The Nordics apparently originated in southern Russia, but long before the Bronze Period they had spread northward across the Baltic into Scandinavia, where they specialized into the race now known as the Scandinavian or Teutonic. On the map the continental Nordics are indicated by pink and the Nordics of Scandinavia are shown in red. At the very end of the period covered by this map, these Scandinavian Nordics were beginning to return to the continent. The routes of these migrations and their extent are indicated by red arrows and circles respectively. To sum up, this map shows the expansion from central Asia of the round skull Alpines across central Europe, submerging, in the south and west, the little, dark, long skulled Mediterraneans of Neolithic culture, while at the same time they pressed heavily upon the Nordics in the north and introduced Bronze culture among them. This development of the Alpines at the expense of the Mediterraneans had a permanent influence in western Europe, but in the north their impress was of a more temporary character. It is probable that in the first instance they were able to conquer the Nordics by reason of the superiority of bronze weapons to stone hatchets. But no sooner had they imparted the knowledge of the manufacture and use of metal weapons and tools to the Nordics than the latter turned on their conquerors and completely mastered them, as appears on the next map. THE EXPANSION OF THE PRE-TEUTONIC NORDICS, 1800–100 B. C. The second map (Pl. II) of the series shows the shattering and submergence of the green Alpine area by the pink Nordic area. It will be noted that in Italy, Spain, France and Britain the solid green and the green dots have steadily declined and in central Europe the green has been torn apart and riddled in every direction by pink arrows and pink dots, leaving solid green only in mountainous and infertile districts. This submergence of the Alpines by the Nordics was so complete that their very existence was forgotten until in our own day it was discovered that the central core of Europe was inhabited by a short, stocky, round skulled race originally from Asia. To-day these Alpines are gradually recovering their influence in the world by sheer weight of numbers. On this map the green Alpine area is shown to be everywhere shrinking except in the countries around the Carpathians and the Dnieper River, where the Sarmatians and Wends are located. It was in this district that the Slavic-speaking Alpines were developing. Simultaneously with this expansion toward the west, south and east of the continental Nordics, the Scandinavian or Teutonic tribes appear on the scene in increasing numbers, as shown by the red area and red arrows, pressing upon and forcing ahead of them their kinsmen on the mainland. [Illustration: EXPANSION OF THE PRE-TEUTONIC NORDICS 1800–100 B.C. (generalized scheme) by Madison Grant]