ARTICLES 83 



to merge into one another. Bearing these elementary con- 

 siderations in mind, we may proceed to examine the different 

 archaeological industries, and see what is known of their geo- 

 logical position and distribution. 



I. The Lower Palaeolithic Period 



Strepyan. — At Stripy in Belgium, only a few feet above 

 the present river, are found some rude implements, which are 

 generally regarded as constituting the oldest group of palgeo- 

 liths. In France, too, " pre-Chellean " implements of much 

 the same character occur in the valley of the Somme, but at 

 a decidedly higher level than at Strepy — namely, in the lowest 

 gravel of the second or third terraces, at 30 and 40 metres re- 

 spectively above the river-level. Our English evidence so far 

 is more in accordance with the French than with the Belgian. 

 It is true that at Swanscombe only flakes were found by Messrs. 

 Smith and Dewey x in the lowest gravel of the so-called 100 ft. 

 terrace (about 90 ft. above O.D.), but exactly as in the Somme 

 valley, Chellean implements (which we shall deal with presently) 

 were collected from another gravel a few feet higher, so that 

 these flakes may reasonably be described as pre-Chellean. 



Near Rickmansworth, again, the same observers found 

 flakes of closely similar character," which they regard as also 

 pre-Chellean, but the discovery in the same gravel of an im- 

 plement of apparently much later date throws a good deal of 

 doubt on this opinion ; if accepted, however, it is of consider- 

 able interest, since the gravel is here only 40 ft. above the 

 nearest river, and therefore occupies a position about halfway 

 between the Belgian and French levels. 



Further research is certainly required into the distribution 

 of this industry, but although implements of Strepyan type 

 are not uncommon in English gravels, their exact horizon has 

 not with any certainty been ascertained ; and unfortunately 

 the flakes have no particular character and can only be dated 

 when definite Chellean implements are found above them. As 

 we shall see later on, the discrepancies in level between English 

 and continental deposits are by no means confined to this in- 

 dustry. 



Chellean. — The next industry in chronological order is the 



1 Archczologia, vol. lxiv. p. 182. 

 3 Ibid. vol. lxvi. (1915), p. 195. 



