarlet shoulder-straps, and the ribbon encircling the crown of the head is in the same shade, knotted at the back, where it hangs in two short ends. The wig is arranged in multitudinous plaits that rest on the shoulders at either side and descend midway to the waist behind. Above the forehead rears the royal asp, and over it tower two straight quills, which form a background for the horns of a ram between which glares a flaming sun; these quills, by the way, typify absolute sovereignty. [Illustration: AN EGYPTIAN PEASANT.] The head-covering in general use consisted of a piece of material shaped to rest flat on the top of the head and describe a curve in front, with a straight, narrow tab cut up at the side to allow free passage for the shoulder, the back hanging curtain-wise to afford ample protection to the nape of the neck. The textures employed for such purposes were cotton, linen, and wool decorated with stripes or embroidery. The men, as well as the women, glittered with bracelets, anklets, and other jewellery of a massive and showy type. White was preferred to colours for their clothing; and the habitual costume for men was of the scantiest possible description, being nothing more or less than a sleeveless tunic held up by shoulder-straps, a narrow piece of ribbon being tied round the waist, terminating in two short ends in front. This skirt or tunic reached to the knee or calf, and sometimes even as far as the ankle; the legs, arms, and chest were bare, and the face clean-shaven.