THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY 572 . F453f no. ^^ -3i The person charging this material is re- sponsible for its return to the library from which it was withdrawn on or before the Latest Date stamped below. Theft, mutilation, and underlining of books are reasons for disciplinary action and may result in dismissal from the University. UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS LIBRARY AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 7JL ^3/ Prehistoric Man Hall of the Stone Age of the Old World BY HENRY FIELD Assistant Curator of Physical Anthropology Foreword by Berthold Laufer Curator, Department of Anthropology 8 Plates in Photogravure and 1 Map L!E LIHARY GF THE I 933 ;:rsity of Illinois Anthropology Leaflet 31 FIELD MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY CHICAGO 1933 The Anthropological Leaflets of Field Museum are designed to give brief, non-technical accounts of some of the more interesting beliefs, habits and customs of the races whose life is illustrated in the Museum's exhibits. ANTHROPOLOGICAL LEAFLETS ISSUED TO DATE 1. The Chinese Gateway $ .10 2. Philippine Forge Group 10 3. Japanese Collections 20 4. New Guinea Masks 15 5. The Thunder Ceremony of the Pawnee 20 6. The Sacrifice to the Morning Star by the Skidi Pawnee 10 7. Purification of the Sacred Bundles, a Ceremony of the Pawnee 10 8. Annual Ceremony of the Pawnee Medicine Men . .10 9. The Use of Sago in New Guinea 10 10. Use of Human Skulls and Bones in Tibet ... .10 11. The Japanese New Year's Festival, Games and Pastimes 16 12. Japanese Costume 20 13. Gods and Heroes of Japan 15 14. Japanese Temples and Houses 15 15. Use of Tobacco among North American Indians . .20 16. Use of Tobacco in Mexico and South America . . .15 17. Use of Tobacco in New Guinea and Neighboring Regions 10 18. Tobacco and Its Use in Asia 25 19. Introduction of Tobacco into Europe 25 20. The Japanese Sword and Its Decoration 15 21. Ivory in China 60 22. Insect-Musicians and Cricket Champions of China . .40 23. Ostrich Egg-shell Cups of Mesopotamia and the Ostrich in Ancient and Modern Times ... .30 24. The Indian Tribes of the Chicago Region with Special Reference to the Illinois and the Potawatomi 25 25. The Civilization of the Mayas (Second Edition) . .HO 26. The Early History of Man 25 27. The Giraffe in History and Art 60 28. The Field Museum -Oxford University Expedition to Kish, Mesopotamia, 1923-1929 50 29. Tobacco and Its Use in Africa 25 30. The Races of Mankind 25 31. Prehistoric Man 25 STEPHEN C. SIMMS, Director July. IMS Of lot mmaza of mum vo.3/ THE LIBRARY OF THE CCT 23 1933 UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS CONTENTS PAGE Foreword by Berthold Laufer 3 Preface 5 Introduction 7 The Paleolithic or Old Stone Age 10 The Chellean and Acheulean Periods 10 The Mousterian Period 12 The Aurignacian Period 18 The Solutrean Period 22 The Magdalenian Period 25 The Mesolithic or Transition Period 30 Azilian Culture 31 Tardenoisian Culture 33 Asturian Culture 33 Maglemosean Culture 34 Kitchen Midden Culture 35 Campignian Culture 35 The Neolithic or New Stone Age 37 The Swiss Lake Dwellers 39 Map of Prehistoric Sites 43 Bibliography 44 LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOU Field Museum of Natural History DEPARTMENT OF ANTHROPOLOGY Chicago, 1933 Leaflet Number 31 Copyright 1933 by Field Museum op Natural History FOREWORD A century of progress is being celebrated in Chicago during this summer. While a century may be regarded a considerable span of time in the life of a community, it is just a drop in the ocean compared with the long history of mankind and just an atom in the history of the universe. In the opening of Hall C, which depicts in eight dramatic groups human prehistory from its incipient stages in the Chellean period down to the dawn of re- corded history, we are privileged to celebrate 250 millen- niums or 2,500 centuries of progress — a progress brimming over with the most unusual human interest and tinged with the luring colors of adventure and romance. This reconstruction of man's past extending over a period of 250,000 years is a spectacle never attempted before in any museum of the world. We may bemoan the fact that no historian's pen has chronicled for us the doings and sayings of the Neander- thalers and Cro-Magnons and that we must laboriously restore their life and appearance from more or less for- tuitous remains of mute bone and stone. What is to be regretted much more profoundly, however, is the fact that motion pictures have been invented too late. I would gladly sacrifice all mediaeval local chronicles of European towns and monasteries and throw the lives of the emperors and martyrs for good measure into the bargain in exchange for one contemporaneous motion picture reel taken of the life of the Neanderthalers and Cro-Magnons and a dozen dictaphone records of their speech and songs, not to speak of the gain that would have accrued to our knowledge of 3 4 Field Museum of Natural History history and anthropology if Alexander the Great, on his conquest of Asia, had been accompanied by an army of camera men. The next best to the motion pictures of which we unfortunately are deprived is the drama in eight acts represented by the eight groups of prehistoric man and his culture reconstructed by the incomparable talent of Frederick Blaschke under the direction of Henry Field in Hall C. These restorations are as accurate in detail as warranted by our present knowledge. They are not dogmatic nor doctrinal, nor visionary nor sentimental. On the contrary, one of their beauties is their restraint, their simplicity, and above all, their power of suggestion. The artist who created these enchanting scenes does not try to be original by being different, but is original by being sincere; he takes us into his confidence, he makes us pause, reflect, and speculate, and allows us to turn our thoughts longingly back to eons of time that were still a sealed book to the preceding generation. The man who is able to produce such an effect of inspiration is a real artist and master. Another test of a great work of art is the per- manence of the impression which it is apt to leave on