I promised that I would follow him by and by; but now I am engaged in
seeing the wonders of Memphis, and those marvels of ages--those
"temples of the gods"--the mighty pyramids. I will soon devote a
letter to an account of my first visit to Memphis and the pyramids. It
was made a day or two after we came to reside in the palace at Rhoda.
Remeses, though hourly occupied, had kindly promised he would
accompany me to the city of Apis, and there place me in charge of a
son of the priest of the temple. I arose the following morning a few
minutes before sunrise, in order to be prepared to go early. My window
looked forth upon On, a league and a half distant, with its grand
avenue of columns, sphinxes, obelisks, and towering propyla clasping
it to the shining river. The splendor of that morning, my dear mother,
I shall never cease to remember. The atmosphere of Egypt is so
crystalline, that light lends to it a peculiar glow. As I looked
eastward, the skies had the appearance of sapphire blended with dust
of gold; and from the as yet invisible sun, a gorgeous fan of radiant
beams, of a pale orange-color, spread itself over the sky to the
zenith. Not a cloud was visible; nor, indeed, have I seen one since I
have been in Egypt. This magnificent glory of the Orient steadily grew
more and more wonderful for beauty and richness of colored light,
when, all at once, the disk of the bright god of day himself
majestically rolled up into sight, filling heaven and earth with his
dazzling and overpowering light, while the golden shield on the temple
of the sun caught and reflected his rays with almost undiminished
brilliancy.
As I regarded with delight this sublime sunrise, there came borne to
my ears, from the direction of the temple of Osiris, in Memphis, the
sound of music. Walking round the terrace to that side, I heard the
voices of a thousand priests chanting the morning hymn to the god of
light, the dazzling "Eye of Osiris." Then I recollected that this was
the day of the celebration of the revival or resurrection of Osiris,
one of the most important days in the sacred calendar. The whole city
seemed to be in motion, and boats garlanded with flowers, and filled
with gayly attired people, were crossing to the city and temple at
every point. Music from a hundred instruments filled the air, which
seemed to vibrate with joy and delight. The city of Apis had on its
gala apparel, and all the world was abroad to welcome the sun-rising
and join in the processions.
Remeses joined me while I was watching the scene, and listening to the
grand waves of harmony as they rolled away from the temple and sounded
along the air in majestic volumes of sound.
"I see you are interested, my Sesostris, in this enlivening scene. It
is a day of rejoicing to the worshippers of Osiris."
"It seems, my dear prince," I replied, "as if every day I have passed
in Egypt has been a festival to some of its deities."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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