84 : The Atlantic 



H. O'Neil Hencken of Harvard University is one of the archaeolo- 

 gists that have specialized in the early Bronze Age and in earlier 

 European archaeology. He believes that not only was the trade of 500 

 B.C. very extensive but that contact between the islands and the con- 

 tinent was being made by long and direct voyages. In other words, 

 travelers from France would lay a course from the Isle of Ushant 

 direct to Ireland and likewise voyagers to and from Spain and Por- 

 tugal were accustomed to lay a course at sea which carried them 

 directly to the Scillys and Cornwall. Thus they would avoid making 

 the laborious passage around the shores of the Bay of Biscay such 

 as is supposed to have been followed by Himilco. 



On the basis of archaeological and cultural evidence over a wide 

 area that covers the continental coast and also localities in Great 

 Britain as well as Ireland, Scotland and all the outer islands, Hencken 

 believes that there was extensive travel by boat as early as 3000 B.C., 

 but the spread of the culture which was characterized by such mono- 

 lithic structures as cromlechs and the "Druid Circles" and so forth 

 implied the existence of ready and efficient marine travel before the 

 year 2000 b.c. At that time and at the beginning of the Bronze Age 

 there was a flourishing period of navigation and trade. There appears 

 then to have been a recession in activity and communication until 

 about 1200 B.C. but thereafter a revival of interest which was apparent 

 to Pythias. It is possible that the establishment of overland trade 

 routes through France and other parts of Europe accounted for the 

 falling off in water transport. 



The existence of early and extensive travel by sea in northern 

 Europe is also attested to in the works of Prof. A. W. Br0gger in 

 the University of Oslo. Professor Br0gger, during his lifetime, was 

 responsible for the reconstruction and preservation of the Viking 

 ships that have been discovered in Norway. He also devoted years of 

 study to the origins and development of navigation in northern Eu- 

 rope. He believes that there was extensive communication on the 

 high seas at the end of the so-called Stone Age and before the begin- 

 ning of the Metal Age in northern Europe. He bases his belief not 

 only on representation of early vessels carved in rock but also on 

 widely distributed archaeological evidence. This includes the evidence 

 of extensive trade not only across the Baltic but also in all directions 

 across the North Sea, involving communication between Norway and 

 the island groups such as the Faeroes, the Orkneys, the Shetlands 

 and the shores of Scotland. 



Statements such as these may seem unfamiliar or even incredible 



