ARCHAEOLOGY. 347 



author of the Habitations Lacustres to confine himself almost exclu- 

 sively within the actual limits of Switzerland, it is not the less certain 

 that the ancient civilization with which he is engaged spread itself 

 extensively over both Gaul and Italy. 



I. 



During the winter of 1 853-' 54 a remarkable depression was ob- 

 served in the level of the Lake of Zurich : the retreat of the waters 

 laid bare a Avide surface, of which the inhabitants of the shores took 

 advantage to construct dykes far in advance of the ancient water line, 

 and thus acquired extensive tracts which had been hitherto sub- 

 merged. Near the hamlet of Obermeilen the laborers occupied in the 

 work of embankment discovered, under a bed of mud of half a demi- 

 metre in depth, some piles, bits of charcoal, stones blackened by fire, 

 bones and various utensils which indicated the existence of an ancient 

 village. Having been informed of this interesting discovery, M. Fer- 

 dinand Keller, of Zuricli, hastened to investigate the relics just dis- 

 covered, and soon after announced to the scientific world the result 

 of his researches. This formed the starting-point of incessant ex- 

 plorations. MM. Uhlmann, Jahn, Schwab, Troyon, Forel, Rey, Desor, 

 and many others have from that time been engaged in having the shoals 

 of the Swiss lakes dredged. For the purpose of discovering traces of 

 ancient habitations, they sounded the alluvial deposits formed on the 

 lacustrian strands and in the deltas of rivers, and with the same view 

 they have visited the lakes of Italy, those of the French Jura and of 

 Savoy; hence their collection of historical materials is constantly in- 

 creasing. Within the limits of their own country alone they have 

 discovered under the surface of the waters the remains of a hundred 

 and fifty villages, and no season passes without their announc- 

 ing new ones. Already the larger cities of Switzerland and many 

 learned individuals offer to the inspection of the curious archasological 

 museums comprising thousands of ancient relics. From the aquatic 

 village of Concise alone, which is situated in the lake of Neuchatel, 

 about twenty-five thousand objects have been obtained, and perhaps 

 even a still more abundant crop may be gathered, since the historic 

 layer spread along the bottom of the lake is of the thickness of a 

 metre. 



It IS easy to conceive the principal reason which determined the 

 ancient tribes of Helvetia to erect their constructions on the shallows 

 of lakes. Before the Roman epoch the valleys of the Alps were cov- 

 ered with immense forests, through which roamed the bear, the wolf, 

 the boar, the urus, and other formidable animals. Avhile man, since 

 war must from time to time have raged between the scattered tribes, 

 was still more to be dreaded than the wild beasts. The first care of 

 each group of families, therefore, was to secure its safety against an 

 unforeseen attack by establishing itself in some place defended by 

 natural obstacles. In mountain regions, some would select high and 

 precipitous acclivities; others take refuge in caverns on the sides of 

 perpendicular rocks and fortify the entrance to their subterranean 



