NOTES 4<55 



British School of Archeeology in Egypt (Prof. W. M. Flinders Petrie, F.R.S., 

 LL.D.) 



The work of the British School last winter has explained further the 

 ethnology of early Egypt. A series of graves were found of the ist dynasty ; 

 they were of many different types, merging one into another — open pits, or 

 with chambers, stairways, or portcullises. Yet the pottery and stone 

 vases proved that all of these were contemporary. This shows, therefore, a 

 vision of several different ancestral customs in the dynastic invaders, due 

 probably to their being a group of allied tribes in different stages of habits. 

 Another matter was illustrated by the different stature of the bodies in the 

 open pits (which are the prehistoric type) compared with those in the more 

 complex tombs of the invaders. The variant examples in each group 

 scarcely overlap at the extremes, the stature of the later people being about 

 four inches shorter than that of the earlier. 



This accords with results found six years before in a cemetery of the 

 two races, just before the ist dynasty. There the female long bones closely 

 agreed in variation with the probability curve, while the male bones showed 

 a marked secondary group, as a hump on the main group. By taking out all 

 the numbers of all the skeletons within the limits of the hump region on each 

 curve, and then seeking what numbers occurred in all of these regions, the 

 individuals composing the secondary group could be distinguished. They 

 were 4% of the male population, and were about four inches shorter than the 

 earlier people whom they had conquered. The leg bones were not distinctive 

 apart, but showed grouping clearly when femur and tibia were added together. 

 This suggests that growth takes place indifferently on either bone at the knee, 

 and the joint is the unit for growth. The skull-measures did not show any 

 distinct grouping by which they could be separated. The details, and photo- 

 graphs of the skulls, are published in Tarhhan II. 



The conclusion is that the later prehistoric people were about 69 inches 

 high ; they were peacefully penetrated by shorter settlers, who thus reduced 

 the stature to 67 ^ inches ; lastly, the invading race broke in, amounting to 

 4% of the males and only 63 i inches high, conquering a long decadent people 

 by sturdy ability. Later, the influence of the older stocks and the climate 

 restored the taller stature. The conquerors were a mixture of related tribes 

 in different stages of development. These results are only a small part of 

 the work of the School, which is mainly engaged in tracing the cultural 

 civilisation in all periods, and training students for future work. 



Dinner to the International Commission for Weather Telegraphy 



On November 26, 1920, the Majaraj Rana of Jhalawar gave a dinner to 

 the International Commission for Weather Telegraphy at Bailey's Hotel. 

 His Highness remarked that the war has done one good thing at least, and 

 that has been to give a great impetus to the improvement of aircraft, through 

 which air-conditions may be better studied nowadays. Another good it has 

 produced hasbeento encourage international co-operation and co-ordination for 

 advancing investigation, not for the destruction but for the preservation of 

 the happiness of mankind. His Highness welcomed the delegates, represent- 

 ing several nationalities, and mentioned especially the veteran meteorologists 

 M. Angot and Captain Ryder, and delegates from France, Italy, Holland, 

 Spain, Scandinavia, Switzerland, and Iceland. He then proposed a toast 

 to the President of the International Meteorological Committee, Sir Napier 

 Shaw, F.R.S., and described the distinguished work which Sir Napier had 

 done and some of the work of the Meteorological Office ; and said for 

 himself that those who have looked at weather charts and failed to make 

 head or tail of them might realise that " it is not an easy job to penetrate into 

 these secrets " — with which many will agree. 