our minds. No one who will spend only a few minutes in front of each of these groups will ever forget them; they live and endure in our memory, and their memory will always urge us with irresistible force to return to them. A new world has been opened here to all of us with plenty of food for thought and study. Berthold Laufer PREFACE Prehistory is the study of prehistoric archaeology, which includes man's cultural and physical development from the earliest stages to the advent of writing. The fluctuations of climate during the various geological phases, together with the development of prehistoric races in various parts of the world and the study of fossilized human remains, also form divisions of this subject. In 1690 a pear-shaped tool, associated with an ele- phant's tooth, was found near Gray's Inn Lane in London. In 1847 Boucher de Perthes published an account of shaped flints collected by him in the alluvial deposits of the Somme in northern France. This was the beginning of the study of prehistory. During the past eighty years discoveries have been made in all parts of the world, although the existence of pre-Indian man has not yet been proved on the American continent. The study of prehistory, as a result of this world-wide quest, has contributed generously to our knowledge of the early history of man. The story of the cultural and physical development of man from approximately a million years ago down to the dawn of history is shown in Hall C. This fascinating story is told by means of a series of eight large groups representing the more important stages in the develop- ment of man, together with a representative series of cultural objects comprising implements of flint and bone, sculptures and engravings, various household articles, and human remains. In order to make the relationship of one period to the following as clear as possible, the objects dealing with each division are exhibited in cases opposite the group portraying that period. The plan for Hall C was completed with the cordial cooperation of many anthropologists, who made numerous suggestions, and in many cases offered their time and 6 Field Museum of Natural History services. Among those who have assisted in the develop- ment of the hall are the Abb£ Henri Breuil, Sir Arthur Keith, Dr. Berthold Laufer, and Professor G. Elliot Smith. The following persons, whose names are arranged alpha- betically, aided the project by generously giving advice: Professor Karel Absolon, Count Begouen, Dr. Johannes Brondsted, Professor Miles Burkitt, Dr. L. H. Dudley Buxton, Miss Gertrude Caton-Thompson, Miss Dorothy Garrod, Dr. William K. Gregory, Dr. Henri Martin, Dr. E. Hillebrand, Mr. and Mrs. Harper Kelley, Dr. R. Lantier, Dr. L. S. B. Leakey, Mr. J. Reid Moir, Professor Theodor Mollison, Dr. Hugo Obermaier, Mr. D. Peyrony, and Professor W. J. Sollas. A generous share in the cost of Hall C has been assumed by Mr. Marshall Field. Other contributors are Mr. Frederick H. Rawson and Mr. Silas H. Strawn. The data for the groups were obtained by Henry Field and Frederick Blaschke during the Marshall Field Archaeological Expedition to Western Europe in 1927. The prehistoric sites were visited in company with the Abbe - Breuil, Henri Barreyre, photographer, and Pierre Gatier, artist. Frederick Blaschke made a scale model for each group, and with the assistance of still and motion pictures, as well as colored sketches, samples of rock, and earth, these restorations were made. The painted back- grounds of the groups are due to the skill of Staff Artist Charles A. Corwin. On exhibition in Hall C there is a series of recon- struction drawings of life in prehistoric times by the late A. Forestier, drawings of Pleistocene fauna by Frans Roubal, colored sketches by P. Cassien, and three oil paintings by Charles R. Knight. The archaeological material was also obtained by Henry Field during the Marshall Field Archaeological Expeditions to Western Europe in 1927, 1928, 1930, and 1932. ■ p H ■ B W M o o 3 OS O W =3 £ 1 o w P .5 d a E § S © iJ 9 o LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS PREHISTORIC MAN INTRODUCTION The story of prehistoric man is hard to trace, since many of the details lie buried in the earth, or are lost beyond recall. Within the past few centuries it was believed that the world was created in 4004 B.C., according to the chronology of Archbishop Ussher (1581-1656), and that man was the result of special creation. At the close of the first third of the twentieth century scientific workers have shown that hundreds of millions of years passed before any animal that could be definitely recognized as human had evolved upon the earth. The study of the animal kingdom, from both living and fossil forms, reveals the fact that long periods are represented by progress from simple one- celled organisms to many-celled, from fish to amphibians, from reptiles to birds and mammals, and so to the most advanced evolutionary product — man. Branching off from the main primate stock several million years ago, our ancestors possessed many characters in common with the anthropoid apes, but, as time passed, the gap between the two branches grew wider. The cradle of man remains an enigma. The data at present available suggest that Asia is probably the continent upon which this differentiation took place. The chain of evi- dence upon which the prehistoric periods have been de- fined in chronological sequence may appear obscure to the layman, but the main facts become clearer as our knowledge increases, while minor details are always sub- ject to revision. Human remains are extremely fragile and even when buried are soon subject to decay. For this reason the chances of preservation are small, and the fossil remains of man are rare. 8 Field Museum of Natural History On the other hand, implements or artifacts of flint are practically indestructible and in western Europe form a valuable and reliable series of types which can now be chronologically arranged. Our earliest ancestors probably used any stone which seemed to fit the purpose on hand, after which it was discarded. Later, a particularly serviceable stone might be retained for future use. Finally, the stone might be