Bronze BraceletFig. 191.—Bronze Bracelet, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
Fig. 191.—Bronze Bracelet, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
Bronze BraceletFig. 192.—Another Bronze Bracelet.
Fig. 192.—Another Bronze Bracelet.
We also find certain rings, cylindrical in shape, and made all in one piece (fig. 193), which were probably placed round the legs.
Bronze RingFig. 193.—Bronze Ring.
Fig. 193.—Bronze Ring.
Some of these ornaments remain, even up to the present day, in a perfect state of preservation. In an urn which was recovered from the settlement of Cortaillod, six specimens were discovered, the designs of which appeared quite as clearly as if they had only just been engraved. There is one point which must be remarked, because it forms an importantdatumin respect to the size of the Swiss people during the bronze epoch; this is, that most of the bracelets are so small that they could scarcely be worn nowadays. They must, therefore, have been adapted to very slender wrists—a fact which naturally leads us to believe that all the other limbs were small in proportion. This small size in the bracelets coincides with the diminutiveness of the sword-hilts which have been found in the lacustrine habitations of Switzerland.
Earrings, also, have been found in great numbers in the Swiss lakes. They are either metallic plates, or wires differently fashioned; all, however, testifying to a somewhat developed degree of taste.
Next after these trinkets and objects of adornment we must class certain articles of a peculiar character which must have been pendants or appendages to bracelets.
All these ornaments are, in fact, perforated at the top with acircular hole, intended, no doubt, to have a thread passed through it, by which it was hung round the neck. Some of them (fig. 194) are small triangular plates of metal, frequently ornamented with engraved designs; others (fig. 195), are in open-work, and include several branches, each terminated by a hole similar to that at the top. Some, again, assume the form of a ring not completely closed up (fig. 196), or rather, perhaps, of a crescent with wide and almost contiguous horns. In the same class may be placed the rings (fig. 197) to which were suspended movable ornaments in the shape of a double spiral.
Bronze PendantFig. 194.—Bronze Pendant, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Fig. 194.—Bronze Pendant, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Bronze PendantFig. 195.—Another Bronze Pendant, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Fig. 195.—Another Bronze Pendant, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Bronze RingFig. 196.—Bronze Ring, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Fig. 196.—Bronze Ring, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Ornamental RingFig. 197.—Another Ornamental Ring.
Fig. 197.—Another Ornamental Ring.
The four bronze objects, representations of which we have just given, are designed from the sketches supplied by M. Desor in his 'Mémoire sur les Palafittes.'
Some few trinkets of gold have been found in the lacustrine settlements of the bronze epoch; but this sort of "find" is very rare. They are in the form of earrings, and may be seen in the collection of Colonel Schwab.
[Pg 258]
Industrial Skill and Agriculture during the Bronze Epoch—The Invention of Glass—Invention of Weaving.
Themanufacture of pottery, which appears to have remained stationary during the Stone Age, assumed a considerable development during the bronze epoch. The clay intended for making pottery was duly puddled, and the objects when moulded were baked in properly formed furnaces. At this date also commences the art of surfacing articles of earthenware.
The specimens of pottery which have been found in the settlements of man of this period are both numerous and interesting; entire vessels have indeed been discovered. We notice indications of very marked progress beyond the objects of this kind manufactured in the preceding age. They are still fashioned by the hand and without the aid of the wheel; but the shapes are both more varied in their character and more elegant. In addition to this, although in the larger kind of vessels the clay used is still rough in its nature and full of hard lumps of quartz like the material employed in the Stone Age, that of the smaller vessels is much finer, and frequently covered with a black lead coating.
Most of these vessels are characterised by a conical base, a shape which we had before occasion to point out in the stag's-horn vessels of the Stone Age. If, therefore, it was requisite to place them upright, the lower ends of them had to be stuck into the earth, or to be placed in holders hollowed out to receive them.
Some of these supports, or holders, have been discovered. They are calledtorches, ortorchères, by French archæologists.
Figs. 198 and 199 give a representation of a bronze vessel from the lacustrine habitations of Switzerland with its support ortorchère.
