CHAPTER IV.

THE OPENING OF A PYRAMID AT GEBEL BARKAL.

The official instructions which I received before I went to the Sudan in 1897 authorized me, subject to the approval of the Sirdar, to attempt the opening of one pyramid at Gebel Barkal. When therefore we had finished an examination of Piankhi's temple, and the excavation of some parts of it, we began work on one of the pyramids of the north-west group, viz., that called " N " by Hoskins, "No. 16" by Lepsius, "No. 6 "by Cailliaud, and "P" in this work. The reasons for selecting this pyramid from the group were many. The pyramid itself was in an almost perfect state, the workmanship was very good, and the scenes from the walls of the chapel, which had been published by Cailliaud and Lepsius, showed that the architect had followed an Egyptian model closely. No expectations were entertained of finding the tomb either of Piankhi or Tirhakah in it, for those kings were probably buried near Nuri, but it was hoped that we might find that the arrangements made beneath the pyramid for the reception of the deceased resembled those of a good pyramid tomb, built after the Xlth Dynasty, in Egypt. The details of the reliefs, judging by the published copies, suggest that the ornamentation represents a style of art which came into being after the Ptolemies had made their influence felt in Egypt. Still, the reliefs proved clearly that the Nubian personage for whom the pyramid was built professed, outwardly at all events, the religion of Osiris, and it was only reasonable to assume that provision would be made in the tomb for the preservation of the body of the deceased, which formed such an important object in that religion.

Before beginning work at the pyramid it was important to decide whether the person for whom the pyramid was made was buried within it or under it. Many attempts had been made to 169