"Has any one besides Colonel Howard Vyse tried to clear away the sand?" Hugh asked.
"Yes, Mr. Salt and Signor Caviglia excavated the upper portion and all the front of the figure. Colonel Howard Vyse continued what they had begun."
[CHAPTER VI.]
THE MOSQUES.
T his day was to be given to seeing the mosques in Cairo. We set off early, and went first to see the mosque of Sultan Hassan. This is thought to be one of the most beautiful specimens of Arabian architecture in Cairo.
It was built in the fourteenth century, and the blocks of stone for it were brought from the Great Pyramid, of which these were the casing-stones. Inside, the mosque was beautiful. Rows of coloured glass lamps hung from the walls; some were especial curiosities, for they were the finest early glass-work of their kind. The arches also are fine, and so are some of the ornaments of the roof.
One sight was pointed out which made us shudder. This was the dark stain of Sultan Hassan's blood on the pavement. He was murdered in the mosque by his Mamelukes. His tomb is just in the middle of the inner inclosure. On it we saw a copy of the Mohammedan holy book, the Koran. It was splendidly illuminated in gold and colours. The sultan's tomb was once covered with a rich embroidered covering, but this was faded and moth-eaten when we saw it. The marble pavement, too, was broken in many places.
The mosque of Sultan Hassan has always been famed for its beauty. It is said that the sultan cut off the head of the architect, that he might never build another as beautiful.
From the mosque of Sultan Hassan we went to the mosque of Sultan Tuloon. It was built about the year 879 after the birth of our Lord, and is said to be the oldest mosque in Cairo. It has double rows of handsome pointed arches. There is a fine view from the chief minaret. Our guide told us that it even excels that from the citadel. But the staircase is spiral, is outside, and in rather a ruinous state.