rendered still more useful by knocking off some flakes with a crude hammerstone. "Trial and error" must have been the method employed until a definite technique was evolved. The result of this experimentation is indeed confusing to the archaeologist, who finds it hard to differentiate between crude human flaking and the result of natural agencies such as heat, pressure and friction, thermal action, or grinding and crushing in the earth. Let us visit a cave in western Europe, where the work of excavation is in progress. Provided that there has been no disturbance of the strata in the cave floor, the specimens of most recent date will lie nearest to the surface, while the deeper the excavations proceed, the older will be the objects unearthed. Each square yard of the cave floor is pegged out and is given a number. The earth is removed over the entire floor to a depth of one foot. The greatest care is used in removing this stratum of earth, which is passed through sieves of various sizes to ensure the finding of even the smallest objects. As each object is found, a mark is made on a map of squared paper in the corresponding square-yard number allotted to that part of the cave floor. Trained scientists are in charge of the work and take notes which are filed for study. From the animals and plants found buried in the deposit the excavator can determine whether the climate was cold, warm, or tropical. A comparison of the numer- ous caves and rock-shelters, particularly in France, has Prehistoric Man 9 made it possible to form a definite chronological sequence of implements based on their types and layers of deposit. The earliest human remains have been found in Asia. The discovery of a fossilized human skull in China in 1929 is an event of paramount importance. Prior to this date, various human teeth and two lower jaws had been found during excavations in the same site at Chou Kou Tien near Peiping. The scientific name given to the Peking man is Sinanthropus pekinensis. The brain case reveals a curious blend of characters, some of which were hitherto regarded as distinctive of the Java Man, and others of the Piltdown Man, both of whom are described below. A second skull of a young adult was found during the following year. According to Elliot Smith, "Sinanthropus enables us to picture the qualities of the original members of the human family which, though human, was curiously ape- like, and obviously close to the main line of descent of modern man." The Abbe" Breuil made a special journey in 1932 to examine the deposits at Chou Kou Tien. He reports that Sinanthropus was able to make fire and to shape implements from quartzite and bone, which were in some instances similar in character to those made by the early inhabitants of western Europe. The deposits in which these human remains and artifacts were found belong to a period approximately one million years ago. In England flint implements of approximately the same date have been found in Pliocene gravels at Ipswich and in the Cromer Forest Bed, but up to the present time no human remains have been unearthed in either locality. These discoveries prove that the ancestry of man goes back to a more remote past than had been supposed. In 1891 Dr. Dubois discovered in Java the top of a skull, the left thigh-bone, and two molar teeth of an individual known to science as Pithecanthropus erectus, which means "the ape-man walking erect." The fragment of the skull shows a low, retreating forehead with huge 10 FfELD Museum of Natural History brow-ridges. The estimated capacity of the Java skull, when restored, is 900 cc. This figure is intermediate between that of the largest gorilla and the smallest average of any modern race. The brain capacity indicates the potentiality for organized thought and reason. From geological evidence it is roughly estimated that this ape- man roamed beside the banks of the Bengawan River in Java about half a million years ago. THE PALEOLITHIC OR OLD STONE AGE The Chellean and Acheulean Periods The earliest human remains found in Europe belong to the Chellean period, so called from the type station at Chelles in northern France. This period began some 250,000 years ago and was of long duration. The climate was mild, and the elephant, rhinoceros, and hippopotamus wandered over Europe. The cleaver or hand axe (coup- de-poing), which is found preserved in the river terrace gravels, was the typical implement of the period. This tool was roughly chipped on both faces with an enlarged base, often bearing part of the nodular crust intact, presumably so that it might be used as a hand axe. Chellean man must have been rugged, powerful- jawed, and ferocious in appearance to our eyes. The earliest human remains from Europe were found at Mauer in Germany and near Piltdown in England. In 1907, eighty feet below the surface in the great Mauer sand pit near Heidelberg, a fossilized human lower jaw was discovered. This massive jaw was associated with the remains of Elephas antiquus and Rhinoceros etruscus and fragments of other mammals which became extinct long ago. The most interesting feature of the jaw is the entire absence of a chin and the relative smallness of the teeth, which lack ape-like characters in the canines. In 1911 fragments of a human skull were found, this time in a gravel pit near Piltdown in Sussex. Associated with the fragments were crudely worked flint tools and Prehistoric Man 11 fossilized animal remains, including the Mastodon, Stegodon, hippopotamus, stag, horse, and beaver. These were in a heavily mineralized condition and of a dark brown color, as were the human bones. This individual is referred to as the Piltdown Man or Eoanthropus dawsoni (that is, the dawn-man, discovered by Charles Dawson). The bones of the skull are tough and hard, and the walls of the brain case are remarkably thick. Chellean man had knowledge of fire, which at night enabled him to keep off marauding animals. He developed the art of flaking flint to a relatively high degree of perfec- tion. However, with only wooden spears and hand axes for weapons, he must have been more hunted than hunter. It is interesting to recall that during the Chellean period these primitive men