THE STUDY OF HUMAN PREHISTORY 
the better part of two days. Having made exact drawings of it, I 
handed the skull and drawings to Dr. Derry at University College. 
He then showed me the cast of the original—the skull of an ancient 
Egyptian—a woman, with a peculiar form of head and a brain capacity 
of 1,395 c.c. The estimate I returned of the brain capacity, namely 
1,415 c. c., was not very wide of the truth, and as regards general form 
and actual dimensions I was relieved to find the method I had followed 
had given—except in one respect—a fairly accurate reproduction of 
the original. 
Nothing could be more conclusive regarding the pains- 
taking methods employed by modern anatomists in the 
study of ancient skeletal remains. And only rarely, we 
may add, do prehistoric skulls present so many difficulties 
as that of Piltdown. 
The comparison of ancient man’s customs and practices, 
so far as we know them, with parallel traits among modern 
savages has its dangers, for often the ethnologist finds that 
closely similar practices among modern tribes may arise 
in totally different ways and be governed by entirely 
different ideas. Yet this method in the hands of experts 
can be made very useful, even if rarely in itself decisive. 
A concrete example will show how it helps to throw light 
on the far-distant past. 
There have been found painted on the walls of caves in 
France and Spain many silhouettes of human hands, with 
one, two, three, or even four fingers showing only as 
stumps (Plate 16). An experience with American Indians 
reported by George Bird Grinnell suggests the key to this 
mystery. Once when he was present at Camp Lewis, 
Montana, the body of a Crow Indian chief killed in battle 
was brought in, whereupon the mother and a male rela- 
tive each cut off the little finger of the left hand in sign 
of their grief. And a Cheyenne Indian once explained to 
Grinnell how he had sacrificed three of his fingers to the 
Higher Powers, to induce them to aid him in taking ven- 
geance on an enemy. 
Again we find in the reasoning of certain primitive 
peoples of our day who depict animals and enemies on 
[51] 
