210 Route 18. EL-KUS1YEH. From Cairo
On the rear-wall of the Third Room (PI. k) the mummy of the princess is
shown standing under a canopy, while in front of it the royal family and
court are mourning. This scene is continued on the right wall. On the
left wall we see the mummy lying below the same canopy; at the foot
of the bier is the nurse of the deceased, in front is the mourning royal
family, while farther to the right is a woman with a young princess on
her breast. On the entrance-wall are mirrors, spoons, boxes, and other
obj ects with which the tomb was furnished (much injured). — We return
to the steps at d. Nearer the entrance a Corridor (PI. I) leads to the
left to a sloping Passage (PI. m) ending in an unfinished Chamber (PI. n).
In the hills enclosing the plain of Tell el-'Amarna there are numerous
quarries of limestone and alabaster. The most important are the Ala¬
baster Quarries of Het-nub, discovered by Newberry, to which a path run¬
ning eastwards to the S. of the S. group of tombs leads. These quarries
are ascertained from numerous inscriptions to have been worked under
the Early Empire and at the beginning of the Middle Empire.
"We next reach (193 M.) El-Hawdta, on the E. bank, with an
entirely destroyed palace ofthe time of Amenophis IV. In the neigh¬
bourhood are several inscriptions, defining the boundaries of his
holy district (p. 203).
. Near the W. bank lies the village of Derut (rail, stat., p. 191).
The boat now passes between the islands of Gezlret el-Hawdta, on
the E., and Gezlret el-Manddra, on the W.
The Arabian Mts., rising in precipitous rocky walls, approach
the river. Swallows, ducks, and other birds inhabit the caves in
the porous rock on the banks, and fly in and out in screaming
crowds. The cliffs on the right bank of this part of the Nile are
known as Gebel Abu Feda. The stream below them is considered
the most dangerous part of the channel between Cairo and Assuan.
Violent winds blow round the crags, and numerous sand-banks
impede navigation.
Near ed-Der and el-Kuser (on the E. bank) are several rock-
tombs, without inscriptions, dating chiefly from the Early Empire,
and also some ancient quarries.
On the W. bank, 3 M. from the river, lies El-Kusiyeh, now an
insignificant town with 7200 inhab., the ancient Cusae, in which,
according to ^Elian, Venus Urania and her cow (i.e. Hathor, the mis¬
tress of heaven) were worshipped It was known to the ancient
Egyptians as Gbsu and was capital of the Lower Sycamore Nome.
The necropolis of Gosu lay to the E., near the modern Mer, where
numerous graves of the Middle Empire have recently been discovered,
the interesting contents of which are now in the museum at Gizeh. Grseco-
Roman tombs were also found here, containing mummies with painted
plaster heads instead of face-masks.
At el-Harlb, on the E. bank, are the ruins of an ancient Egypt¬
ian town, at the mouth of a wadi ascending to the Arabian moun¬
tains. The walls, provided in places with window-openings, are
high, but fragments of demotic inscriptions show them to be of late
date. Small caves in the rocks contain tones from mummies of
men and cats.
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