could walk from France to England, because at that time the English Channel had not been cut. At the close of the Chellean period the climate was becoming colder, and the mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, and other cold-loving fauna made their first appearance in western Europe. Thousands of generations passed, during which the art of flint-flaking improved. The new and advanced technique is distinguishable, and is attrib- uted to a race of people called Acheuleans, named after the type station at Saint Acheul in northern France. Their sharp-edged flint axes were hafted in wooden handles. The geographic distribution of Chellean and Acheulean cultures is as follows, although no contemporaneity is implied: Belgium; England; France; Germany; Italy; Monaco; Poland; Portugal; Spain; North, Central, and South Africa; and the area stretching from Palestine to India. In Hall C, Group I shows a typical Chellean scene in northern France. In the foreground, squatting beside a fire in the shelter of a large rock, are two Chellean hunters, one of whom is chipping a flint hand axe pre- paratory to the hunt on the morrow. In the distance 12 Field Museum of Natural History is a meandering river, and on the opposite bank three elephants are frightened from their watering-place by the fire. Farther upstream a hippopotamus can be seen on the bank. Near the skyline, a magnificent stag, anx- iously watching the flickering light, protects his hinds from the scent of danger. Stealing through the under- brush, a pack of wolves is distinguishable. The scene recalls vividly man's plight, as well as his strength, during Chellean times. A great variety of fierce animals dominated the earth. Man, small in numbers and physically weak in comparison with the creatures which surrounded him, was forced to use ingenuity and his powers of reason, in order to maintain himself in a hostile world. The moonlight effect symbolizes the dim- ness of our knowledge of that early period. In the hall is shown a magnificent tusk of Elephas antiquus from Steinheim an der Murr, Wiirttemberg, Germany. The length of the tusk is 285 cm, and the maximum diameter is 52 cm. In Case 1 are displayed casts of human remains, including fragments of Sinanthropus, Pithecanthropus, Eoanthropus, and Heidelbergensis, together with typical fauna from Mauer. On the opposite side of the screen, series from the Pliocene gravel beds at Ipswich and the Cromer Forest Bed are exhibited. There are also a series of Chellean implements from the river gravels of northern France and, for comparison, examples from England, Spain, Africa, and India. In Case 2 a group of Acheulean and Levallois flint and quartzite implements is exhibited, together with representative examples from Africa and India. The Mousterian Period Another long interval of time found Europe still under the effects of a cold climate, the approximate date being 50,000 years ago. The mammoth (Elephas primigenius), the wild reindeer (Rangifer tarandus), and other cold- Prehistoric Man 13 loving animals wandered over western Europe. Frag- mentary remains of a human skeleton of this period were excavated in the year 1856 at Neanderthal near Bonn in Germany. It was distinguished because of the huge brow-ridges and other anatomical peculiarities, which were at first thought by R. Virchow to be the result of some pathological condition. Since that time a series of Neanderthaloid skeletons (that is, typologically similar to the original Neanderthal skeleton) has been found, which enables restorations to be made. In 1908 a human skeleton was found at a depth of five feet below the floor of a rock-shelter at Le Moustier in the Dordogne region of France. It is thus described by Sir Arthur Keith: "Further excavation was stopped until the autumn, when, surrounded by a company of German anthropologists, in the heart of France, the skeleton was finally extracted from its ancient bed, with expert eyes looking on to bear witness to its authenticity and antiquity. The skeleton was that of a lad of perhaps sixteen years of age; his canine teeth and third molars were not fully erupted ; the growth lines of the long bones were unclosed. There could be no question: he had been deliberately buried. Near his right hand was a hand axe of the Acheulean culture, but typical implements of the Mousterian period were near-by. Charred remains of the ancient ox — the urus — were noted. The body had been laid on its right side, with the face turned down, and a pillow of stones placed under the head." From these two type localities the names given to the race and to the culture have been derived, the human remains generally being regarded as belonging to a separate species of man, Homo neanderthalensis, while the cultural objects are classified as Mousterian. Since these discoveries, remains of a number of members of this race have been unearthed in various localities widely distributed over western Europe, and their racial characteristics have become well established. 14 Field Museum of Natural History The distinctive features of the culture are also now well known. Flint and quartzite implements of Mousterian type have a wider range of distribution than have the skeletal remains. They have been found in Great Britain, France, Spain, Gibraltar, Italy, Germany, Moravia, Russian Poland, Croatia, Crimea, Asia Minor, Palestine, Syria, Egypt and other parts of Africa, the North Arabian Desert (by Field Museum North Arabian Desert Expedi- tions, 1927-28), Iraq, and China. From the skeletons left by this race it is now possible to derive a definite idea of the general appearance of a typical Neanderthaler. Short in stature, with an average height rarely exceeding 5 feet 4 inches, he was thickset, possessing a large head and short limbs. The head, thrown slightly forward, was carried in that position by strong neck muscles. The knees were always slightly bent, due to the curvature of the thigh-bones. To our eyes his face must have had a fierce expression, emphasized by the enormous brow-ridges, small, round eyes, and broad, flat nose. The teeth and jaws were powerful, corresponding with the massiveness of the skull. The low forehead reduced the space