A Manual of the Antiquity of Man Part 6

In the cavern of Maccagnone, in Sicily, there were found ashes and rude flint implements in a breccia containing the bones of the elephant (_E.

antiquus_), hyena, a large bear, lion, (probably _F. spelaea_), and large numbers of bones belonging to the hippopotamus. The concrete of ashes had once filled the cavern, and a large piece of bone breccia was still cemented to the roof.

The vast number of hippopotamuses implies that the physical condition of the country was different from what it is at present. The bone breccia cemented to the roof, and coated with stalagmite, testifies that the cave, at some time since the formation of the breccia, has been washed out. The exact time of the formation of this breccia cannot be given, but, in all probability, not long after the extinction of the cave-bear, if not before.

The cave or grotto of Aurignac, in which the seventeen human skeletons were found, was carefully examined by Lartet eight years after its discovery. The recess was formed in nummulitic limestone. In front of the grotto, and next to the limestone (_c_, Fig. 12) was a layer of ashes and charcoal, eight inches thick, containing hearth-stones, works of art, and broken, burned, and gnawed bones of extinct and recent mammalia. Immediately above this layer (_d_) was another, of made ground, two feet thick, extending into the grotto; and its contents similar to the other, save that within the grotto were found a few human bones. The grotto was closed by a slab, and the made earth without was covered by a talus of rubbish (_e_), washed down from the hill above.

In these layers were found not less than one hundred flint instruments, consisting of knives, projectiles, sling-stones, chips, and a stone made for the purpose of modelling the flints. The bone implements were barbless arrows, a well-shaped and sharply pointed bodkin made of the horn of the roe-deer, and other tools made of reindeer horn. Besides these there were found eighteen small round and flat plates, of a white sh.e.l.ly substance, made of some species of c.o.c.kle (_cardium_), pierced through the middle; also the tusk of a young cave-bear, the crown of which had been carved in imitation of the head of a bird.

The following is a list of the different species found in the layers, together with the approximate number of individuals belonging to each:

I.--CARNIVORA.

Number of Individuals.

1. Cave Bear (_U. Spelaeus_) 5-6 2. Brown Bear (_U. arctos_) 1 3. Badger (_Meles taxus_) 1-2 4. Polecat (_Putorius vulgaris_) 1 5. Cave Lion (_Felis spelaea_) 1 6. Wild Cat (_Felis Catus ferus_) 1 7. Hyena (_H. spelaea_) 5-6 8. Wolf (_Canis lupus_) 3 9. Fox (_C. vulpes_) 18-20

II.--HERBIVORA.

1. Mammoth (_E. primigenius_) Two molars and an astragalus.

2. Rhinoceros (_R. tichorrhinus_) 1 3. Horse (_Equus caballus_) 12-15 4. a.s.s (_E. asinus_) 1 5. Boar (_Sus scrofa_) Two incisors.

6. Stag (_Cervus elephas_) 1 7. Gigantic Irish Deer (_Megaceros Hibernicus_) 1 8. Roebuck (_C. capreolus_) 3-4 9. Reindeer (_C. tarandus_) 10-12 10. Aurochs (_Bison Europaeus_) 12-15

The bones on the outside of the grotto were found to be split open, as if for the extraction of the marrow, and many of them burned. The spongy parts were wanting, having been gnawed off by the hyenas.

M. Lartet came to the conclusion that this grotto was a place of sepulchre, and the broken or split bones were the remnants of the funeral feasts. This he argued from the fact that the bones within the grotto were not split, broken or gnawed, save the astragalus of the mammoth. This meat was placed in the grotto, probably as an offering to the dead. The bones without the cave were sc.r.a.ped, and while the men were yet engaged in the funeral feast, the hyenas prowled about the spot, and at the close of the banquet, devoured the flesh that remained. The slab in front of the cave debarred their entrance, and consequently the bones and human remains within were left untouched.

The observations made by M. Cartailhac, in 1870, lead to different conclusions. On close inspection, he discovered a difference in the color of the walls of the cave, indicating that the lower deposit was of a yellow color, and the next above of a much lighter tint. In the crevices of the lower he found a tooth of the rhinoceros, one of the reindeer, and some fractured bones of the cave-bear. In the higher deposit occurred some small bones of living animals and of man, and a fragment of pottery. From these evidences, M. Cartailhac inferred that the lower deposits of the grotto corresponded with that outside of it, and the layer containing human bones was formed at a subsequent time.

