1。Stonejavelin-headwithhandle。2。Stonehatchetwithhandle。
Otherhatchets,chieflythoseofasmallsize,werefixedintosheathsmadeofstag-horn,andtwochieftypesofthemhaveactuallybeenmadeout。[90]Thesheathsofthefirsttypeareshortandendinquadrangularbeads。TheyarefoundmostfrequentlyinSwitzerland,inthebasinsoftheRhoneandoftheSaone,andthroughoutthesouthofFrance。Thoseofthesecondtypearepiercedwithaholelargeenoughtopassthehandlethrough。ThesearefoundinthenorthwestofFrance,inBelgium,andinEngland。
Flintarrowsoftriangularorovalform,notchedorstalked,wereeverywhereusedforaconsiderablelengthoftime。TheyarefoundinthenumerouscavesofFrance,beneaththeANTASofPortugal,inthetombsofMykenae,aswellasamongtheAinosofJapanandthePatagoniansofSouthAmerica。Theirusenecessarilyinvolvesthatofabow,yetwedonotknowofasingleweaponsuchasthat,orofonethatcouldtakeitsplace,datingfromPaleolithictimes。Probablytherapiddecompositionofthewoodofwhichbowsweremadehasledtotheirdisappearance。DeMortillet[91]mentionsabowfoundinapile-dwellinginabognearRobenhausen,whichheascribestotheNeolithicperiod。AnotherisknownwhichwasfoundatLutz,alsoinSwitzerland。Toallappearancethemostancientbowsofhistorictimesgreatlyresemblethesetwoprehistoricexamples。
ThoughflintwasthematerialparexcellenceofQuaternarytimesforweaponsandtools,itcouldnotlongsufficefortheever-growingneedsofman。Ourmuseumscontainacompleteseriesofboneorstag-hornimplementssuchasdarts,arrow-heads,barbedarrows,harpoons,fibulae,andfinelycutneedlesoftenpiercedwitheyesFig。22。Theinventionofbarbsisworthyofspecialnotice;theseriesofpointsmadetheblowmuchmoredangerous,astheprojectileremainedinthefleshofawoundedanimalwhichwasnotabletogetitout。Butthiswasnottheonlyobjectofthebarbs。Arrangedsymmetricallyoneithersideofthearrowtheykeptitafloatintheairlikethewingsofabird,whichmayperhapshavesuggestedtheiruseandincreasedtheeffectandprecisionoftheshot。
10。Oneendofabow?。
11。Arrow-head。FromtheVache,Massat,andLourdescaves。
TheMarsoulasCavehasyieldedonebevelledarrowshaft,madeofreindeerantler,withadeepgrooveonthesurface。Asimilararrow-headwasfoundinthePacardCave,andinotherplacesarrowshavebeenfoundwithoneormoregroovesonthesurface。Werethesegroovesordrillsintendedtoholdpoison,andwasmanalreadyacquaintedwiththismelancholyDiodeofdestruction?Weknowthattheuseofpoisonwasknownatthemostremotehistoricantiquity。[92]
TheGreeksandScythiansusedthevenomoftheviper,andotherpeoplesemployedvegetablepoisons。Thereisnothingtopreventourbelievingthatsimilarmethodswereinuseinprehistorictimes。
FIGURE23
Amuletmadeofthepenienboneofabear,andfoundintheMarsoulasCave。
ThereisnodoubtthatitisthecavesofthesouthofFrancewhichhaveyieldedthemostinterestingobjects;needleswithdrilledeyes,andbarbedarrowshavebeenpickedupinconsiderablenumbersatEyzies,Laugerie-Basse,atBruniquel,Massat,andintheMadeleineCave。Dr。GarrigoumentionssomereindeerorroebuckantlersfoundinAriegecaves,whichhadbeenmadeintoregularstilettos。InthedepositsatLafayewerefouledstilettosorbodkins,varyinginlengthfromtwotosixinches;needlesmeasuringfromnineteentoonehundredandfivemillimetresandprovidedwitheyes;atMarsoulaswerefoundanamuletmadeofthepenienboneofabearFig。23,somependants,andsomepointedpiecesofbonewhichastonishusbythedelicacyoftheirworkmanship,andthedrawingswithwhichtheywereadorned。
VariousstoneandboneobjectsfromCalifornia。
AtPaviland,Dr。Bucklanddiscoveredawolfbonecuttoapoint。Kent’sHoleyieldedanumberofneedlesresemblingthoseoftheMadeleineCave;atAggtelekHungarywerefoundsomebonesofthecave-bearpointedtoserveasdaggers,cutintoscrapersorpiercedtoserveasamuletsorornaments。InBelgium,objectsverysimilartothesehavebeenfoundmadeofreindeerantleranddatingfromthemostremotetimes。Theantlersmoultedbythereindeerinthespringwereinespecialrequest。
ExcavationsinthesepulchralmoundsnearSanFranciscoCalifornia
haveyieldedthousandsofboneimplementsFig。24。OtherssimilartothemhavebeenfoundinthelayersofcindersatMadisonvilleOhioandbeneaththenumerouskitchen-middingsofthecoastsoftheAtlanticandPacific。