Earthenware VesselFig. 198.—Earthenware Vessel with Conical Bottom, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Fig. 198.—Earthenware Vessel with Conical Bottom, from the Lacustrine Habitations of Switzerland.
Earthen VesselFig. 199.—Earthen Vessel placed on its support.
Fig. 199.—Earthen Vessel placed on its support.
In a general way, the vessels made with conical bases have no handles; but others, on the contrary, are provided with them (fig. 200). They are nearly always ornamented with some sort of design, either mere lines parallel to the rim, triangles, chevrons, or rows of points round the handle or the neck. Even the very roughest specimens are not altogether devoid of ornamentation, and a stripe may often be observed round the neck, on which the fingers of the potter have left their traces.
Earthen VesselFig. 200.—Fragments of an Earthen Vessel with a Handle.
Fig. 200.—Fragments of an Earthen Vessel with a Handle.
These vessels were intended to contain beverages and substances used for food. Out of one of them M. Desor took some apples,cherries, wild plums, and a large quantity of nuts. Some of these vessels, perforated with small holes, were used in the manufacture of cheese. Dishes, porringers, &c., have also been found.
Relics of the pottery of the Stone Age are very frequently recovered from the Swiss lakes; but vessels in an entire state are seldom met with. It is, however, stated as a fact, that considerable accumulations of them once existed; but, unfortunately, the importance of them was not recognised until too late. An old fisherman of the Lake of Neuchâtel told M. Desor that in his childhood he had sometimes amused himself by pushing atthese old earthen potswith a long pole, and that in certain parts of the lake there werereal mountainsof them. At the present day, the "old earthen pots" are all broken, and nothing but pieces can be recovered.
These relics are, however, sufficient to afford a tolerably exact idea of the way in which the primitive Swiss used to fashion clay. They seem to denote large vessels either cylindrical (figs. 201 and 202) or bulbous-shaped with a flat bottom, moulded by the hand without the aid of a potter's wheel. The material of which they are composed is rough, and of a grey or black colour, and is always mingled with small grains of quartz; the baking of the clay is far from satisfactory.
Vessel of Baked ClayFig. 201.—Vessel of Baked Clay, from the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Fig. 201.—Vessel of Baked Clay, from the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Vessel of Baked ClayFig. 202.—Vessel of Baked Clay, from the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Fig. 202.—Vessel of Baked Clay, from the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
The ornamentation is altogether of an ordinary character. It generally consists of mere lines traced out in the soft clay, either by the finger, a pointed stick, or sometimes a string was used. There are neither curves nor arabesques of any kind; the lines are almost always straight.
A few of the vessels are, however, decorated in a somewhat better style. Some are provided with small projections perforated with holes, through which might be passed a string for the purpose of hanging them up; there are others which have a row of studs arranged all round them, just below the rim, and others, indeed, in which hollows take the place of the studs. Several have been met with which are pierced with holes at different heights; it is supposed that they were used in the preparation of milk-curd, the holes being made to let out the whey. The vessels of this period are entirely devoid of handles; this ornament did not appear until the bronze age.
Mill-stones, or stones for crushing grain, are not unfrequently found in the Swiss lakes.
At some date during the period we are now discussing we must place the discovery of glass. Glass beads of a blue or green colour are, in fact, found in the tombs of the bronze epoch. What was their origin? Chemistry and metallurgy combine to inform us that as soon as bronze foundries existed glass must have been discovered. What, in fact, does glass consist of? A silicate with a basis of soda and potash, combined with some particles of the silicates of iron and copper, which coloured it blue and green. As the scoria from bronze foundries is partly composed of these silicates it is indubitable that a kind of glass was formed in the earliest metal-works where this alloy was made. It constituted the slag or dross of the metal works.
Thus, the classic tradition which attributes the invention of glass to certain Phœnician merchants, who produced a mass of glass by heating on the sand thenatron, that issoda, brought from Egypt, ascribe too recent a date to the discovery of this substance. It should properly be carried back to the bronze epoch.
The working of amber was carried out to a very great extent by these peoples. Ornaments and objects of this material have been discovered in great abundance in the lacustrine settlements of Switzerland.
