Children of the Storm - Elizabeth Peters [56]
I reminded myself that it would not have seemed that way to the ancient inhabitants, when the houses were intact and the streets were crowded with people bustling about on various errands, their voices raised in cheery greetings—and, people being what they are, acrimonious arguments. Though crowded close together, the dwellings were comfortable enough for their time; the basic plan consisted of several rooms, including reception room and kitchen, with sometimes a cellar for storage. Windows were limited, but the flat roof served as an airy retreat. There are few village sites in Egypt, and we were fortunate to have the firman for this one. To Emerson’s everlasting credit, he had tackled the job with his usual energy and dedication; but I knew that in his heart he yearned for temples and tombs. Candidly, so did I. If his explosive temper had not led to a falling-out with M. Maspero . . .
But no, I told myself, again giving Emerson his due; it was not entirely his fault. Most of the interesting sites in Thebes had been allocated to other expeditions, and Lord Carnarvon was unlikely to give up his firman for the Valley of the Kings. He was a gracious gentleman, but my hints had had not the slightest effect on him.
It immediately became apparent that Emerson had paid no attention whatever to my little lecture the previous evening. Instead of allowing the others time for their own activities, he had determined to set a second crew to work in another area outside the village itself. I bit my lip with vexation as he outlined his intentions and issued his orders. Walter, looking a trifle bewildered, went off with Selim to continue excavating along the village street. Emerson led the rest of us toward the temple, lecturing all the while.
The Ptolemaic temple was surrounded by an enclosure wall of mud brick. This common, convenient building material is remarkably resistant to the destructive forces of time and nature; in some places the walls had survived to a height of almost twenty feet. They enclosed not only the later temple, which was fairly well-preserved, but the tumbled ruins of earlier shrines that had been built by the villagers for their devotions. The remains of other such structures lay outside the walls, to the north and west. Some of our incompetent predecessors had dug pits in that area, finding nice little votive stelae and other objects. It was Emerson’s intention to clear the entire area methodically and completely. It presented a challenge even to Emerson’s powers.
“What a mess,” Lia murmured, her eyes moving over the ground.
“Precisely,” said Emerson. He rolled up his sleeves. “We’ll take it in meter-square sections, starting . . . here. Ramses and David, help me get the markers placed.”
During the weeks when we had been removing the artifacts from the tomb we had been swamped with visitors hoping for a glimpse of the treasure. The effrontery of certain people never ceases to amaze me; some had offered bribes to our men, while others had actually forced their way past our guards and tried to snatch off the coverings that protected the more fragile objects. Emerson had dealt with them in his usual forthright manner. Now that there was nothing to see except a group of grubby people digging, the flood had slowed. However, some tourists came that way, since the temple was mentioned in Baedeker. I did not suppose they would cause us much trouble; the tumble of stones held little attraction and the dragomen who led the parties knew better than to get in Emerson’s way.
Nevertheless, I deemed it advisable to keep an eye on them, so I was the first to see a somewhat unusual