PRIMITIVE COLOR VISION. 57 



greater than that of the average European. I also found, both by 

 observation of their clothing and by direct questioning, that red was 

 the favorite color of these people. In reading accounts of primitive 

 man, one can not help being struck by the great predominance of red 

 in the decoration of their houses, weapons and implements. This 

 predominance may partly be due to the striking nature of the color 

 and also to the prevalence of red pigments, but it seems possible that 

 it may also be connected with the fact that red is the color of 

 blood. Many savage races appear to be in a state of constant warfare, 

 and in the religious rites and ceremonies of nearly all primitive races 

 blood pays a great part. 



The suggestion may even be hazarded that the earliest use to which 

 red pigments were put was to smear the body in the war-dance, to 

 imitate the blood-stained victor,* or to replace blood in the various 

 ceremonies of which it so often forms an essential feature. In his 

 'Legend of Perseus/ 1 Mr. Hartland has collected a number of instances 

 in which it is perfectly obvious that vermilion or other red pigment 

 has been used in the place of blood. Both in Murray Island and 

 Mabuiag the chief words for red were derived from the name for 

 blood, and this derivation is found in many languages, including our 

 own. To whatever cause it may be due, there is no doubt that red is 

 the most important color in the life of the savage, and it is natural 

 that the predominant color should also be that which has the most 

 definite name. X 



The main conclusions may be summed up as follows: The language 

 used for color in ancient writings shows a characteristic defect, from 

 which it has been concluded that the color sense of ancient races was 

 also defective. 



Existing primitive races agree in showing the same defect of color 

 language as is found in ancient writings, and, in at least one such race, 

 there has been found to be a corresponding defect in color sense, con- 

 sisting in a certain degree of insensitiveness to those colors for which the 

 nomenclature is defective. 



Evidence, derived from ancient monuments and from the color 

 vision of animals, which has been held to disprove the existence of 

 any defect in the color senses of the ancients, appears to be incon- 

 clusive, and iQight, indeed, be held to support the views which have 

 been derived from the study of language. 



• This custom appears to have persisted down to Roman times, in which the 

 conqueror painted his body red when taking part in the triumphal procession. 



fVol. II., pp. 242, 264; notes, 342, 354-5. 



X Since the above was written, the question of the predominance of red haa 

 been fully discussed by Havelock Ellis. (Popxtlar Science Monthly, August 

 and September, 1900.) 