On the whole, if we compare the industrial skill of the bronze age with that of the preceding age, we shall find that the later is vastly superior to the earlier.
The art of weaving seems to have been invented during the stone age. We have positive and indisputable proofs that the people who lived during this epoch were acquainted with the art of manufacturingcloth.[36]All the objects which we have thus far considered do not, in fact, surpass those which might be expected from any intelligent savage; but the art of preparing and manufacturing textile fabrics marks out one of the earliest acquisitions of man's civilisation.
In the Museum of Saint-Germain we may both see and handle some specimens of woven cloth which were met with in some of the lacustrine settlements in Switzerland, and specially at Robenhausen and Wangen. This cloth, which is represented in fig. 203, taken from a specimen in the Museum of Saint-Germain, is formed of twists of interwoven flax; of rough workmanship, it is true, but none the less remarkable, considering the epoch in which it was manufactured. It is owing to the fact of their having been charred and buried in the peat that these remains of pre-historic fabrics have been kept in good preservation up to the present time.
ClothFig. 203.—Cloth of the Bronze Age, found in the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Fig. 203.—Cloth of the Bronze Age, found in the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Balls of thread and twine have also been found; likewise ends of cord, and ropes made of bark, nets with large and moderately-sized meshes, which we have previously represented, and lastly some fragments of a basket of straw or osier.
Ribs of animals, split through and tapering off at one end, have been considered to be the teeth of the cards or combs which were used for unravelling the flax. The whole comb was formed of several of these bones joined firmly together with a band.
First WeaverFig. 204.—The First Weaver.
Fig. 204.—The First Weaver.
There were also found in the Swiss lakes a large number of discs made of baked earth perforated with a hole in their centre, of which wehere give a representation (fig. 205), taken from one of the numerous specimens in the Museum of Saint-Germain. These are ordinary spindle-whorls.
Spindle-whorlsFig. 205.—Spindle-whorls made of baked Clay, found in the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Fig. 205.—Spindle-whorls made of baked Clay, found in the Lacustrine Settlements of Switzerland.
Also, terra cotta weights pierced with a hole through the centre were intended to support the thread of flax in the weaving loom. The thread passed through the hole and was stopped by a knot at its extremity. We think that this interpretation of the use of these objects can hardly be called in question.
We also find in the lacustrine settlements woven fabrics, threads, strings, combs used for carding the flax, and spindle-whorls; the co-existence of all these objects proves that the invention of the art of weaving may be fixed at this date. The loom of the weaver may, therefore, be traced back to the most remote ages.
Acting upon this idea we have given a representation ofweaving in pre-historic times.
The weaving-loom is so simple a matter that the men of the bronze age were enabled to produce it in nearly the same form as that in which it exists in the present day for the manufacture of plain kinds of cloth in various districts of the world where the art is still in a barbaric condition. The loom being upright, not horizontal as with us, the terra cotta weights just mentioned were used to keep the threads of the warp stretched. This seems to be the only difference. But, as we again repeat, the weaver's loom, on the whole, must have differed but very slightly from that of the present day. Its productions bear testimony to the fact.
Metal weapons and implements were at first obtained by means of exchange. But very soon the art of manufacturing bronze became prevalent in Switzerland, and foundries were established there. Nodoubt can be entertained on this point, as a mould for celts or hatchets has been found at Morges and also a bar of tin at Estavayer.
During this epoch the shape of the pottery became more advanced in character, and ornamentation was the rule and not the exception. After the indispensable comes the superfluous. Taste in ornamentation made its appearance and soon developed itself in ceramic objects of an elegant style. Articles of pottery now assumed more pleasing outlines, and were ornamented with various designs. Progress in artistic feeling was evidently manifested.
The simplicity and monotony of ornamentation during this epoch is especially remarkable. Art was then confined to the mere representation of a certain number of lines and geometrical figures. They were similar to those represented in fig. 206, and were applied to all kinds of objects—weapons, vases, utensils and trinkets. None of them attempt any delineation of nature; this idea does not seem to have entered into the head of man during the bronze epoch. In this respect they were inferior to their predecessors, the inhabitants of the caves of Périgord, the contemporaries of the mammoth and the reindeer.
ornamentation of PotteryFig. 206.—Principal Designs for the ornamentation of Pottery during the Bronze Epoch.
