Preface

by the Editor.

This Egyptian Masonry Egyptian Masonry: Likely a reference to the "Egyptian Rite" of Freemasonry, which became popular in the late 18th century. The author suggests this version is academic and harmless rather than subversive. is too innocent for any Court of the Inquisition The Inquisition was still a potent symbol of censorship and intellectual repression in the 1790s; the author is playfully asserting that the book contains nothing heretical. to justify burning it. —

A well-ordered arrangement of explanations regarding the most prominent symbols or hieroglyphs of the Egyptians constitutes the content of this small volume. It will certainly not fail in its goal of expanding useful and beautiful concepts In the 18th-century context, "concepts" (Begriffe) refers to the refinement of the reader's knowledge and aesthetic judgment., as it [proceeds] in such an... The original German sentence breaks mid-word with "an-", likely continuing as "pleasant" or "appealing" on the following page.