The history of England, from the earliest times to the Norman ConquestHodgkin, Thomas
History
The history of England, from the earliest times to the Norman Conquest
Hodgkin, Thomas
Great Britain -- History -- To 1066
other Palæolithic men who have left abundant traces of their presence
in the spear-heads, flints, scrapers and other large stone implements
which are often found in the gravel deposits of ancient rivers.
The Old Stone-workers, as this earliest known race of men is called
to distinguish them from Neolithic men, their immeasurably remote
descendants or representatives, knew, of course, nothing of the use
of metals, and generally fashioned their flint implements or their
bone needles in a somewhat rough and unworkmanlike manner. They
knew nothing of the art of the weaver, and can therefore have had
no other clothing than the skins of beasts. Neither did they ever
manufacture anything in the nature of pottery; so that shells and the
skulls of animals must have been their only drinking cups. But the
relics of their primeval feasts show that they were in all probability
not cannibals, and the very few Palæolithic skulls which have been
preserved show a type decidedly nobler than some of the backward races
of the present day. Curiously enough the men who had made so little
advance in the homely industries of life had nevertheless a distinct
feeling for graphic art. “By far the most noteworthy objects” in the
Palæolithic caves “are the fragments of bone, horn, ivory and stone,
which exhibit outlined and even shaded sketches of various animals.
These engravings have been made with a sharp-pointed implement, and
are often wonderfully characteristic representations of the creatures
they portray. The figures are sometimes single; in other cases they are
drawn in groups. We find representations of a fish, a seal, an ox, an
ibex, the red-deer, the great Irish elk or deer, the bison, the horse,
the cave-bear, the rein-deer and the mammoth or woolly elephant.”[1]
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