Fig. 206.—Principal Designs for the ornamentation of Pottery during the Bronze Epoch.
During the period we are now considering, commercial intercourse had assumed an activity of a totally different character from that manifested during the Stone Age. It became necessary to procure tin, which was indispensable for the manufacture of bronze. As no tin ore could be found in Switzerland, the inhabitants, doubtless, went to Saxony in order to obtain it. The traffic must have been carried out by means of barter, as is customary among all infant nations.
Flint, which likewise did not exist in Switzerland, was necessarilyprocured from the surrounding countries which were more fortunate in this respect. No country was more favoured on this point than France; commerce must, therefore, have existed between the two countries.
At Concise, in Switzerland, some pieces of white coral were found, and at Meilen, on the banks of the Lake of Zurich, some fragments of amber; from this we may conclude that during the bronze epoch the inhabitants of Switzerland traded with the inhabitants of the shores of the Mediterranean and the Baltic.
Among the other specimens of foreign productions, we must not omit to mention graphite, which was used to surface pottery, amber beads, and even a few glass trinkets suitable for female adornment.
We will now pass on to the system of food adopted by man during the bronze epoch.
Researches made in various lacustrine settlements have furnished us with very circumstantial information upon the system of food customary among the earliest inhabitants of Switzerland. From them we learn that these men did not live solely upon the products of fishing and hunting, but that they possessed certain ideas of agriculture, and also devoted themselves to the breeding of cattle. We shall enter into a few details as to this eminently interesting aspect of their history, taking as our guides Professors Heer and Rütimeyer, the first of whom has carefully examined the vegetable remains, and the second the animal relics which have been found in the lacustrine settlements of Switzerland.
At Meilen, Moosseedorf, and Wangen, some charred cereals have been found, viz., barley and wheat. The latter was the most abundant, and, at Wangen in particular, there were several bushels of it, either in ears or in thrashed corn collected in large heaps. These grains are almost the same shape and size as the wheat of the present time. Several ears of six-rowed barley (Hordeum hexastichon) were found, which differ from our common barley in having smaller grains arranged in six rows. De Candolle is of opinion that this is the species which was cultivated by the ancient Greeks, Egyptians, and Romans.
This corn was preserved in large earthen vessels, as may be gathered from the contents of some of them, still in an entire state.
What preparation did the corn undergo in order to render it fit forhuman food? On this subject we have tolerably exact data to go upon.
The grain was bruised by hand, either between two stone discs or mill-stones, or in a mortar by means of a round pestle. In almost all of the lacustrine villages, some of these mill-stones made of granite or sandstone have been met with, a few of which are as much as 2 feet in diameter. M. Heer is of opinion that the grain was parched before being pounded, and then placed in vessels and slightly soaked. In this state it was fit for eating.
At the time of the conquest of the Canary Islands by the Spaniards, it was remarked that the natives prepared their corn in this manner; and in the present day the inhabitants of the same regions still feed on parched grain.
Nevertheless, the earliest inhabitants of western Switzerland also made real bread, or rather wheat-cakes, for leaven was not then known. Charred fragments of these loaves have been found, the grain of which is badly ground, thus affording us the opportunity of recognising the species of corn of which they are composed. These fragments are flat, and indicate that the whole cake was of a circular form. No doubt, after being bruised and wetted, the grain was made into a sort of dough, which was baked between two heated stones—a process we have previously described as having been practised in the Stone Age.
In order to cultivate cereals, it was, of course, necessary for the ground to undergo some preliminary preparation. It was at least necessary to break it up so as to mellow it, and to make furrows in which to sow the seed. We are reduced to mere conjecture as to all the details of these operations, for no agricultural implements have been discovered in any of the settlements of man belonging to the bronze epoch. Perhaps, as M. Heer suggests, they made use of the stem of a tree with a projecting crooked branch, and adapted it so as to perform the functions of the plough.