That this grotto was a place of resort at a very early period is proven from the numerous remains of the cave-bear. This animal was one of the first of those great post-tertiary mammalia to become extinct. The exact position of the remains of the reindeer is not given. If its bones were intermixed with the others and found in the lowest as well as the other layers, it would indicate that the climate was not very warm during the deposit of the layers, but to have been similar to that of Switzerland of the present day. The probability is, the reindeer bones did not occur in the lowest layer, and hence that layer was formed during the tropical climate, and the reindeer bones and human skeletons were consigned to the grotto about the close of the inter-glacial, or beginning of the reindeer epoch.

The fossil man of Denise, taken from an old volcanic tuff, must be a.s.signed to this period, since there have been found, in similar blocks of tuff in the same region, the remains of the cave-hyena and hippopotamus major. This fossil man consists of a frontal part of the skull, the upper jaw, with teeth, belonging to both an adult and young individual; a radius, some lumbar vertebrae, and some metatarsal bones.

The tuff is light and porous, and none of the bones penetrate into the more compact rock.

In the rubbish heap, or reindeer station, at the source of the Schusse, there were discovered more than six hundred split flints, with a quant.i.ty of partly worked antlers and bones of the reindeer. The bones were so numerous that Mr. Oscar Fraas was enabled to put together a complete skeleton of the reindeer which is now preserved in the museum of Stuttgart. Most of the bones were split open for the purpose of extracting the marrow. There were numerous remains of fishes, and a fish-hook manufactured from reindeer horn. There were also the bones of other animals, such as the glutton, arctic fox, and other animals now living in high northern lat.i.tudes.

Speaking of this station, Dr. Buchner says, "Not only the careful investigations of the geognostic conditions of the place, but also the flora of the time (for remains of mosses were found which now live only in the extreme north), leave no doubt that the reindeer station on the Schusse belongs to the glacial epoch, or that it probably belongs exactly to the interval between the two glacial epochs which in all probability Switzerland has experienced. Mr. E. Desor declared this deposit to be _the terminal moraine of the Rhine-glacier_, which was formerly very large. Moreover, according to him, this discovery is particularly remarkable, because it is the first example of a station of the reindeer-men in a free and open deposit, their remains having hitherto been found only in caves."[62]

From the remarks of Dr. Buchner, the great number of bones of the reindeer, and some show of advancement in the arts, it may be safe to conclude that this station belongs to the close of the inter-glacial.

CHAPTER VII.

CONDITION OF MAN IN THE INTER-GLACIAL.

The Inter-Glacial period continued a great length of time, covering many thousands of years.

Man is an improvable being, and some advancement may be expected in his condition. His mode of life, and continued conflicts with the fierce wild beasts, would tax his every device. Necessity compelled him to be inventive. The limited, b.e.s.t.i.a.l mind which he possessed, could not grapple with the higher problems of existence. United efforts and fortified places were beyond his thoughts. Those old axes of flint were great objects to his mind, and one step beyond them was a great stride in progress. That they developed but little cannot be wondered at, not only from their low type, but also from the knowledge that even in the era of history there are nations whose civilization has become fixed and stereotyped for ages; others, who, instead of advancing, have been retrograding.

The impulse given by the rigors of glacial times acted beneficially throughout this period. The rude axes and flints were retained, but improvements were made in utilizing the bones and horns of animals. Out of these, bodkins, fish-hooks, and arrow-heads were made. The teeth of wild animals were perforated, and, along with corals and sh.e.l.ls, were used for ornaments. The caverns, used as dwelling-places, being dest.i.tute of water, this necessary of life was supplied and carried thither in rude vessels made of clay and dried in the sun. The arrows, flint knives, and axes were used for killing and skinning the animals, splitting the bones containing the marrow, shaping the bone implements, felling trees, and stripping the bark, which was used at times for clothing, after having been softened by beating. He commenced the art of engraving, as is witnessed by a sketch of the great cave-bear wrought on a curious stone found in the cave of Ma.s.sat (Ariege), the bird's head formed from the bone of a cave-bear, at Aurignac, and other examples.