for the develop- ment of the frontal lobes of the brain, but this reduction was compensated by the protrusion of the occipital region at the base of the skull. Cranial capacity, however, is no criterion of intelligence, but merely suggests a latent potentiality. Many complex factors seem to be at work, and within certain limits of size, quality, not necessarily quantity, seems to be the sponsor of genius. According to Boule and Anthony, the brain of Neanderthal man possessed several primitive characters. For example, the prefrontal area, which is the seat of the higher faculties, was not fully developed in him, and had a protuberance similar to that found in the brain of anthropoids. Furthermore, the lobe associated with the power of speech was little developed, as compared with that in modern man. The hands and feet were large, LIBRARY Of v W c Prehistoric Man 15 and the great toe was separated to some extent, as in the anthropoids. The Neanderthal hunters found that a fire built near the entrance to a cave formed excellent protection from wild animals, such as lions, bears, and hyenas, and also shielded them from the cold climate. Neanderthal man was probably the first to seize a woman and protect her from animals and other men. This was the beginning of family life. The struggle for existence was hard, and there was no time for relaxation and the development of the artistic sense. The stone implements show marked improvement in design, work- manship, and technique over those of the preceding periods. Flint knives, scrapers, and points of various kinds suggest many uses, including the scraping and dressing of skins for clothes. Animal bones found in refuse heaps bear scratches made by scrapers in taking off meat, and cuts made by flint knives in disarticulating the joints. Bruised cuts on some of the bones show that they were used as anvils or chopping blocks. At La Quina in the Charente district of France, small, round balls of limestone shaped by the hand of man were found. It has been suggested that they may have been used as are bolas by the Indians of South America at present, for hobbling wild animals. Sollas gives the following description: "The debris of the caves show man of that day to have been a successful hunter, courageously maintaining his existence amid a crowd of competing beasts of prey. But in one instance, at least, we seem to discover signs of a more ogreish disposition; for the hearth at Krapina in Croatia contains the charred bones of numerous human beings, both young and fully grown men, women, and children. This impressed its discoverer, Gorjanovic-Kramberger, with the idea of cannibalism. Considering that the evidence is confined to this single cave and that we meet with nothing similar, or at least so definite, on the Mousterian 16 Field Museum of Natural History horizon in other parts of Europe, we may regard this for the present as an isolated instance. There is no reason to suppose that cannibalism was common or widespread, and still less reason for assuming that the human race has passed through a cannibal stage." On the contrary, two observed instances of ceremonial interment of the dead seem to give evidence of reverence for the departed and belief in a future life. One of these instances is in connection with the skeleton found at La Chapelle-aux-Saints. It lay in a shallow grave extend- ing from east to west. Around it were a great number of well-worked implements of Mousterian type, fragments of red ochre and broken bones. Oyer the head were several long bones lying flat, one of them still in connection with some of the smaller bones of the foot and toes, suggesting that it was clothed with flesh when placed in this position. Here was apparently then a ceremonial interment accom- panied by offerings of food and implements for the use of the deceased in the spirit world. In Field Museum there are two Neanderthal groups, one located in the Hall of Historical Geology (Hall 38), the other in the Hall of the Stone Age of the Old World (Hall C). Hall 38 is devoted to exhibits illustrating in chronological order life on the earth from its dawn down to the appearance of man. For this group the upper rock- shelter at Le Moustier was selected as a typical location for the reconstruction of a Neanderthal family scene. The story of how data and material for this group were collected, accompanied by six plates illustrating the recon- structions of various members of a Neanderthal family, is published in Field Museum Geology Leaflet, No. 11, entitled "Neanderthal (Mousterian) Man." In Hall C (Group II) a Neanderthal family is repre- sented on the sandy platform outside the entrance to the Devil's Tower rock-shelter at Gibraltar. Silhouetted against the deep blue of the Mediterranean stands a young man with a wooden club in his hand. He is Prehistoric Man 17 watching intently some movement on the beach below, since he and his family are open to attack only from this direction. Squatting beside the embers of the fire is the father of the family. He is watching the mussels open as the heat penetrates the shells. His little son, aged five, anxious to help his father, is bringing a small twig to replenish the fire. In a cleft in the rock, the mother can be seen carrying her youngest baby on her hip. This scene shows a Neanderthal family living under warmer climatic conditions than did their relatives at Le Moustier. Among the cultural objects shown in Case 2 are representative series of flint implements from the lower, middle, and upper Levallois deposits. There are shown in Case 3 flint and bone implements from La Quina (Charente), Le Moustier, La Ferrassie, La Micoque, Combe Capelle, Laussel, Abri Brouillard, Grottes des Cottes (Vienne), and the type collection from the Grotte des Grezes, including reindeer antlers used by Neanderthal hunters. As to human remains, there are an original Neanderthal molar tooth from France and two skull fragments of a Neanderthal child from Le Moustier, excavated by O. Hauser. There is also a series of casts of the more complete Neanderthal skeletons excavated in various localities of Europe. To show the same types of tools from various parts of the world, although