Chap. 11.] ACCOUNT OF C0T7NTEIES, ETC. 417 ter After this comes Tentyris^, below which is Abj^dus^, the royal r.bode of Memnon, and famous for a temple of Osiris^, which is situate iu Libya^ at a distance from the river of seven miles and a half. Next to it comes Ptolemais^, then Panopolis^, and then another town of Venus ^, and, on the Libyan side, Lycon^, where the mountains form the boun- dary of the pro^dnce of Thebais. On passing these, we come to the towns of Mercury^", Alabastron^ the town of the place, the ruins of which are called Aftyeh, on the east side of the Nile, and the capital of the nome of Apliroditopolites. In Tipper Egy])t or the Thebais there was the present Tachta, on the west side of the 5>ilt', between Ptolemais and Panopolis, capital of another nonie of Aplu-odito- poHtes, and that one the ruins of which are now called Deir, on the west bank of the Nile, liigher up than the fonner, and, Hke it, some distance from the river. It was situate in the nome Hermonthites. ^ Another Diospolis. Great DiospoHs is mentioned in the preceding:: page. 2 Or Tentjra. The modem Dendera of the Arabs, called Dcnd6ri or Hidendori by the ancient Eg^tians. 3 In ancient times caLed This, and in Coptic Ebot, the ruins of which are now knoTi as Arabat-el-Matfoon. It was the cliief town of tlic Nomos Thinites, and was situate in lat. 26° 10' north and long. 32° 3' east. In the Thebaid it ranked next to Thebes itself. Here according to general belief was the bui'ial-place of Osiris. In the tune of Strabo it had sunk into a mere village. Its ruins, though neai'ly buried in thr sand, are very extensive. There is, however, some imcertainty as to the exact identity of This with Abydus. ■* The ruins of these places are stiU to be seen at Abydus. ^ He calls the whole of the country on the western bank of the NQt; by this name. ^ CaUed Absou or AbsaJi by the Arabs, and Psoe by the ancient Egyptians. It has been suggested that it was the same place as This, more generally identified with Abydus. ' Its site is now called Ekhmin or Akiimin by the Arabs, Khmim being its ancient Egyptian name. It was the cliicf town of the nome of Pano- pohtes, and the deity Phtliah was worshipped there under the form of Priapus. ^ Another Aphroditopolia, the present Tachta, mentioned above, in Note ** in the last page. Phny distincuislu's it from that tiow called Deir, mentioned above. * Now known as Es-Siout. ^0 Or Ilermopolis — the modem Erfli-moon or Ash-niounion, on tlic eastern bank of the Nile, in lat. 27° 51' north. It was the capital of the Hermoi)ohte nome in the Hc})tanomis. It was a place of great opulence and densely populated. The deities Typhon and Thoth were principally worshipped at this place. Tlio latter, the inventor of the pen and letters, nearly corresponded with the Hermes of the Greeks (the Mercury of the Romans), from which the HcUenized name of the place. Its ruins are very extensive.
- ' Tliis town ^vas no doubt cor.uected v^ith the alabaster quarries of
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