Wild fruits and berries formed a considerable portion of the food of the earliest lacustrine peoples; and, from certain indications which have been brought to our notice, we have reason to believe that several varieties of trees were the objects of their intelligent culture; in short, that they were cultivated in orchards and gardens. The settlement of Robenhausen on the Lake of Pfæffikon, has furnished us withthe most valuable information on this point. The lacustrine villages of Wangen (Lake of Constance), and Concise (Lake of Neuchâtel) have also been the scenes of curious discoveries.
In all of these settlements a large number of charred apples have been met with, cut in two, and sometimes four pieces, and evidently stored up for the winter. These apples are no larger than walnuts, and in many of the Swiss forests a species of apple still exists which appears to be the same sort as those found in the lacustrine settlements. Pears have been discovered only in the settlement of Wangen; they were cut up and dried just like the apples.
In the mud of the lakes, stones of the wild plum and the bird-cherry, or Sainte-Lucie plum, were found; also the seeds of blackberries and raspberries, the shells of beech-nuts and hazel-nuts, and several species of the water-chestnut, which is now only to be met with at two points of the Swiss Alps.
We must also add that M. Gilliéron collected in the settlement of the Isle of Saint-Pierre, oats, peas, lentils, and acorns, the latter evidently having been intended for the food of swine. This discovery is an important one, because oats had, hitherto, never been met with anywhere.
We shall complete this list of names by enumerating the other vegetables which have been ascertained to have existed in the lake settlements, the berries and seeds of some of which were used as food, &c. They are the strawberry, the beech, the yew, the dog-rose, which is found in hedges, the white and yellow water-lily, the rush, and the forest and the marsh pine. There are no traces of the vine, rye, or hemp.
Fig. 207, representingthe cultivation of gardens during the bronze epoch, is intended to sum up and delineate materially all the ideas we have previously suggested concerning the agricultural and horticultural knowledge possessed by man during the bronze epoch. A gardener is tilling the ground with a horn pick-axe, a representation of which we have previously given. Others are gathering fruit from trees which have been planted and cultivated with a view of increasing the stock of food.
Cultivation of GardensFig 207.—The Cultivation of Gardens during the Bronze Epoch.
Fig 207.—The Cultivation of Gardens during the Bronze Epoch.
The sheep and oxen which may be noticed in this figure indicate the domestication of these animals and of their having been reared as tame cattle. The dog, the faithful companion of man, could scarcelyhave been omitted in this assemblage of the auxiliary or domestic animals of the bronze epoch.
The bones which have been found in the lacustrine settlements of Switzerland have enabled us to reconstruct with some degree of accuracy thefaunaof this epoch, and to ascertain what species of animals were then in subjugation to the yoke of man.
Professor Rütimeyer is of opinion that the whole of these bones may be referred to about seventy species of animals—ten of which are fish, three reptiles, twenty birds, and the rest mammiferous animals.
The remains most commonly met with are those of the stag and the ox, the former wild, and the latter domestic. Next in order comes the pig, remains of which are also very abundant; then follows the roe, the goat, and the sheep, all of which are much less common. The remains of the fox are met with almost as often as those of the latter species, and in spite of the fœtid smell of this animal it certainly was used for food—a fact which is proved by its bones having been split open and notched with knives. It is, however, very probable that this kind of sustenance was turned to as a last resort only in cases when no other more suitable food could be obtained.
The long bones which have been found in lakes, like those met with in caves and kitchen-middens, have been split in order to extract the marrow. Just as in the kitchen-middens, the softer parts are always gnawed, which shows us that the dog had been there.
The repugnance which is felt by so many nations for the flesh of the hare is a very curious fact, and shows us how difficult it is to root out certain prejudices. This repugnance may be traced back as far as pre-historic ages. Neither the diluvial beds, the caves, the kitchen-middens, nor the lacustrine settlements have, in fact, furnished us with any traces of the hare. Even in the present day, the Laplanders and Greenlanders banish this animal from their alimental list.
Among the Hottentots the women eat it but not the men. The Jews, too, look upon it as unclean, and many years have not elapsed since the Bretons would hardly endure to hear it spoken of.