Theprocessesemployedbythecave-menwereverysimple。Inoneoftheexcavationssuperintendedbyhim,M。Dupont[93]pickeduptheradiusofahorsebearingsymmetricallymadeincisionsexecutedwithaviewtogettingoffsplintersofthebone。Thesesplinterswereroundedbyrubbingeitherwithchipsofflint,oronsuchpolishersasaretobeseeninanyofthemuseums;thenoneendwassharpened,andtheother,ifneedwere,piercedwithahole。Itisastonishingtofindsomeofthemasfineasthesteelneedlesofthepresentday,andwithperfectlyroundeyesmadewiththehelpofnothingbutaroughflint,andtherewouldstillbesomedoubtonthesubject,ifM。Lartet[
hadnotobtainedexactlysimilarresultsbyworkingonfragmentsofbonewiththeflintshehadfouledintheseexcavations。Otherexperimentsofasimilarkindwerenolessconclusive,forMerk[95]
perforatedallivoryplaquewithapointedflintwhichheusedasagimlet。
Someobjects,whicharesupposedtodatefromNeolithictimes,bearwitnesstoanaltogetherunexpecteddegreeofcivilization。IntheheartofGermany,inthepeat-bogsofLaybachandWorbzigonthebanksoftheSaale,havebeenfoundearthenwarespoonsoftheshapeofmodernspatulae;atGeraffinonLakeBienne,afinelyshapedspoonmadeofthewoodofayewtree;andatLagozza,anotherinshiningblackearthenware。LartethadalreadybroughttolightaboneimplementcoveredwithornamentsinreliefwhichheascribedtothePalaeolithicperiod,andwhichheimaginedhadbeenusedforextractingmarrow;andanotherarchaeologisttellsofobjectsinreindeerantlerfoundintheGourdanCave,whichhethinkswereusedforasimilarpurpose。IntheSaint-GermainMuseumarepreservedtheremainsofspoonsfromthebedoftheSeine,andinthecollectionsofEnglandarefragmentsofbonetakenfrombeneaththeWest-Kennetdolmen,whichwereallprobablyemployedforextractingmarrow。Butthemostimportantdiscoveryofall,whichleavesnodoubtonthesubject,isthatmadebyM。PerraultattheChasseyCamp,nearChalon-sur-Saone,beneathahearthdatingfromNeolithictimes。Hecollectedfourteenearthenwarespoons;oneofthemofaroundshapeandremarkableforitssize,wasunfortunatelybrokenFig。25。Itisofbrownearthenwarewitharatherroughsurfacemixedwithbitsofflint,andissomuchwornthatithadevidentlybeeninusealongtime。Lastlytwospoons,alsoofearthenware,haverecentlybeenfoundnearDondasLot-et-Garonne。Theuseofspoons,whichcertainlymarkedconsiderableprogress,mustthereforehavespreadrapidly。
DipperfoundintheexcavationsattheChasseyCamp。
Longpreviously,however,potteryofagreatvarietyofformborewitnesstotireplasticskillofman。Everywherewefindvesselsofcoarsematerialmixedwithgrainsofsandormicatogivemoreconsistencytothepastewhichwasbakedinthefire,andhadoftennofurtherornamentationthanthemarksofthefingersofthepotter。DoesthispotterydatefromPalaeolithictimes,orweretheearthenwarevesselslateradditionsatthetimeofthosedisturbancesofdepositswhicharethedespairofarchaeologists?Afewexamplesmayenableusbettertoanswerthisquestion。
FraastellsusthatfragmentsofpotteryhavebeenfoundinallthecavesofGermanyinwhichexcavationshavebeenmade。HequotesthatofHohlefels,wherehehimselfpickedupsuchfragmentsamongstthebonesofthemastodon,themammoth,therhinoceros,andthecave-lion,whentheremainsoftheseanimalswereforthefirsttimefoundinGermany。In1872,themakingoftherailwayfromNurembergtoRatisbonbroughttolightacaveofconsiderabledepth。Initslowerdepositswerefoundnothingbutthebonesofhyenas,bears,andlions,ofwhichthecavehadbeentheresortforcenturies。Amongthemostancientdeposits,relicsofasimilarkindwerefoundinabundance,butnowmixedwithnumerousfragmentsofpottery,workedflints,andfishbones,includingthoseofthecarpandthepike,withthebonesofmammals,amongstwhichpredominatedthoseoftherhinoceros,mostofthemintentionallysplitopen。AtArgecilla,twentyleaguesfromMadrid,Vilanovadiscoveredaregularworkshop,inwhichwereknivesandflintarrow-heads,togetherwithsomeveryprimitivepotterymadeofclaythathadevidentlybeenbroughtfromadistance,asthereisnoneinthedistrictinwhichthepotterywasfound,InanupperdepositVilanovacollectedmorethantwohundredimplementsmadeofdiorite,arockfrequentlyusedinSpain,someveryremarkableceltsofserpentinedatingfromtheNeolithicperiod,andnumerousfragmentsofverydelicatepottery。Notfaroffhediscoveredanotherworkshop,containingsomeveryfinehatchetsperfectlypolished,andsomekeramicwaretastilyornamented。Theprogressmadeisasmarkedintheweaponsandtoolsasinthepottery。