The lower jaw-bones of the cave-bear and cave-lion, in the shape of hoes, used for digging roots, were found in the caves of Lherm and in Bouicheta. He made hearth-stones, and on them cooked his food. That he paid honors to the dead, and sheltered them from the ravages of beasts of prey, at present, must remain an open question. If he did, it might seem to imply that he had a religious nature. But when it is considered that he was very low in the scale of existence, it may be inferred that this was done, if done at all, to propitiate an evil genius. Or it may be a faint idea of a ghost state and that these feasts were made to dissuade the ghost from molesting him. That they had a conception of a Supreme Ruler, or a number of G.o.ds who ruled for the good of man, would be too preposterous to believe.

Professor Denton has given a description of primeval time which, by a little change, would represent inter-glacial times: "The seasons are fairly established; and spring follows winter, and fall summer, as now; though the summer is longer and warmer than we are accustomed to see in those countries at the present time, and the winters colder. The country is covered with dense forests, through which ramble mighty elephants in herds, with immense curved tusks, coats of long, s.h.a.ggy hair, and flowing manes.... Shuffling along comes the great cave-bear from his rocky den--as large as a horse: fierce, s.h.a.ggy, conscious of his strength, he fears no adversary. Crouched by a bubbling spring lies the cave-tiger (_Felis spelaea_); and, as the wild cattle come down to drink, he leaps upon the back of one, and a terrible combat ensues. It is as large as an elephant, and its horns of enormous size; and even cave-tigers could not always master such cattle as they.

"Are these the highest forms of life that the country contains? What being is that sitting on yon fallen tree? His long arms are in front of his hairy body, and his hands between his knees; while his long legs are dangling down. His complexion is darker than an Indian's; his beard short, and like the hair of his body; the unkempt hair of his head is bushy and thick; his eyebrows are short and crisp; and with his sloping forehead and brutal countenance, he seems like the caricature of a man, rather than an actual human being.

"Beneath the shade of a spreading chestnut we may behold a group--one old man ... and women and children, lounging and lying upon the ground.

How dirty! What forbidding countenances!--more like furies than women.

One young man, with a stone axe, is separating the bark from a neighboring tree. Others, agile as monkeys, are climbing the trees, and pa.s.sing from branch to branch, as they gather the wild fruit that abounds on every side. Some are catching fish in the shallows of the river, and yell with triumph as they hold their captives by the gills, dragging them to the sh.o.r.e."[63]

They have improved their language, and instead of the rude signs and undistinguishable sounds of the glacial, may now be heard short, but occasional sentences, which were the forerunners of the polished tongues of modern Europe.

CHAPTER VIII.

REINDEER EPOCH.

The glaciers, to a limited extent, have again advanced. The gigantic animals of the past age have either disappeared or are fast becoming extinct. The great cave-bear, cave-lion, cave-hyena, mammoth, and woolly-haired rhinoceros have almost become extinct. They have given way to a less fierce and less gigantic fauna. The advance of the glaciers is announced by the numerous herds of reindeer which are overrunning the forests of Western Europe, and extending as far south as the Pyrenees.

In the forests there now existed the horse, bison, wild bull (_Bos primigenius_), musk-ox, elk, deer, chamois, ibex, beaver, hamster-rat, lemming, and many others. These animals were capable of withstanding and flouris.h.i.+ng in a rigorous climate. When the glaciers were again broken up and the climate became warmer, the reindeer, musk-ox, elk, chamois, wild-goat, hamster-rat, and lemming retired to the high northern lat.i.tudes in close proximity to the snow, or else to the lofty summits of great mountain-chains.

The evidences of the antiquity of the reindeer epoch, and that it immediately followed the inter-glacial, are numerous. The vast number of the reindeer bones and horns attest to a distinct epoch, and by the remains of arctic animals, as well as the traces of glaciers, the climate must have been unlike that of the present time. The remains of the mammoth, cave-bear, and cave-lion, would not only connect this period with the inter-glacial, but also prove that a few stragglers continued to exist, at least for a short period, after the reindeer epoch had begun. That this epoch was earlier than the Swiss lake-villages, or Danish sh.e.l.l mounds, may be shown by the weapons or implements which point to a more primitive people, the absence of the remains of the dog, and, also, by the absence of the remains of the reindeer in the sh.e.l.l-mounds.

There are no means, yet discovered, by which it can be told how long this epoch lasted. It lasted a sufficient length of time to permit the reindeer to increase greatly its species.

