Note 128 — Chapter XVIII · DISCOVERIES AT ABOU SIMBEL.

It was long believed that the Egyptians were ignorant of the principle of the arch. This, however, was not the case. There are brick arches of the time of Rameses II behind the Ramesseum at Thebes and elsewhere. Still, arches are rare in Egypt. We filled in and covered the arch again, and the greater part of the staircase in order to preserve the former.