Stone Monuments of Brittany. 25 
seem to represent axes and serpents. All these markings consist 
of shallow grooves or channels about 4 in. wide and 4 in. deep, 
just such as would be made with a stone chisel. 
The covering stones of this dolmen are flush with the sur- 
rounding soil, and on one of them is a row of wedge holes, as 
shown in the photograph. The edges of the holes are much 
weathered. 
These wedge holes are exactly like those made by the Egyp- 
tians in detaching large blocks of stone from the quarry. The 
photograph shown I took some time ago, in the disused quarries 
in the desert near Assouan, Upper Egypt. A row of wedge- 
shaped holes was cut along the line of fracture desired. These 
were filled with dry wood wedges, driven in hard, and then 
moistened with water; the resulting expansion split the syenite 
with such certainty that obelisks were partly finished in_ the 
quarry before being detached from the natural rock. It is 
evident that the Stone Age people knew of this method, and 
used it to break off pieces from blocks that were too large, but 
none of the stones show any signs of quarrying, and they were 
all probably blocks found loose on the surface; but the method 
by which the largest were got into position is a mystery of 
which no definite solution has yet been offered, but it seems to 
have been done by the combined efforts of large numbers of 
men all pulling together, with wooden rollers placed under the 
stone to reduce the friction, as shown in some of the Egyptian 
sculptures. ) 
Sir Joseph Hooker mentions the existence of large numbers 
of rude stone monuments in Southern India, erected in rows 
and circles, resembling Stonehenge in dimensions and appear- 
ance, and he says that they are erected at the present day by 
the Kharjias, a race of barbarous hill men very low in the scale, 
of bloodthirsty disposition, and addicted to human sacrifices. 
Their method of removing the blocks for their dolmens and 
menhirs is by cutting grooves, along which fires are lighted, 
and into which, when heated, cold water is run, which causes 
the rock to fissure along the groove. 
The blocks are erected by sheer brute force, the lever being 
the only aid. 
In a dolmen near Locmariaker are some curious incised mark- 
ings, of which the sketch shown represents three. Two of them 
seem intended for boats with men in them; the large one is on 
the stone facing the entrance, and seems meant for a pair of 
eyes with eyebrows. There is not light enough in the chamber 
to photograph by. 
Many of the dolmens are in. groups of three or four together, 
so close that one large tumulus must have covered the whole. 
In some cases the base of the tumulus remains, so that the 