The antipathy which is thus shown by certain modern nations to the flesh of the hare has, therefore, been handed down to them from the primitive ages of mankind.
The researches of Prof. Rütimeyer have led to the conclusion thatthere existed in Switzerland during the Stone Age six species of domestic animals—the ox, the pig, the goat, the sheep, the dog, and the horse, the latter being very rare. There were, also, three specimens of the bovine race; the two wild species of the ox genus, namely, the urus and the bison, both very anciently known, had been increased by a third, the domestic ox.
The bones belonging to the Stone Age seem to point to the existence of a larger proportion of wild beasts than of domestic animals; and this is only what might be expected, for the art of domesticating animals was at this epoch still in its infancy, but a commencement had been made, and the practice continued to spread rapidly during the following age.
In fact, agriculture and the breeding of cattle made considerable progress during the bronze epoch. There were brought into use various new breeds of cattle. The ox became a substitute for the bison; the sheep was bred as well as the goat; and all these animals were devoted to the purpose of providing food for man.
Bronze Epoch FeastFig. 208.—A Feast during the Bronze Epoch.
Fig. 208.—A Feast during the Bronze Epoch.
We may here pause for a moment and contemplate, with just pride, this marvellous resuscitation of an era long ago buried in the darkness of bygone ages.
By means of the investigations of science, we know that the primitive inhabitants of Switzerland dwelt in wooden villages built on lakes; that they were hunters, fishers, shepherds, and husbandmen; that they cultivated wheat, barley, and oats; that they brought into a state of servitude several species of animals, and devoted to the requirements of agriculture the sheep and the goat; that they were acquainted with the principal rudiments of the baker's art; that they stored up apples, pears, and other fruits or berries for the winter, either for their own use or that of their cattle; that they understood the art of weaving and manufacturing flaxen fabrics; that they twisted up cord and mats of bark; and, lastly, that as a material for the manufacture of their implements and weapons they availed themselves of stone, bronze, animals' bones, and stag's horn.
It is equally certain that they kept up some kind of commercial intercourse with the adjacent countries; this must have been the case, if it were only for the purpose, as before mentioned, of procuring flints, which are not found in Switzerland; also amber and whitecoral, numerous relics of which have been met with in the settlements of Meilen and Concise.
Though there may still remain many an obscure page in the history of mankind during the bronze epoch, it must, nevertheless, be confessed that, as far as Switzerland is concerned, a bright light has of late years been thrown on that branch of the subject which refers to man's mode of existence in these regions during the bronze epoch.
FOOTNOTE:[36]See 'The Lake Dwellings of Switzerland,' &c. p. 323, by Dr. F. Keller. Translated and edited by Dr. J. E. Lee. London, 1866.
[36]See 'The Lake Dwellings of Switzerland,' &c. p. 323, by Dr. F. Keller. Translated and edited by Dr. J. E. Lee. London, 1866.
[Pg 271]
The Art of War during the Bronze Epoch—Swords, Spears, and Daggers—The Bronze Epoch in Scandinavia, in the British Isles, France, Switzerland, and Italy—Did the Man of the Bronze Epoch entertain any religious or superstitious Belief?
TheSwiss lakes have furnished us with elements which afford us some knowledge of the state of man's industrial skill during the bronze epoch, and also enable us to form a due estimation of the manners and customs of the people of these remote ages. But if we wish to become acquainted with all the details which concern the art of war at the same date, we must direct our attention to the north of Europe, that is to say, to the Scandinavian peoples.
Nevertheless, before we touch upon the important pre-historic relics found in Denmark, we must say a few words concerning the traces of the art of war which have been furnished by the investigations made in the Swiss lakes.
The warlike accoutrements of the bronze epoch are, like those of the Stone Age, composed of spear-heads and arrow-heads, poniards and, in addition, swords. Swords are, however, but rarely met with in the Swiss lakes. The few which have been found are straight, short, double-edged, and without hilts. In the Museum of Neuchâtel there is a sword (fig. 209) which was discovered forty years ago at Concise, at a time when no one suspected the existence of any such thing as lacustrine settlements; M. Desor has supplied a sketch of it in his 'Mémoire sur les Palafittes.' This sword measures 16 inches in length,and has on its surface four grooves which join together on the middle ridge of the blade. The handle, which is terminated by a double volute, is remarkably small, being only 3 inches in length.
