Manners and Monuments of Prehistoric PeoplesNadaillac, Jean-François-Albert du Pouget, marquis de
History
Manners and Monuments of Prehistoric Peoples
Nadaillac, Jean-François-Albert du Pouget, marquis de
Archaeology; Prehistoric peoples
Whilst the cave-men of the south of France seem not to have utilized
any but fresh-water fish, the Scandinavians, at a date probably less
remote however, did not hesitate to brave the ocean. The
kitchen-middings contain numerous remains of fish, amongst which those
of the mackerel, the dab, and the herring are the most numerous. There,
too, we meet with relics of the cod, which never approaches the coast,
and must always be sought by the fisherman in the open sea.
Although we are in a position to assert that men were able to catch
fish during every prehistoric period, if not in every locality, we can
speak less positively of their mode of doing so. The earliest
fishing-tackle was doubtless of the most primitive description: the
bone of some animal, a fragment of hard wood, or even a fish-bone
pointed at each end and pierced with a hole, served their purpose (Fig.
10). The Exhibition of Fishing-Tackle held at Berlin in 1880 contained
several such implements, some of wood, others of bone. Others have also
been found in the Madeleine Cave, and in different stations of the
ancient inhabitants of Switzerland. It is interesting to note their
resemblance to those still in use amongst the Esquimaux.
[Illustration: 10.]
1. Fragments of arrows made of reindeer horn from the Martinet Cave
(Lot-et-Garonne).—2. Point of spear or harpoon in stag-horn (one third
natural size).—3. and 4. Bone weapons from Denmark.—5. Harpoon of
stag-horn from St. Aubin.—6. Bone fish-hook; pointed at each end, from
Wangen.
Prehistoric mail also turned to account the teeth of animals. We may
quote in this connection the molars of a bear from which the enamel and
the crown have been removed, and the thickness of which has been
lessened by rubbing (Fig. 11). The small flints picked up in great
numbers in the department of the Gironde also date from a remote
antiquity; they are sixteen millimetres long by four wide, and though
we cannot assert it as a fact, they are supposed to have been used for
catching fish.
[Illustration: 11.]
Bears’ teeth converted into fish-hooks.
[Illustration: 12.]
Fish-hook made out of a boar’s tusk.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account