In their operations the architects came upon a beautiful little edifice of rose granite, which had been either erected or restored by Thutmosis III. at a time when the town was an independent municipality and was only beginning to extend its suburban dwellings to meet those of Karnak.  They took care to make no change in this structure, but set to work to incorporate it into their final plans.  It still stands at the north-west corner of the court, and the elegance of its somewhat slender little columns contrasts happily with the heaviness of the structure to which it is attached.  A portion of its portico is hidden by the brickwork of the mosque of Abu’l Haggag:  the part brought to light in the course of the excavations contains between each row of columns a colossal statue of Ramses II.  We are accustomed to hear on all sides of the degeneracy of the sculptor’s art at this time, and of its having fallen into irreparable neglect.  Nothing can be further from the truth than this sweeping statement.  There are doubtless many statues and bas-reliefs of this epoch which shock us by their crudity and ugliness, but these owed their origin for the most part to provincial workshops which had been at all times of mediocre repute, and where the artists did not receive orders enough to enable them to correct by practice the defects of their education.  We find but few productions of the Theban school exhibiting bad technique, and if we had only this one monument of Luxor from which to form our opinion of its merits, it would be sufficient to prove that the sculptors of Ramses II. were not a whit behind those of Harmham or Seti I. Adroitness in cutting the granite or hard sandstone had in no wise been lost, and the same may be said of the skill in bringing out the contour and life-like action of the figure, and of the art of infusing into the features and demeanour of the Pharaoh something of the superhuman majesty with which the Egyptian people were accustomed to invest their monarchs.  If the statues of Ramses II. in the portico are not perfect models of sculpture, they have many good points, and their bold treatment makes them effectively decorative.

[Illustration:  235.jpg THE COLONNADE OF SETI I. AND THE THREE COLOSSAL STATUES OF RAMSES II.  AT LUXOR]

     Drawn by Faucher-Gudin, from a photograph by Beato.

Eight other statues of Ramses are arranged along the base of the facade, and two obelisks—­one of which has been at Paris for half a century*—­stood on either side of the entrance.

     * The colonnade and the little temple of Thutmosis III. were
     concealed under the houses of the village; they were first
     brought to light in the excavations of 1884-86.