Egyptian Garden, Biddulph Grange

Written after a visit to Biddulph Grange

 
Bluebirds extend their wings
to flank a jonquil sun
above the entrance.
Twin sphinxes guard this door,
amid neatly clipped yews.

We creep into the mastaba,
spooked by a twilit passage
where it’s difficult to focus.
In the ensanguine chamber ahead
a grotesque figure squats.

Ape, attendant to Thoth,
bathed in blood light awaits –
sculpted in feathered cape  
with oblong buckle fastening.
Long ears frame his hog-like face.
Nostrils flare; mouth grimaces.

Returning down the tunnel
we will rediscover brightness-
yet on the left is a short-cut
up steep stone steps that vanish
into darkness, offering a portal
into the unknown.