PREFACE

I ENDEAVOURED, in a former book on Egypt, to give my first impressions while the glamour¹ of the East had not been dimmed by familiarity; and the kind reception of that, my first literary attempt, has encouraged me to write again after spending some years in the Nile Valley. Though first impressions may have a charm which familiarity lacks, it would be astonishing if a country so full of beauty, and of such varied² interests as is Egypt, had caused familiarity to breed contempt. I may safely say that it has not had that result. A lengthened³ stay has certainly added to my experiences as well as to my stock of drawings, and I trust it has also given me some insight into the character of the people amidst whom I dwelt.

Medi?val Cairo is doubtless year by year the poorer by many picturesque⁴ ‘bits’ which have vanished. But Cairo is a large city, and happily many years may elapse before artists will cease to go there for material. What is still untouched by the jerry builder, or has not been allowed to fall into ruin, is probably more beautiful than anything other oriental cities can show. Less change is seen in the smaller towns, and the villages are much the same in aspect as when the Saracen invaders⁵ first occupied the valley of the Nile.

Every season adds to the knowledge of Ancient Egypt, and gives us something which for centuries lay hid beneath the desert sands. It was my good fortune to spend some winters at Thebes while some of the most interesting of recent discoveries were made, and through the courtesy of Mr. Weigall, the Chief Inspector⁶ of Upper Egypt, I was enabled to dwell and do my work in these congenial surroundings. I have also to thank him for the unique opportunities which our desert journey, from the Nile to the Red Sea, offered; of all my experiences in Egypt, none has given me more pleasure in recalling.

Haslemere, 1912.

1 glamour   

n.魔力，魅力；vt.迷住

参考例句：

• Foreign travel has lost its glamour for her.到国外旅行对她已失去吸引力了。
• The moonlight cast a glamour over the scene.月光给景色增添了魅力。

2 varied   

adj.多样的，多变化的

参考例句：

• The forms of art are many and varied.艺术的形式是多种多样的。
• The hotel has a varied programme of nightly entertainment.宾馆有各种晚间娱乐活动。

3 lengthened   

（时间或空间）延长，伸长( lengthen的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• The afternoon shadows lengthened. 下午影子渐渐变长了。
• He wanted to have his coat lengthened a bit. 他要把上衣放长一些。

4 picturesque   

adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的

参考例句：

• You can see the picturesque shores beside the river.在河边你可以看到景色如画的两岸。
• That was a picturesque phrase.那是一个形象化的说法。

5 invaders   

入侵者，侵略者，侵入物( invader的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• They prepared to repel the invaders. 他们准备赶走侵略军。
• The family has traced its ancestry to the Norman invaders. 这个家族将自己的世系追溯到诺曼征服者。

6 inspector   

n.检查员，监察员，视察员

参考例句：

• The inspector was interested in everything pertaining to the school.视察员对有关学校的一切都感兴趣。
• The inspector was shining a flashlight onto the tickets.查票员打着手电筒查看车票。