WehavealsoseensomefragmentsofearthenwarefromthecavesofChiampoandLaglio,nearLakeComo,andfromthatknownastheCavedeiColombi,intireislandofPalmaria,whichwasoccupiedshortlybeforetheNeolithicperiod。ButitisBelgiumwhichyieldsthemostdecisiveproofonthissubject,andavisittotheBrusselsMuseumisenoughtoconvincethemostincredulous。TheexcavationsmadeunderM。DupontinthecavesoftheMeuseandtheLessehaveagainandagainbroughttolightfragmentsofpottery,associatedwiththebonesofPalaeolithicanimals。Schmerling,too,hadalreadyfoundsimilarfragmentsintheEngisCave,mixedwithflintweaponsoftherudestdescription;andhisdiscoverieshavebeenstrikinglyconfirmedbythoserecentlymadeatSpy,nearNamur,[96]andbyothersmadebyM。Fraipont。[97]InportionsofthissameEngisCavenotpreviouslyexploredthelearnedprofessorofLiegefound,in1887,fragmentsofavaseofovoidform,someflintsoftheMousterientype,andsomebonesofextinctmammals。MostofthepotteryintheBrusselsMuseumisblackandofprimitivemake;somefewfragments,however,areoffinishedworkmanship。Wemaymentionespeciallyanovoidvase,remarkableforitssizeandforitslateralprojections。Thisvase,whichishand-modelled,camefromtheFrontalCave;theclayisofblackishhuemixedwithlittlebitsofcalcareousspar。M。Ordinaire,Vice-ConsulforFranceatCallao,speaksoftheCAYANESorMACAHUAS,whichareearthenwarebasinsofgreatsymmetryofform,madebytheComboswomen,withoutturningwheelsormillsofanykind。ThoughtheelegantshapeoftheFrontalandothervasesatfirstsurprisesus,reflectionconvincesusthatmenwhocouldcutstoneswithsuchrareskillwouldcertainlybeabletoproduceequallygoodpottery。
PotteryofasofarunclassifiedtypefoundintheArgentCaveFrance。
SimilarinstancesmayeasilybequotedfromFrance。ExcavationsatSolutrehaveyieldedseveralfragmentsofyellow,hand-madepotteryveryinsufficientlybaked;andotherpieceshavebeenfoundinthepeat-bogsofBastidedeBearnwiththebonesofreindeer,andworkedflintssimilartothosefoundinQuaternarydeposits。WemayaddthatatLafaye,Bize,andPondreHainaultdiscoveriesweremadeofpotterymixedwithhumanremainsandwiththoseofanimalsnowextinct;
andintheArgentCaveBasses-Alpesanewtype,showninFig。26,hasbeenfoundwhichmeritsspecialattention。IntheveryearliestdaysofprehistoricresearchtheNabrigasCaveLozerewasexcavatedbyM。Joly,whofoundinitmanyfragmentsofpottery。Inavolumepublishedshortlybeforehisdeathherelatesthecircumstancesofhisdiscovery,andearnestlymaintainsitsauthenticity。Laterexcavations,madeunderthedirectionofmastersinprehistoricscience,wouldhavethrownsomedoubtsontheassertionsmadebytheprofessorofToulouse,ifMM。MartelandLaunayhadnotbroughtforwardafreshproofinsupportofit。“Onthe30thAugust,1885,“[98]theysay,“wepickedupatNabrigasinadeephole,untouchedbypreviousexcavationsandnotdisplacedbywater,somehumanbonesandapieceofpotterysidebysidewithtwoskeletonsofURSUSSPELAEUS。Thehumanbones,ofindeterminaterace,includedanupperleftmaxillary,stillretainingthreeteeth,anincompletemastoidapophysis,andsevenpiecesofcrania,belongingtodifferentindividuals。Thepieceofpotteryonlymeasuredoneandahalfbytwoandaquarterinches;theclayisgrayandfriable,boundtogetherwithbigbitsofquartz,mica,andafewparticlesofcharcoal。“Therewouldappeartobenosufficientreasontoquestiontheexactnessofadiscoverysocarefullystudied。
Manyeminentarchaeologists,however,maintainthatpotterywascompletelyunknowninPaleolithictimes,andtheydonothesitatetoattributetoalaterperiodanydepositinwhichitoccurswhereitspresencecannotbeaccountedforbylaterdisplacements。M。CartailhacdeclaresthathehasneverbeenabletoestablisheitherinthesouthofFranceorinthecentraltable-landasinglefactwhichjustifiesusinassertingthatthemenoftheReindeer