ANTIQUITY OF MAN IN EUROPE—MACCURDY. 567 
Madeleine (Dordogne). The inscription is composed of eight signs, 
some of which resemble certain letters of the Phenician and ancient 
Greek alphabet, as well as Cypriote 
signs. While these may not have 
been real letters to the Magdalen- 
ians, they did become so in passing 
from a symbolic and phonetic stage 
combined to one purely phonetic. 
The first sign resembles the Phe- 
nician guimel, the gamma of ancient 
and modern Greek and a sign in 
Asylian writing which dates from 
the epoch of transition between the 
paleolithic and neolithic. Allowing 
for some negligence in execution, 
the second sign is comparable to the 
Phenician alef, the alpha of ancient 
and classic Greek, and A of our own 
alphabet. The third character is 
the Phenician guimel, the gamma of 
primitive and classic Greek. The 
fourth sign is the same as the third, 
only reversed. This is also found 
in the Asylian. The fifth and sixth 
signs are alike; they are compa- 
rable to the letter 1 of the Lycian 
alphabet and of the classic Greek— 
the equivalent of the Cypriote sign 
go. The seventh sign, which is also 
found on one of the painted pebbles 
of Mas d’Azil, resembles the char- 5 
acter ti, di, thi of the Cypriote al- 
phabet. The eighth character bears 
some analogy to the Cypriote vi 
or yl. 
Cursive writing was developed 
still further during the Asylian 
epoch (fig. 18), which is the con- 
necting link between the paleo- 
\ 
Mh 
Ai al 
MM 
WM MM MU 7 
if, 
NAL LA 
‘IQIUB,P Voom] Vp “Aoy 
‘OA ‘SIIVq op 
oz 
=~ 
~~ 
‘d ‘OL 
*(eusopi0d) yelsay, ‘alaey_ VY JO UlIAVD OY} WOAZ ‘o[Sve UB JO SNIPCA OY} UO PoeABISUG JsBspUlaI JO ploH—'OT ‘OIA 
YAWN 
— 
can WAM 
A 
a 
ct 
lithic and neolithic periods. The 4& 
transitional character of this epoch 7% [= 
i=] 
is revealed in both faunal and indus- 
trial remains. The fauna is com- 
posed entirely of species still living in temperate regions. Asylian 
culture is a heritage from the Magdalenian. It is characterized by 
45745°—sMm 1909——37 
