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First of all, therefore, he built the gateway of the temple of
Minerva at Sais, which is an astonishing work, far surpassing all
other buildings of the same kind both in extent and height, and built
with stones of rare size and excellency. In the next place, he
presented to the temple a number of large colossal statues and several
prodigious andro-sphinxes, besides certain stones for the repairs, of
a most extraordinary size. Some of these he got from the quarries over
against Memphis, but the largest were brought from Elephantine,
which is twenty days' voyage from Sais. Of all these wonderful
masses that which I most admire is a chamber made of a single stone,
which was quarried at Elephantine. It took three years to convey this
block from the quarry to Sais; and in the conveyance were employed no
fewer than two thousand labourers, who were all from the class of
boatmen. The length of this chamber on the outside is twenty-one
cubits, its breadth fourteen cubits, and its height, eight. The
measurements inside are the following: the length, eighteen cubits and
five-sixths; the breadth, twelve cubits; and the height, five. It
lies near the entrance of the temple, where it was left in consequence
of the following circumstance: it happened that the architect, just as
the stone had reached the spot where it now stands, heaved a sigh,
considering the length of time that the removal had taken, and feeling
wearied with the heavy toil. The sigh was heard by Amasis who,
regarding it as an omen, would not allow the chamber to be moved
forward any farther. Some, however, say that one of the workmen
engaged at the levers was crushed and killed by the mass, and that this
was the reason of its being left where it now stands.
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