thought to be unlawful, but in order to give it impor- tance. See Magic ; Jambres ; Jannes.
In science, Egj'ptian influence maj^ be distinctly traced in the Pentateuch. Moses was " learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians" (Acts vii, 22), and prob- ably derived from tliem the astronomical knowledge which was necessary for the calendar. His acquaint- ance with chemistry is shown in the manner of the destruction of the golden calf. The Egyptians ex- celled in geometr}' and mechanics : the earlier books of the Bible, however, throw no light upon the degree in which Moses may have made use of this part of his knowledge. In medicine and surgery, the high profi- cienej' of the Egj'ptians was probably of but little use to the Hebrews after the Exodus : anatomj', practised by the former from the earliest ages, was repugnant to the feelings of Shemites, and the simples of Egypt and of Palestine would be as different as the ordinary diseases of the country. In the arts of architecture, sculpture, and painting, the former of which was the chief, there seems to have been but a verj' slight and material influence. This was natural, for with the Egyptians architecture Avas a religious art, embodying in its princiides their highest religious convictions, and mainly devoted to the service of religion. Dura- ble construction, massive and grand form, and rich, though sober color, characterize their temples and tombs, the abodes of gods, and "homes" of men. To adopt such an architecture would have been to adopt the religion of Egypt, and the pastoral Israelites had no need of buildings. When thej^ came into the Prom- ised Land they found cities ready for their occupation, and it was not until the daj's of Solomon that a tem- ple took the place of the tent, which was the sanctuarj' of the pastoral people. Details of ornament were of course borrowed from Egypt; but, separated from the vast system in which they were found, they lost their significance, and became harmless until modern scio- lists made them prominent in support of a theory which no mind capable of broad views can for a mo- ment tolerate.
It is hardh' needful to observe that the ancient Egyptians had attained to high degrees of civilization, and mental culture. This is evidenced by many facts. For instance, the variation of the compass maj' even now be ascertained by observing the lateral direction of the pj'ramids, on account of their being placed so accurately north and south. This argues considerable acquaintance with astronomy. Again, we know that they were familiar with the duodechnal as well as the decimal scale of. notation, and must therefore have made some progress in the study of mathematics. There is proof that the art of painting upon plaster and panel was practised by them more than 20(10 years be- fore Christ ; and the sculptures furnish representations of inkstands that contained two colors, black and red ; the latter being introduced at the beginning of a sub- ject, and for tlie division of certain sentences, showing this custom to be as old as that of holding the pen be- hind the ear, which is often portrayed in the paintings of the tombs. Alabaster was a material much used for vases, and as ointment was generally kept in an alabaster box, the Greeks and Eomans applied the name alabaMron to all vases made for that purpose; and one of them found at Thebes, and now in the mu- seum at Alnwick Castle, contains some ointment per- fectly preserved, though from the queen's name in the hierogh'ijhics it must be more than 3000 years old. In architecture the)' were very successful, .is the mag- nificent temples yet remaining bear evident witness, though in ruins. The Doric order is supposed to have l)een derived from columns found at Beni-Hassan, and the arch is at least as old as the 16th century B.C. In medical science, we know from the evidence furnished by mummies found at Thel)es that the art of stopping teeth with gold, and probably cement, was known to the ancient Egyptians, and Cuvier found incontestible
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proof that the fractured bone of an ibis had been set by them while the bird was alive.
Sacred music was much used in Egj'pt, and the harp, lyre, tlute, tambourine, c\-mbals, etc., were ad- mitted in divers religious services, of which music con- stituted an important element. Sacred dancing was also common in religious ceremonies, as it seems to have been among the Jews (Psa. cxlix, 3). INIoses found the children of Israel dancing before the golden calf (Exod. xxxii, 19), in imitation probably of rites the}' had often witnessed in Egypt.
Tlie industrial arts held an important place in the occupations of the Egyptians. The workers in fine flax and tlie weavers of white linen are mentioned in a maniit-r that shows they were among the chief con- tributors to the riches of the country (Isa. xix, 9). The fine linen of Eg3pt found its way to Palestine (Prov. vii, 16). That its celebrity was not without cause is proved by a piece found near Memphis, and by the paintings (comp. Gen. xli, 42 ; 2 Chron. i, 16, etc.). The looms of Egypt were also famed for their fine cotton and woollen fabrics, and many of these were worked with patterns in brilliant colors, some- times being wrought with the needle, sometimes woven in the piece. Some of the stripes were of gold thread, alternating with red ones as a border. Specimens of their embroidery are to be seen in the Louvre, and the man}' dresses painted on the monuments of the 18th dynasty show that the most varied patterns were used by the Eg}'ptians more than 3000 j'ears ago, as they were subsequently by the Babylonians, who became noted for their needle-work. Sir G. Wilkinson states tliat the secret of dj'eing cloths of various colors by means of mordants was known to the Egyptians, as proved liy the manner in which Pliny has described the process, though he does not seem to have under- stood it. The}' were equally fond of variety of pat- terns on the walls and ceilings of their houses and tombs, and some of tlie oldest ceilings show that the chevron, the checker, the scroll, and the guilloche, though ascribed to the Greeks, were adopted in Egypt more tlian 2000 years before our sera.