Daggers (fig. 210), too, like the swords, are but rarely found in the Swiss lakes. From a specimen found in the lake of Bienne, we see that the blade was fixed to the handle by means of a series of rivets arranged in a single line. This dagger is, like the sword found at Concise, ornamented with grooves symmetrically placed on each side of the projecting ridge which divides the blade into two equal portions.
Bronze SwordFig. 209.—Bronze Sword, in the Museum of Neuchâtel.
Fig. 209.—Bronze Sword, in the Museum of Neuchâtel.
Fig. 210.—Bronze Dagger, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
Fig. 210.—Bronze Dagger, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
In the collection of Colonel Schwab, there are two daggers of an extraordinary character, having hilts enriched with silver.
The spear-heads (fig. 211) are not inferior either to the swords or the daggers in the skill and finish of their workmanship. They are formed of a nearly oval blade, strongly consolidated in the middle by a rounded ridge, which is prolonged so as to form a socket intended to hold a thick wooden handle. The length of the daggers varies from 4 to 7 inches.
Bronze Spear-headFig. 211.—Bronze Spear-head, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
Fig. 211.—Bronze Spear-head, found in one of the Swiss Lakes.
The arrow-heads (fig. 212) are, except in their material, identical with those of the preceding age. They are triangular, with more or less pointed barbs, and provided with a stem, by which they were fastened to the stick. A few have, however, been found which are made with sockets. They do not exceed 1 to 2 inches in length.
Bronze Arrow-headsFig. 212.—Bronze Arrow-heads, found in a Lacustrine Settlement of Switzerland.
Fig. 212.—Bronze Arrow-heads, found in a Lacustrine Settlement of Switzerland.
We shall now pass on to the consideration of the relics found in the tombs of Scandinavia, Great Britain, Ireland and France; which remains will throw some light on the subject of the weapons and warlike instruments belonging to the bronze epoch.
The Scandinavian States (Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) are very rich in instruments belonging to the bronze epoch. The workmanship of the swords and other weapons of war is much more elaborate here than anywhere else, on account of the tardy introduction of metal into these countries. These weapons are nearly always adorned with somewhat complicated designs, among which curved lines and spiral scrolls are the most prevalent.
The Danish swords of the bronze epoch (figs. 213, 214) are of quite a peculiar shape. The hilt is firmly fixed to the blade by means of two or more rivets. The daggers and poniards only differ from the swords in the smallness of their dimensions.
Scandinavian SwordFig. 213.—Scandinavian Sword.
Fig. 213.—Scandinavian Sword.
Scandinavian Sword HiltFig. 214.—Hilt of a Scandinavian Sword.
Fig. 214.—Hilt of a Scandinavian Sword.
Some of the hatchets seem to have been copied from models belonging to the Stone Age; these are probably the most ancient, and their ornamentation is of a very scanty character. Others are winged or with sockets, and a few have been found perforated with a transverse hole, like those which have long been used by civilised nations. In this hole a wooden handle was inserted, which was fixedby means of a strap, or merely forcibly driven in. The rarely-found specimens of this kind are sharply defined in shape and splendidly ornamented.
Figs. 215 and 216, taken from Sir J. Lubbock's work, represent the probable way in which handles were fitted to the various kinds of hatchets used in the North.
fixing Handle to Scandinavian HatchetFig. 215.—Mode of fixing the Handle to a Scandinavian Hatchet.
Fig. 215.—Mode of fixing the Handle to a Scandinavian Hatchet.
fixing Handle to Scandinavian HatchetFig. 216.—Another mode of fixing the Handle to a Scandinavian Hatchet.
Fig. 216.—Another mode of fixing the Handle to a Scandinavian Hatchet.
