344 MAN AS THE COTEMPORARY OF THE MAMMOTH 



and woolly rhinoceros — we have at last succeeded in tracing back the sacred rites of burial, 

 and, more interesting still, a belief in a future state, to times long anterior to those of history 

 and tradition. 



It may perhaps seem strange tliat this depository of the dead at Aurignac 

 should have been preserved for us so many thousands of years, and not have 

 been swept away by the diluvial cataclysms. But when it is considered that, 

 excepting at certain points where the upheaval of the soil has l>eeu distinctly 

 ascertained, the height of these inundations over the regions in question has not 

 exceeded 600 to 750 loot, it is clear that the grotto of Aurignac, which has an 

 elevation of 1,290 feet, was l)eyond their reach. There are various other cav- 

 erns, moreover, in whicli proof exists of the cotemporaneous existence of man and 

 extinct animals of the (piaternary period. In a general point of \'iew, these 

 caverns may be divided into three groups, those which have been inhabited by 

 men, those which have served as burial places, and those which liave formed the 

 lair of the greater carnivorous animals. These last contain numerous bones, the 

 remains of the prey dragged tliither bj- such wild beasts as the tiger, the hyena, 

 and the bear. The bones are gnawed, never split lengthwise, nor do any traces 

 occur which would point to the presence of the human race. The caverns, on 

 the other hand, which have formed the habitations of man are readily to be dis- 

 tinguished, even in the absence of human remains, by the existing bones being 

 cleft lengthwise in the manner which was uniformly employed to get at the mar- 

 row. In certain caverns are found one or more overlying strata containing 

 remains and corresponding to different epochs. The grottoes whicli have served 

 as burial phices are usually small, and entered by a narrow passage, so as to be 

 readil}' closed by a flat stone in order to protect the dead bodies from the rapacity 

 of hyenas and other carnivorous animals. 



It is easily conceived tliat many caverns exist which do not fall withiu either 

 of these three classes. Some of tliem, which have two entrances, may have been 

 emptied of their contents by floods, or been completely filled up with mud and 

 rubbish. Others have been inhabited by man, after having been previously 

 occupied as dens l)y wild beasts. Others still have been hollowed out l)y men, 

 in order to be used for different purposes. In the latter, as in those exposed to 

 the action of water, ranch circumspection is requisite to determine tlie age of the 

 remains which are found therein. 



The principal caverns pertaining to the age of the great cave bears are the 

 following: (1.) The grotto of Vallieres, in the department of the Loire and 

 Cher. It contains bones of the rhinoceros, the hyena, the gigantic deer, the 

 bear, the aurochs, a horse, (Equus adamiticus,) mingled with stone hatchets, of 

 the kind found in the valley of the Somme. (2.) The grotto of Arcy-sur-Yonne. 

 Under 'a more recent deposit it presents two strata of the quaternary period. 

 Here were found bones of tlie elephant, the rhinoceros, the bear, and the hyena, 

 intermingled with stone implements ; also the two branches of a human under 

 jaw, with teeth well preserved, (o.) The cave of Fontaine, in the environs of 

 Tonl, containing bones of the bear, the hj'ena, and the rhinoceros, as well as 

 objects of human industry, including a needle of bone, provided Avith an eye. 

 (4.) The cave of Pontil, in the department of Ilerault. It contains a lower bed 

 bearing the remains of the large extiuct animals, and an upper one with hiunan 

 remains, charcoal, and implements of stone, bone, and buckhorn, mingled with 

 the bones of horses and bisons. On the surface have been collected the bones of 

 the polecat, together with smooth stone hatchets, and objects which point to the 

 age of bronze. (5.) The grotto of Moustier, in the district of Peyzac, (Perigord.) 

 Here were presented the remains of the cave hyena, the great bear, and scales 

 of the molar teeth of the elephant, such as were found at Aurignac and other 

 places which had been iidiabited by men. With the animal remains were min- 

 gled stone implements bearing a resemblance to those found at Abbeville. (6.) 

 The upper grotto of Massat, in the department of Ariege. Here, besides many 

 animal bones, have been recovered two human teeth and an arrow-head of bone. 