this does not imply a contempora- neous culture, there is a small selection from North Africa, Kenya Colony in British East Africa, and quartzite tools from Shui-tung-kou, China, presented by Abbe" Teilhard de Chardin and E. Licent. The Mousterian period in Europe may have lasted 100,000 years, but finally Neanderthal man probably became extinct. It has, however, been stated that certain Neanderthaloid characteristics occur among the modern inhabitants of southwestern France. The Neanderthal hunters had developed the use of fire, a new variety of flint and quartzite implements, the 18 Field Museum of Natural History beginning of family life, and believed in a future existence. Considering these important advances we must recall with pride the struggles of our Neanderthal predecessors against an inhospitable climate and savage animals. The Aurignacian Period About 30,000 years ago the climate of western Europe was still extremely cold. There is evidence for the fact that Europe was invaded by a new race of people, called Cro-Magnons, who came from Asia at that time. The name of the race is derived from a small cave in the Vezere River Valley, in the Dordogne region of France, where Lartet found several skeletons and artifacts. The Cro-Magnons were different in physical appearance and culture from their predecessors, the Neanderthal hunters. Some seventy years ago, near the foothills of the Pyrenees, the small cave of Aurignac yielded human skeletons and flint tools of new types. Lartet called this culture Aurignacian, after the type locality. In other words, the Aurignacians were those Cro-Magnons who used tools such as were found in the cave of Aurignac, Haute-Garonne. The Aurignacians seem to have spread from southwestern Asia along the coastal region of North Africa into Spain and France. Evidence of their culture is also found along the Danube River and in central Europe, extending eastward into southern Russia. The Cro-Magnons undoubtedly belong to the direct ancestral line from which large groups of modern peoples are descended. From the anatomical point of view it would be hard to differentiate between the Aurignacian and the neolithic population, which inhabited Europe some 20,000 years later. The Cro-Magnons, who lived in western Europe, were people of magnificent physique, tall in stature, with a large cranial capacity. During the same period there seems to have been a Negroid race whose skeletons were excavated in the cave of Grimaldi near Mentone m o < H h u o tf w o •J a O C 3 i kJ o o o w H 3 B p o LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS Prehistoric Man 19 in the south of France. The Grimaldi race probably invaded southern Europe from the African continent. During this period the struggle for food became less intense due to the abundant game supply. As a direct result there was time for the development of a latent artistic sense. Here is the dawn of art. In their cave-dwellings, the Cro-Magnons began to adorn the walls with engravings and paintings. Natural resemblances to animals upon the walls were accentuated by scratches with a flint tool or by the application of some colored pigment — red, yellow, black, or white. Animals carved upon sections of bone or ivory or on the smooth surface of a small stone were used as models, to simplify the faithful and accurate reproduction of the animals on walls in the innermost recesses of the caves. Life-like representations of animals and occasionally of human beings were painted or sculptured on the walls or ceilings of caves in France or Spain. In order to light the caves, animal fat was burned in stone lamps. The Eskimos use this type of lamp at present, with wicks of finely rubbed moss, in order to light and heat their houses. The mammoth and the cave-bear supplied the necessary fat, and the large marrow bones of the reindeer, bison, and horse provided the oil required. Small human figurines, emphasizing male or female characteristics, have been excavated from upper paleo- lithic sites in western Europe. Each female figurine is called a "Venus," as, for example, the "Venus of Laussel" in Case 5. This term simply means that these figurines are supposed to represent the ideal of feminine beauty of that epoch. Personal ornament was also a new development, apparently introduced during that period. Necklaces of reindeer teeth, sea shells, or fish vertebrae were worn. Ivory beads probably corresponded in value to modern pearls. The Aurignacian hunters may have painted their bodies with red ochre. We find their dead buried 20 Field Museum of Natural History in a coating of this coloring material. This custom was probably connected with the belief that blood was synonymous with life. We can, therefore, presume that they were buried thus, together with their finest shell ornaments, their most useful tools and weapons, to make an imposing appearance in the new life beyond the grave. In Hall C (Group III) is reproduced the frieze of hands preserved in the cave of Gargas, situated in Haute- Garonne, southwestern France. An Aurignacian is resting on his left knee with his left hand held firmly against the wall with the fingers outspread. In his right hand he holds a hollow bone tube prepared from the leg-bone of a reindeer. By means of this tube, placed against the lips, powdered red ochre is blown around the outlines of the fingers, so that when the hand is removed an imprint remains on the wall. The cave is illuminated by a fire which burns in the center of the chamber, and by a sand- stone lamp resting on a natural shelf below the artist. On the ground near-by are a pestle and mortar, used for powdering the ochre, and the shoulder-blade of a cave- bear upon which part of the coloring material has been mixed with grease. On the wall are numerous imprints of hands, some of which appear to have been mutilated. There are also animals, including the elephant and the bison, drawn upon the wall. Overhead the stalactites glisten in the glow of the fire. From the back of the cave another Aurignacian is coming toward the sanctuary, his face illuminated by the sandstone lamp which he carries. This scene shows the dawn of art, magic, or religion, because at that time it