No. 12. Egyptian Capital from Philae.
With regard to the domestic life, the examples of furniture in the British Museum convey some idea, and these bear a remarkable similarity to forms with which we are familiar at the present day, both in detail and construction, which is simple and direct, with mortise and tenon joints. Turning was frequently employed, and, in the decoration of furniture, inlays of ivory, ebony and glass, the Egyptians being expert workers in both glass and enamels.
No. 13. Egyptian Furniture.
A. Stand Inlaid.
B. Ebony seat inlaid with ivory.
C. Folding stool.
D. Ebony box inlaid with porcelain and ivory.
Illustrations taken from bas reliefs and wall painting give a good idea of the furniture, which is often depicted as gilded.
The Egyptian couch was straight like an ottoman. Sometimes the couch took the form of an animal with the head and tail at either end, and the legs and feet carved to complete the effect.
Chaldean
Chaldean art in character had much in common with that of Egypt, the difference being more that of expression than in idea, probably due to intercourse and mutual influence. The buildings, which were mostly in brick, often faced with a form of terra-cotta, stamped with relief or ornament, were pyramidal in general form, raised on terraces forming a succession of platforms, approached by steps or inclined planes. Columns were employed, but the capitals were distinctive in the use of volutes culminating in the Persian renderings at Persepolis.