Погребённый с фараонами
Chapter 1
Theroad,aswetraverseditonourcamelsthatmorning,curvedsharplypastthewoodenpolicequarters,postoffice, drugstoreandshopsontheleft,andplungedsouthandeast inacompletebendthatscaledtherockplateauandbroughtusfacetofacewiththedesertundertheleeoftheGreatPyramid. PastCyclopeanmasonrywerode,roundingtheeasternfaceandlookingdownaheadintoavalleyofminorpyramids beyondwhichtheeternalNileglistenedtotheeast,andtheeternaldesertshimmeredtothewest. Verycloseloomedthethreemajorpyramids, thegreatestdevoidofoutercasingandshowingitsbulkofgreatstones,buttheothersretaininghere andtheretheneatlyfittedcoveringwhichhadmadethemsmoothandfinishedintheirday.
PresentlywedescendedtowardtheSphinx,andsatsilentbeneaththespellofthoseterribleunseeingeyes. OnthevaststonebreastwefaintlydiscernedtheemblemofRe–Harakhte, forwhoseimagetheSphinxwasmistakeninalatedynasty; andthoughsandcoveredthetabletbetweenthegreatpaws,werecalledwhatThutmosisIVinscribedthereon,andthedreamhehadwhenaprince. ItwasthenthatthesmileoftheSphinxvaguelydispleasedus,andmadeuswonderaboutthelegendsofsubterraneanpassagesbeneaththemonstrouscreature,leadingdown,down, todepthsnonemightdarehintat—depthsconnectedwithmysteriesolderthanthedynasticEgyptweexcavate, andhavingasinisterrelationtothepersistenceofabnormal,animal-headedgodsintheancientNiloticpantheon.