_Evidences of the Existence of Man._--M. Christy and M. Lartet examined in conjunction the caves of Central and Southern France. Those which have been most carefully examined are ten in number, and belong to the Department of Dordogne. At Perigord there seems to have been quite a settlement, judging by the number of caves and stations, the princ.i.p.al ones being Les Eyzies, La Madeleine, Laugerie-Haute, and Laugerie-Ba.s.se.

At Les Eyzies there were found a flint bodkin and a bone needle used for sewing, a barbed arrow made of reindeer horn and still fixed in a bone, a flint whistle made from the first joint of the foot of the reindeer, and two slabs of schist, on both of which were scratched animal forms, but deficient in any special characteristic.

At La Madeleine there were found a geode very large and very thick, which, it is supposed, was used for a cooking vessel, as one side of it had been subjected to fire; an engraving of a reindeer on the horn of that animal; on another horn the carved outlines of two fishes, one on either side; a representation of an ibex on the palm of a horn; on another, a very curious group, consisting of an eel, a human figure, and two horses' heads. A slab of ivory, broken into five pieces, had an outline sketch of the mammoth (Fig. 13). This was so accurately drawn that the small eye, curved tusks, huge trunk, and the abundant mane, could readily be distinguished. There was also found, on an arrow-head, the figure of a tadpole.

There were workshops at Laugerie-Haute and Laugerie-Ba.s.se, where weapons and utensils were manufactured; and they are noted for the abundance of instruments made of reindeer horn. Among the works of art found at the latter station may be mentioned, the stiletto, needle, spoon made in the shape of rods tapering off at one end and hollow in the middle, staff of authority, whistle, and harpoon, all from the horn of the reindeer. On the head of a staff of authority is carved a mammoth's head; there is a representation of the hind-quarters of some herbivorous animal, sketched out with a bold and practiced touch; an animal's head, with ears laid back, and of considerable length, is carved on a round shaft of reindeer horn. It cannot be determined for what purpose this shaft was intended, but as the other end was pointed, and provided with a lateral hook, it may have been the harpoon of some chief. On a slab of slate was drawn, in outline, a reindeer fight. On a fragment of a spear-head there is a series of human hands, provided with four fingers only, and represented in demi-relief. The delineations of fish are princ.i.p.ally on wands of authority--on one of which is a series following one another.

[Ill.u.s.tration: FIG. 13. SKETCH OF A MAMMOTH, GRAVEN ON A SLAB OF IVORY FROM LA MADELEINE.]

The cave and _rock shelters_ of Bruniquel (Tarn-et-Garonne) have been carefully examined by competent explorers. These relics are so numerous that M. de Lastic, the proprietor of the cavern, sold to the agent of the British Museum fifteen hundred specimens, of every description, which had been found on his property. In the cave there were found, engraved on a bone, a perfectly recognizable horse's head and the head of a reindeer, and daggers made of ivory and bone, on which were representations of the above-mentioned animals. The engravings are mostly on the horn of the reindeer. The cave has also furnished two almost perfect human skulls, and two half-jaw bones which resemble the Moulin-Quignon.

The _rock-shelters_ are overhanging rocks, under the projections of which man found a shelter and built his rude dwellings of boughs and sticks. In these shelters have been found fire-hearths, fish-hooks made of splinters of bone, saws made of flint, a complete sketch of the mammoth engraved on reindeer horn, the hilt of a dagger carved in the shape of a reindeer, the cave-lion, engraved with great clearness, on a fragment of a staff of authority, and two daggers made of ivory.

In the excavations which were made in the rock-shelters, was found a quant.i.ty of human bones, including two skulls--one of an old man, the other that of an adult.

The cave of Gourdan (Haute-Garonne) contained the largest collection of implements of bone and horn ever discovered. The stones and reindeer horns are carved with great care, and indicate a high degree of artistic taste. There are sketches made of the reindeer, stag, chamois, goat, bison, horse, wolf, boar, monkey, badger, antelope, fishes, and birds, and also the representations of some plants. In the lowest layer of the soil the most perfect works occur, and they grow less as the surface is approached. Several of those implements called "batons of command"

occurred, ornamented with animals' heads. On the rib of a horse was carved an antelope, and on the bone of a bird various figures--plants, reindeer, and a fish. This cave was made the subject of a report by M.

Piette before the Paris Anthropological Society.