Графични страници
PDF файл
ePub

together on the best of terms. Brugsch copied afresh the texts previously collected by Champollion, Rosellini, and Lepsius, and being a good draughtsman, his plans and drawings of buildings were excellent and accurate. His researches during the season 1857-58 were fully described in his "Recueil de Monuments Egyptiens," published on his return.

By the death of Alex. von Humboldt in 1859, Brugsch lost his most enlightened patron and friend. Von Humboldt possessed the king's ear, and, had he only lived, probably his country would never have made the strange blunder of sending so distinguished an Egyptologist as Brugsch, in the capacity of Vice-Consul, to so uncongenial a spot intellectually as Teheran. Such, however, was the case. Brugsch, with characteristic industry, learned Persian in a month's time, and early in 1860 accompanied Baron von Minutoli and the rest of the Prussian Embassy to the Court of the Shah. Here he made the acquaintance of Sir Henry Rawlinson, then English Ambassador at Teheran, and had his attention drawn to the study of Assyriology. In company with Baron von Minutoli and five other Europeans, Brugsch made an expedition to Hamadan (Ecbatana) and the Persian Gulf; but the party were attacked by cholera, to which Brugsch all but succumbed at Persepolis, while Minutoli became its victim. Brugsch, after returning home, was appointed Prussian Consul-General at Cairo-an uncongenial post which left him but small leisure for his archæological studies. He returned to Germany in 1868, and during a visit to Paris was offered a Professorship at the Collège de France by Napoleon III., on condition of his becoming a naturalized Frenchman. This, however, was too great a price to pay, and he accepted from his own Government instead the post of Professor of Egyptology at the University of Göttingen.

It was at this period that he devoted most of his time to his great dictionary. He copied with his own hand the entire 3146 pages, containing some 8000 words in Hieroglyphic and Demotic, using a special ink for the

reproduction of the work by process. The first published sheets excited the greatest interest: it is true that many mistakes were pointed out by his critics, but Brugsch was undaunted, and in the second edition corrected them all; errors in place-names being rectified by the subsequent publication of his "Geographical Dictionary."

His stay at Göttingen was, however, a short one, as in 1870 he again went to Egypt, at the invitation of Ismaïl Pasha, to assume the direction of the Egyptological School at Cairo, and astonished the Ulemah by lecturing in excellent Arabic on the hieroglyphs. He also was constantly in demand to accompany the many Royalties who visited Egypt to inspect the monuments. In 1873 Dr. Brugsch acted as Egyptian Commissioner-General at the Vienna Exhibition, and also organized the Egyptian Section at the Philadelphia Exhibition of 1876. After the fall of Ismaïl Pasha, Brugsch returned to Berlin, where he delivered at the University a series of lectures on Egyptology. Tewfik, on his succession, raised him to the rank of a Pasha.

In 1880 Brugsch again visited Cairo, and was with Mariette in his last hours. The story of Brugsch's opening the Pyramid of Metesouphis, and of his bringing the mummy of that king to Cairo to please the dying savant, is well known to the readers of his latest book, "Mein Leben und mein Wandern," which was only published last year.

During the season 1882-3 he accompanied Prince Frederick Charles of Prussia on a journey through Egypt and Syria (Palmyra), Greece and Italy, producing on his return an account of the expedition, entitled "Prinz Friedrich Karl im Morgenlande." Two years later he was sent by the Emperor as Envoy Extraordinary to Persia, during which visit he wrote "Im Lande der Sonne," and also translated into German verse a collection of Persian poems, which he entitled "Die Muse in Teheran."

It is impossible in so short a space to give any adequate account of his numerous works. His "Geographischen Inschriften alt-ägyptischer Denkmäler," in 3 vols. (1857), was the first great work of its kind, and its three indices

and careful arrangement show the grasp the author had of his subject. His "Thesaurus Inscriptionum" contains, in the last volume, an enormous number of bi-lingual inscriptions of the Ptolemaic period, and also valuable notes on Egyptian Astronomy. It was followed by a work on Egyptian Religion and Mythology, and by his Ægyptologie," which is a compendium of learning on all Egyptian subjects. As early as 1861 he had started, and for some time continued to edit, the "Zeitschrift für ägyptische Sprache und Alterthumskunde," but on his appointment as Consul at Cairo he handed the work over to Lepsius.