The blades of the bronze knives found in Scandinavia are, like those of Switzerland, somewhat curved in their shape, but the handles are much more richly ornamented. Two of these knives have furnished us with the only examples known of any representation of living beings during the bronze epoch. We may notice that on one of these knives, which is represented in fig. 217, taken from Sir J. Lubbock's work, a swan is roughly carved at the offset of the blade.
Danish Bronze KnifeFig. 217.—Danish Bronze Knife, of the Bronze Epoch.
Fig. 217.—Danish Bronze Knife, of the Bronze Epoch.
In another knife, which is represented in fig. 218, taken from the same work, the handle is formed by a human figure, executed with some degree of fidelity. The figure is in a standing position, and holds in front of it a nearly cylindrical-shaped vessel; the individual is representedas wearing large earrings. There is every reason to believe that this last-mentioned article belongs to the end of the bronze epoch, or else to a transitionary epoch between this and the following, for the blade is straight, like those of all the knives belonging to the iron age.
Danish Bronze KnifeFig. 218.—Danish Bronze Knife of the Bronze Epoch.
Fig. 218.—Danish Bronze Knife of the Bronze Epoch.
The same thing may, doubtless, be said of several razors (fig. 219) with straight blades, which appear even overloaded with ornaments; among these embellishments is an attempt to represent a sort of vessel.
Danish Razor BladeFig. 219.—Blade of a Danish Razor of the Bronze Epoch.
Fig. 219.—Blade of a Danish Razor of the Bronze Epoch.
These designs evidently point to some very advanced period in the bronze epoch; and perhaps these objects may belong to the commencement of the iron age.
What, we may ask, was the wearing apparel of man during the period we are describing?
A very important discovery, made in 1861, in atumulusin Jutland (Denmark), has lately supplied us with the most accuratedatarespecting the way in which the inhabitants of the north of Europe were clothed during the bronze epoch. In thistumulusMM. Worsaae, and Herbst found three wooden coffins, one of which was smaller than the two others, and was no doubt that of a child. One of the twolarger coffins was minutely examined by thesesavants, and measured inside 7 feet in length and 20 inches in width. It was closed up by means of a movable lid. By an extremely rare chance the soft parts of the body had been to some extent preserved, and had become converted into a black greasy substance. The bones were decomposed, and had decayed into a kind of blue powder. The brain had preserved its normal conformation. They found it at one end of the coffin (where the head had lain); it was still covered with a woollen cap, about 6 inches high, to which several black hairs were adhering.
Several woollen garments, in which the body had been buried, were also found in different parts of the coffin. We add a description of these garments.
There was in the first place a coarse cloak (fig. 220) which appeared shaggy in the inside, and was scalloped out round the neck. This cloak was 3 feet 4 inches long, and wide in proportion. Next there were two shawls nearly square in shape (fig. 221), ornamented with a long fringe, and measuring 4½ feet in length, and 3½ feet in width. Afterwards came a shirt (fig. 222), also scalloped out round the neck, and drawn in at the waist by means of a long narrow band. Lastly, at the feet of the body, two pieces of woollen material were found, which were 14 inches long, by 4 inches wide, and bore the appearance of having been the remains of gaiters. Close to the latterwere also found vestiges of leather, evidently belonging to feet-coverings of some kind.
Woollen CloakFig. 220.—Woollen Cloak of the Bronze Epoch, found in 1861, in a Tomb In Denmark.
Fig. 220.—Woollen Cloak of the Bronze Epoch, found in 1861, in a Tomb In Denmark.
Woollen ShawlFig. 221.—Woollen Shawl found in the same Tomb.
Fig. 221.—Woollen Shawl found in the same Tomb.
Woollen ShirtFig. 222.—Woollen Shirt, taken from the same Tomb.
Fig. 222.—Woollen Shirt, taken from the same Tomb.
The whole body had been wrapped up in the skin of an ox.
The coffin also contained a box, tied up with strips of osier or bark, and in this box was a smaller one, in which were found two woven woollen caps (fig. 223, 224), a comb (fig. 225), and a bronze razor.
Woollen CapFig. 223.—First Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.
Fig. 223.—First Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.
Woollen CapFig. 224.—Second Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.
Fig. 224.—Second Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.