History of Egypt, Chaldæa, Syria, Babylonia, and Assyria, Volume 6 (of 12) by Gaston Camille Charles Maspero
page 37 of 384 (09%)
page 37 of 384 (09%)
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structure. The fancy which actuated the joiner in making such beds
supposed that two benevolent lions had, of their own free will, stretched out their bodies to form the two sides of the couch, the muzzles constituting the pillow, while the tails were curled up under the feet of the sleeper. Many of the heads given to the lions are so noble and expressive, that they will well bear comparison with the granite statues of these animals which Amenôthes III. dedicated in his temple at Soleb. The other trades depended upon the proportion of their members to the rest of the community for the estimation in which they were held. The masons, stone-cutters, and common labourers furnished the most important contingent; among these ought also to be reckoned the royal servants--of whose functions we should have been at a loss to guess the importance, if contemporary documents had not made it clear--fishermen, hunters, laundresses, wood-cutters, gardeners, and water-carriers.* * The Cailliaud ostracon, which contains a receipt given to some fishermen, was found near Sheikh Abd el-Qurneh, and consequently belonged to the fishermen of the necropolis. There is a question as to the water-carriers of the Khirû in the hieratic registers of Turin, also as to the washers of clothes, wood-cutters, gardeners and workers in the vineyard. [Illustration: 048.jpg THE SWALLOW-GODDESS FROM THE THEBAN NECROPOLIS] Drawn by Faucher-Gudin, from a photograph by Lanzone. Without reckoning the constant libations needed for the gods and the deceased, the workshops required a large quantity of drinking water for |
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