[ocr errors]

Brugsch's great characteristics were, indomitable industry and the completeness with which he carried out all he undertook. No one ever collected more materials than he : it was inevitable in such an unsettled life and working at the rate he did that mistakes should occur; but he was indefatigable in correcting them, and never allowed himself to be embittered by adverse criticism or by the jealousy of rivals. His commanding but kindly countenance (resembling, as the King of Sweden remarked, "ein vermilderter Bismarck ") will long be missed in Cairo, where he was very popular. His opinion of the English occupation of Egypt is remarkable, coming, as it does, from one who had received his dismissal from his official position in Cairo at the hands of an Englishman. Only a few months before his death he wrote as follows: "British activity, combined with necessary severity, has worked almost incredible wonders. The European standard, as understood by England, has been applied to Egypt, resulting, in my opinion, in a real blessing to the country."

M. L. McCLURE.

J.R.A.S. 1895.

30

30

III. NOTES AND NEWS.

The Ruins of Anuradhapura.-The survey, exploration, and account of this ancient capital of Ceylon, which dates from B.c. 460, have at length been completed, and are now ready for publication. The editor, and late Architect to the Ceylon Government, has evidently taken great pains with this very elaborate and highly interesting work, consisting of upwards of 60 folio illustrations and a like number of pages of letterpress, the whole preceded by a concisely written but graphic historical preface. We have not heard where copies are to be obtained, or on what terms, but we believe that portions of this valuable work will be forwarded to many of the learned societies, by, we presume, the Crown Agents for the Colonies.

Oriental Studies in Ceylon.—Mr. N. Don Martino de Zilva Wickremasinghe, Assistant Librarian of the Museum at Colombo, after studying Indian philology and archæology at the Universities of Erlangen, Munich, and Berlin for two years, has recently come to England for a short time, and is now working in the British Museum. He has been awarded Dr. Muir's Prize at Berlin University for diligence and progress in Oriental Studies, and he hopes to return to Germany to finish his course and to compete for the degree of Philosophic Doctor. For two years before leaving Ceylon, at the request of the Archæological Commissioner, and on account of his special knowledge of Sinhalese literature and history, and of his skill in deciphering ancient inscriptions, he was seconded to serve on the Archæological Survey at Anuradhapura. He is the editor of the Nikaya Sangraha, a history of the Buddhist Church in Ceylon, which was published at the Ceylon Government Press in 1890. Mr. Wickremasinghe is the first Sinhalese scholar who has ever come to Europe to perfect himself as an Orientalist.

IV. NOTICES OF BOOKS.

THE DAWN OF CIVILIZATION: EGYPT AND CHALDEA. By Professor MASPERO. Edited by Professor SAYCE, and translated from the French, with permission of the Author, by Mrs. EDMUND MCCLURE. Published by

the Society for Promotion of Useful Knowledge, with a Map of Egypt, and over 470 Illustrations.

This is a noble and epoch-making work: it marks a period in our knowledge of the subject: it is true, that those, who for many years have studied the great drama of Egyptian Archæology, will find much restated, which they knew before, but for the fresh student it will be sufficient to read Maspero, and accept facts and opinions from him, which are fortified by ample reference, at the foot of each page, to all previous authors of all nationalities.

Perhaps the name of this great work might have been less ambitious. For instance the people of India would not admit for a moment having in any degree, or at any time, derived their civilization from a country so far West as Egypt, and, as Professor Maspero has no personal knowledge of the Archæology of Mesopotamia, and confessedly derives his facts from the esteemed authors, whom he has consulted, it would have been better to have named the book "The Dawn of Civilization in Egypt." Professor Sayce, who is an authority on both the Egyptian and Mesopotamian problem, in his Preface, page v., draws attention to this. Professor Maspero's acquaintance with Assyriology is wonderful and accurate, but there are depths, which only a specialist on that subject can sound: he speaks as an authority, one of the greatest authorities, on Egypt, but is only an industrious quoter from other authorities, when he ventures into Chaldæa, which geographically is in the centre of Asia, and is credited with certain relations with China, and not impossible influences from or to India, while Egypt from its first to its latest hour of independence sate apart, as regards its language, its

« ПредишнаНапред »