tions of the same import-viz., one in hieroglyphics, another in the ancient vernacular of Egypt, and a third in the Greek tongue. These inscriptions record the services which the fifth Ptolemy had rendered to his country, and were engraved by order of the high priests, when they were assembled at Memphis, for the purpose of investing him with the royal prerogative. It was captured from the French, as they were conveying it from Egypt to the Louvre, and has thrown much light on the inscriptions of ancient Egypt. No. 43 is the sacred boat, conveying a group, of which a fragment only remains of a vulture overshadowing a female. We have only space now to direct attention to a statue of the great Rameses (No. 96), holding a tablet with offerings, under which is a vase found near Abydos. The hieroglyphics inform us, that the king is desiring success in the war he is about to undertake. The rest of the figures present the same characteristics of Egyptian sculpture, with the forehead low, the eyebrows scarcely marked, the eyes rather long and flat, not sunk deep into the head, and drawn slightly in an oblique direction. The two lions couchant in red marble (1 and 34) must not escape observation. On the base is the name of Amenoph III. (Memnon), and the amazing antiquity of the sculpture is thus shown. Near them is the fragment of a colossal foot, supposed to have been broken from some statue of Apollo; its length is 2 feet 11 inches. Fragments of this description are scattered in various portions of the hall.

We now proceed to the ELGIN SALOON, where the Elgin marbles are deposited, and which are universally acknowledged to be the most valuable extant. They are mostly basso relievos, and fragments of statuary that adorned the Parthenon, at Athens, and were so called from the Earl of Elgin, who obtained permission to bring them from Greece, in 1801. The collection was purchased for £35,000, and thus these sculptures were rescued from destruction and preserved among our choicest national treasures. To better understand these, the visitor should first examine the two models in the PHIGALIAN SALOON, one the restored model of the Parthenon,

the other a model of the Parthenon after the Venetian bombardment, in 1687. The building of the Parthenon is recorded by Plutarch, in his life of Pericles, who also informs us that Phidias was entrusted with the control and superintendence of all the great works undertaken during his administration, and it may reasonably be inferred, that the sculpture which adorned this noble temple, was designed by that great master, and executed by the disciples of his school under his immediate direction. Particular attention should be bestowed on (98) the head of a horse from the car of night, full of vivacity and strength of expression. The red numbers are to facilitate a reference from the Museum synopsis to the marbles, and are those now in use. Two of the most celebrated features of the room are the Ilyssus (99), and the Theseus (93). The first is the personification of the small stream that ran through Athens, and although mutilated, is the very triumph of art; whilst the other presents a striking effect, from the regularity and precision with which the lineaments of the human form have been transferred to stone. Though more than two thousand years have passed away since the gifted hands which gave them being have crumbled into dust, they are still acknowledged the types of abstract beauty, and artists bow before them as the idols of artistic worship. The Metopes, or groupes which adorn the frieze, are remarkably fine, but our limits forbid us dwelling upon them. The other rooms contain the Xanthian marbles, brought from the ruined city of Xanthus, and of an earlier date even than those of the Parthenon; the Bodroum marbles, brought to England in 1846, from Asia Minor; the Nimroud marbles, which we owe to Dr. Layard's recent researches on the site of the ancient Nineveh; and the Townley Collection, bequeathed by their collector, Charles Townley. All these have objects of rare and enduring interest, but as a cheap catalogue gives the enumeration of their names-and we could here do little more-we shall employ the space at our disposal for the description of the remaining portions of the Museum.

THE BRITISH MUSEUM LIBRARY is at the back of these buildings, with an entrance from Montague Place, exclusively appropriated to the use of the readers. It contains about 700,000 distinct works; 10,221 maps, plans, and charts; 29,626 volumes of MSS.; 2,946 rolls of various kinds; 23,772 charters and instruments; 208 MSS. on reed and bark; 55 on papyrus; and 851 seals and impressions. It is thus inferior in number only to the two great libraries of Munich and Paris. The number of readers possessing tickets of admission is nearly 40,000, and the average number of readers per day is 250. When the Reading Room was first opened, January 15, 1759, there were only five readers. A magnificent collection of books, which forms an important section of the magazine of knowledge contained within these classic walls, and called the Royal Library, was presented by George IV., and, though equally accessible, is kept separate from the rest. The only catalogue at present in use was printed in 1819, in eight octavo volumes, and has since, with interleavings of MS. additions, swelled into upwards of 67 folio volumes. A new catalogue is in progress of compilation, but ten years has only sufficed to finish the letter A in 16 folio volumes. To give a final comprehensive idea of the magnitude of this vast library, it may be mentioned that, if all the volumes were ranged together upon a single shelf, that shelf would be 16 miles in length. It now only remains for us to add the arrangements for admission.

