Art: Secret Garden

To most people, the vast geometry of the pyramids and the Great Sphinx's weather-blunted face are all that loom above the mist surrounding Egyptian art. For those who cared to look deeper, U.S. bookstores last week were peddling a thin volume of brilliant photographs titled Egyptian Art (Golden Griffin; $8). Along with its pictures, the book boasted a running commentary by Etienne Drioton, a French priest and scholar who is also director of the Cairo Museum's Department of Egyptian Antiques.

Naked Majesty. Egyptian art, Drioton says, is "a secret garden." His text lucidly describes a few of its finest flowers.

At the bottom...

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