Gustav Adolph Fidelie Van Rhyn

“ The human remains regarded by eminent archæologists and osteologists as the oldest so far discovered are the fragments of the skeleton found in the Neanderthal cavern, near Düsseldorf, Germany; the fragments of a skull from Brüx, Bohemia; similar fragments of the Engis cave near Liége, Belgium; and the skeletons from a tumulus at Borreby, Denmark. The Neanderthal skull resembles that of Brüx, but is so extremely different in appearance from that of Engis, that according to Huxley it might be supposed to belong to a distant race of man- kind. ”

“ The Engis skull was found in one of the numerous bone caves which border the valley of the Meuse, where the remains of a number of human individuals were discovered, mingled with the bones and teeth of extinct quadrupeds, and with rude stone implements. Dupont in 1864 excavated 43 other caves in the valleys of the Lesse and the Meuse, and discovered in 25 of them numerous human remains, which he has divided into the mammoth, the reindeer, and the neolithic or polished stone period. ”

“ Numerous finds of articles belonging to this epoch have also been made in other prehistoric human habitations, and in tombs, in Scandinavia, the British isles, France, Switzerland, and Italy. The Danish bronze swords had hilts firmly fixed to the blade by means of two or more rivets, and some of them were splendidly ornamented. A bronze knife has been found with a handle in the form of a human figure executed with much fidelity. ”

“ In wooded countries the coffin was of wood, and, if the mound is old, perished long ago. Cists were expanded into chambers, to which at a later age passages for access were made. From the chambered tumulus sprung elaborate domed structures of either megalithic or microlithic architecture. The history of megalithic remains begins with the rude stone cists, generally called kistvaens, which by degrees became magnified into chambers, the side stones increasing from 1 ft. ”

“ Many of the implements of these mound builders of the age of copper seem to have been wrought also of a ribbon-marked silicious stone. Squier and Davis found a deposit of obsidian arrowheads in Ohio, and Mr. Perkins one in Wisconsin.—The Iron Epoch. The finds assigned to this epoch consist of instruments of iron or bronze, or of iron combined with bronze instead of stone, articles of silver and lead, specimens of improved pottery, and coins. The most valuable finds have been made in the vast burial ground recently discovered at Hallstadt, near Salzburg, in Austria. ”

“ The exclusive use of stone, bone, &c., for cutting and piercing implements, is in general a criterion of savage culture, though compatible with the settled and comparatively advanced state of the early Swiss lake dwellers. 2. Bronze-making indicates a more advanced and systematic civilization, up to the level of the Mexicans and Peruvians in modern, and the Aryan races in ancient times. ”

“ No implement of iron has been found in connection with the ancient civilizations of America. The mound builders appear to have wrought the rich specular ores of Missouri in the same manner as stone.—Prehistoric Monuments. ”

“ Owen thinks the men of this period were anthropophagists, because human skulls have been found mixed up with sculptured flints, remains of pottery, and children's bones on which there seem to be traces of human teeth. ”

“ He proposes to classify finds according to the character of the places where they are made, and especially the degree of art exhibited in the structure of the prehistoric sepulchres from which nearly all the antiquarian objects have been taken. He maintains that the peculiarities of the mode of honoring the dead distinguish the races of mankind as definitely as speech. ”

“ In these caverns, and sometimes also on the surface of the ground or buried in it, have been found large quantities of chipped flints, arrowheads, and various stone implements, to all of which archæologists usually give the common name of hatchets. The commonest of the worked flints is the almond-shaped type. These instruments are oval hatchets carefully chipped all over the surface so as to form a cutting edge. ”

“ Those of the first class represent externally the passages in tumuli which lead to the central chamber, but it is difficult to divine the use of the avenues which are not attached to circles and do not lead to any important monuments. ”

“ They frequently enclose also dolmens, either standing on the level plain or on tumuli; but they are often found enclosing nothing that can be seen above ground. It is believed that the larger circles, more than 100 ft. ”