THE READING ROOM is open every day except Sundays, Ash Wednesday, Good Friday, and any fast or thanksgiving days ordered by authority; except, also, between the 1st and 7th of January, the 1st and 7th of May, and the 1st and 7th of September, inclusive. The hours are from 9 till 7 o'clock during May, June, July, and August; and from 9 till 4 during the rest of the year. Persons desirous of admission are to send in their applications in writing (specifying their Christian and surnames, rank or profession, and place of abode) to Sir Henry Ellis, the principal librarian. A recommendation from

a member of Parliament or some public person is to be produced with it. Permission is in general granted for six months, and then application must be made for a renewal. The tickets given to readers are not transferable, and no person can be admitted without a ticket. Persons under eighteen years of age are not admissible.

THE BRITISH MUSEUM is open to the public on Monday, Wednesdays, and Fridays, between 10 and 4 from the 7th of September to the 4th of May, and between 10 and 7 from the 7th of May to the 1st of September, and daily, except Saturdays, during the weeks of Easter, Whitsuntide, and Christmas.

We are again in the midst of the squares. BLOOMSBURY SQUARE, first laid out by the Earl of Southampton, about 1670, has a fine bronze statue, by Westmacott, of Charles James Fox, erected opposite Bedford Place. The church, with the peculiar steeple seen towering above the surrounding buildings, is the parish church of St. George's, Bloomsbury, built by Nicholas Hawksmoor, in 1730. A statue of King George I. crowns the steeple. RUSSELL SQUARE, containing a statue, by Westmacott, of Francis, Duke of Bedford, was built in 1803. In Great Coram Street is the RUSSELL INSTITUTION, founded in 1808 as a lecture-hall and library, and possessing Haydon's celebrated picture of the Retreat of the Ten Thousand, presented in 1836 by the Duke of Bedford. QUEEN'S SQUARE, adjacent, was planted in the reign of Queen Anne, and contains a statue of that Queen. TORRINGTON and WOBURN SQUARES are also great ornaments to the neighbourhood.

In Gower Street is UNIVERSITY COLLEGE HOSPITAL, founded in 1833. The first stone of the north wing was laid by Lord Brougham in 1846. Nearly opposite is the LONDON UNIVERSITY COLLEGE, founded 1828, and built by Wilkins, the architect of the National Gallery. It is furnished with every professional capability for prosecuting studies in science and the classics, and for the benefit of persons who, by their religious opinions, were precluded from taking degrees in the

Universities of Oxford and Cambridge. In 1850 the University had on its books 546 graduates, and 810 matriculated undergraduates. The building extends a length of 420 feet, and has a richly-ornamented Corinthian portico, ascended by a flight of steps.

Entering the NEW ROAD, and turning to the left, we reach the REGENT'S PARK, a spacious and admirably-designed enclosure, consisting of about 400 acres, occupying the site of Old Marylebone Fields. The park and the surrounding crescents were laid out in 1812, from a plan by Nash, and the ornamental plantations, and the broad sweeping avenues that intersect the green sward in all directions, were further improved and extended in 1833 and 1838. Around are terraces of striking architectural magnificence, and the outer road forms an agreeable drive of nearly three miles in length; whilst the enclosure, with its broad and shaded avenues, its smoothly gravelled walks, its soft green turf, its rows of stately trees, its pleasant vistas, and the zone of noble mansions by which it is engirdled, is a rare boon to the pedestrian; and of which, as the poorest shares its privileges with the wealthiest, the Londoner may well be proud. At the south end of the park is the COLOSSEUM, one of the most popular exhibitions in the metropolis, and built by Decimus Burton in 1824. From the moment the visitor enters the building, until he retires, the scene presented is the most varied and pleasing that can be imagined. A large portion of this extensive establishment, with an entrance in Albany Street, is devoted to novel mechanical and pictorial effects, under the title of the CYCLORAMA. A little further on, at the north-east corner of the park, is the Gothic structure of ST. KATHERINE'S HOSPITAL, built in 1827, and containing a chapel, six residences for pensioners, and a detached residence for the master. It was originally founded near the Tower by Maude, of Boulogne, the wife of King Stephen, and for centuries did the lowly turrets of St. Katherine attract the gaze and inspire the prayer of the outward-bound mariner, and through many generations was