would be difficult to differentiate between them. The cave was reproduced from studies made at Gargas and from a scale drawing of the frieze made by P. Gatier, under the direction of the Abbe" Breuil. Paleolithic representations of the hand occur in twelve caves in the Pyrenean and Cantabrian regions. Further- more, positive and negative imprints of hands have been Prehistoric Man 21 observed on the walls of caves in California, Arizona, Peru, Africa, and Australia. The red hand has been found in Egypt, Palestine, Arabia, Babylonia, India, Phoenicia, and Mexico. There are thus many modern parallels of curious rituals in connection with the imprint or mutila- tion of the hand. The question as to the motive which prompted the mutilation of the hand has produced several interesting theories based on customs among modern primitive peoples. For example, in the early nineteenth century, travelers among the Bushmen in South Africa recorded that the women cut off their little fingers with stone knives as a sign of mourning. This was to ensure a long career of feasting after death or a safe passage to the next world. Among other tribes this mutilation was a sign of caste, a tribal mark, or a cure for sickness. The American Indians practised the custom until recent times. Among the Haida of Queen Charlotte Islands, the last joint of the little finger was amputated "to cut off the deaths" in a family where many bereavements had taken place. Catlin described the removal of the forefinger and little finger of the left hand during the initiation ceremony of the Mandan Indians. In the Pacific area Captain Cook reported that in Tonga the finger was sacrificed to propitiate the god Atoa. In Hall C the culture of the Aurignacian period is represented by a series of flint and bone tools from the various cultural levels, which comprises the following: Chatelperron points from the lower Aurignacian level at La Quina; the type collection from Tart£, Haute- Garonne, with split-base lance-points and many bone and flint tools; and a cave-bear skull from Gargas. Among the important objects in this hall are the middle Aurignacian necklaces from La Souquette, near Sergeac, Dordogne. These beads made from mammoth ivory, shells, teeth, and pebbles are regarded as belonging to the oldest necklaces yet discovered. An excellent series 22 Field Museum of Natural History of artifacts from the Aurignacian deposits at Predmost, Vistonice, Ondratitz, and Sipka in Moravia is shown in Case 6. There is also a representative series of fauna including mammoth, rhinoceros, cave-bear, cave-lion, wolf, hyena, and others, from a great mammoth pit in Moravia. On the wall is an enlarged photograph of this mammoth pit, showing the bones excavated under the direction of Karel Absolon. There are also collections from Laussel, Abri Labatut, and Abri Blanchard, and comparative material from North Africa and Kenya Colony. Casts of the more important human remains are also on exhibition, together with original drawings by the late Amedee Forestier. The Solutrean Period During this period the climate grew colder; the horse and the wild reindeer were the chief sources of food supply. Along the banks of the Danube another race of people was wending its way until it finally swung west- ward along the central massif of Europe into southwestern France and northern Spain. These invaders were called Solutreans, after the type station at Solutre\ described below (p. 23). In appearance they were almost identical with the modern Eskimo. Despite the fact that they made some sculptures of an imposing character they were probably inferior in physique and mental capacity to their predecessors, and their artistic expression appears less developed than that of the Aurignacians. The Solutreans, however, were able to make flint spearheads and lances by means of a peculiar technique, which has been termed the "Solutrean retouch." The blades, shaped like laurel leaves (pointes en feuille de laurier), and other new forms of tools show that these people were masters of a flint-knapping technique, which had not appeared previous to that time. This degree of perfection only reappeared in late neolithic times in Denmark, Egypt, and the New World. The delicate flaking was performed Prehistoric Man 23 by means of pressure with a bone tool, requiring a steady hand and an accurate eye. The Solutreans also developed a "shouldered point," which was a slender dart notched so that it would remain in the flesh of an animal. They also made javelin points of bone. The type station of the Solutrean epoch is Clos-du- Charnier in the commune of Solutr£, near Macon, Saone- et-Loire. The station of Solutre" is located on the south side of an outcrop of Jurassic limestone. In 1868 the Abbe 1 Ducrost commenced excavations in the Solutrean deposits and unearthed many laurel-leaf-shaped points, bone and horn polishers, red and yellow fragments of ochre used for colors, perforated animal teeth, and carvings on bone and stone. As to animals, there were fragments of the mammoth, reindeer, horse, ox, wolf, and the cave- dwelling bear and hyena. Below the Solutrean deposits were several Aurignacian levels, which contained a large number of horse bones. It has been estimated that fragments of about 100,000 horses are contained in this deposit. The species of horse resembles the Equus przewalski, which now wanders over the plains of the Gobi desert. A number of human skeletons were also excavated, but up to the present time it has been im- possible to prove that they were not intrusive burials of a comparatively recent date. Engravings attributed to that period comprise the head of an antelope from La Cave in the department of Lot, a horse from Solutr£, a mammoth from Ardeche, and another from Bavaria. Solutrean sculptures have also been found at Fourneau du Diable in the Dordogne. Recent discoveries by Henri Martin in the valley of Le Roc, Charente, have thrown an entirely new light upon the art of that period. This valley is bounded on each side by cliffs. On the cliff above the right bank there is a cave with a broad platform below, utilized by the Solutreans. The quantity of burned bones, ashes, and calcined pebbles indicates a long period of occupation. 24 Field Museum of Natural History There were many flint tools and rejects pointing to the fact that part of this platform was used as a workshop. At the back of the platform were large blocks arranged in a semicircle. In order to continue the excavations below these blocks, they were removed. However, when the first block was overturned, two animals were discovered sculptured on the side which had been lying face down. The remaining blocks were disengaged and set back in position on a natural ledge from which they had been thrown by enemies or had fallen. A detailed study of this magnificent frieze suggests that it was executed by several artists. Since traces of manganese were found on the sculptured surface, it seems probable that the bas-relief was enriched by color. Look- ing from left to right, we can observe on the first block a figure representing a masked human being with bent legs, in an attitude suggestive of dancing. Next come two small horses and, below, another animal with elongated muzzle and raised tail. A musk-ox follows, his head lowered, in the act of charging a man, who is fleeing in terror. The next block portrays a short-legged horse, which is next to a sculpture of a horse and the traces of an ox destroyed by the sculptor. The block on the extreme right shows a small horse following a fantastic animal with a head like that of a boar or a carnivore, an elliptical eye, an elongated muzzle, pointed ears, and no horns. The animals are represented as walking and the precision of movement reveals an accurate power of observation. The most interesting feature of the entire frieze is that all the animals represented are pregnant. We may thus suppose that a wish for fertility is a possible explanation. Below a shelter of stone blocks three Solutrean skeletons were unearthed. It seems probable that these Mongoloid peoples invaded western Europe at the close of the Aurignacian period. In Hall C (Group IV) the Solutrean frieze of Le Roc has been reproduced through the courtesy of Henri Martin, Prehistoric Man 25 who made casts from the five original sculptures for Field Museum. The blocks have been arranged in the position in which they were placed by the Solutrean artists. On the left side the path leads up to a cave, and on the right side, sheltered behind large trees, the entrance to another cave can be seen. The painted back- ground suggests the general location and the type of vegetation existing at that time. In the foreground a Solutrean sculptor, with physical characters of Mongoloid type, is shown at work, carving a horse on a block of stone. There are flint chips and flakes from Le Roc scattered on the ground. In Case 7 a series of artifacts from Le Roc, Laugerie Haute, and other French Solutrean stations, is shown, together with the type collection from Solutre\ There are a fine collection of feuilles de laurier and one beautiful dagger whose delicate retouched flaking shows the technique of these master craftsmen. The climate slowly changed, and the reindeer retreated northward to their present homelands. It has been suggested that the Solutreans followed the migrating herds, and may be the ancestors of the modern Eskimo. The Magdalenian Period The cold climate again settled over Europe during this period. In Switzerland the glaciers extended far down the mountain slopes below the present snow line. The Alpine animals were driven down to the plains where the mammoth, woolly rhinoceros, reindeer, musk-ox, bison, wild horse, and many other animals wandered across the meadows. The large cave-bears struggled with the Magdalenian hunters for possession of the caves. As to bird life there were whistling swans, arctic grouse, ducks, geese, and the ptarmigan. At the base of an overhanging limestone cliff stands the great rock-shelter of La Madeleine, where in 1865 Lartet and Christy excavated a new prehistoric culture subsequently called Magdalenian. These invaders prob- 26 Field Museum of Natural History ably came into France from the northeast, since they left no traces along the shores of the Mediterranean. The Magdalenians were members of the Cro-Magnon race, although they were different from the Aurignacians or the Solutreans. They possessed long, narrow heads with broad faces. This rare combination is known as the "disharmonic" type. The brow-ridges were prominent over large, rectangular eye sockets. Medium in stature, with well-shaped heads and pleasing features, the Mag- dalenians must have been an imposing race. Since food was abundant, more time could be given to the development of art. The Magdalenians produced the finest naturalistic art of prehistoric times. Flint workmanship declined, but the working of bone became an important factor in the life of the people. Among weapons there were spear-throwers and harpoons of various kinds, while bone needles, awls, and other articles were the domestic equipment. In order to light the caves, animal fat was burned in crude stone lamps. Let us visit one of those caves in southwestern France to examine some of the famous cave paintings. Cave equipment, such as matches, candles, acetylene lamps, ropes, and rope ladders, is carried to the mouth of the cave by guides. The lamps are lit, and in single file we enter the dark mouth of the cave. It is relatively easy to walk the first few hundred feet. The cave walls are damp, and there is a constant drip of water from the roof. The men in front are silhouetted against their swinging lamps, and their echoing voices sound weird and eerie. Traveling becomes increasingly difficult, and progress slower as we slip and slide on the sloping, wet floor. There are places where a rope is necessary in order to descend to steep and narrow parts of the cave. The beautiful stalactite "curtains" appear majestic by the light of our lanterns and candles. After some hours of perilous climbing, we reach a rock gallery where, with the aid of our flickering lights, we see the impressive paintings and ■ | ■ m M O § o o 3 z w ^ a J -S W > P* a. 3 2 ■ - s E < 3 B 3 W a o o W o 2 J 3 M P Q 3 M OF liit wtm i of iujmois PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OK AMERICA BY FIELD MUSEUM PRESS