374 



ETHNOLOGY AND ANTHROPOLOGY. 



sessors had been killed by cuts of a sharp 

 weapon upon the head. 



Chemical Changes 'in long-juried Bones. 

 The author last named concluded his paper 

 with an account of the results of chemical 

 analysis performed upon portions of these and 

 of other bones of considerable antiquity ; and 

 he is led to assert the following as among the 

 chemical characteristics of such bones: 1. 

 Long-buried bones, whatever the soil or situa- 

 tion, almost always contain a notable amount 

 of iron. 2. The amount of organic matter is 

 invariably much diminished. 3. The propor- 

 tion of carbonates in them is usually much 

 augmented. 4. A still longer abode in the 

 ground, whatever the soil, is attended with the 

 acquisition of a marked quantity of fluorine. 



Retzius 1 Classification of Crania, improved by 

 Unco's Definite Measurements. Prof. Retzius, 

 many years since, found that the most ancient 

 human crania discovered in Denmark and other 

 parts of Europe, could be mainly assigned to 

 two distinct types of conformation. To one 

 of these, characterized by a rounded form, i. e., 

 by the relative shortness of the antero-poste- 

 rior dimension as compared "with the trans- 

 verse, and having the parietal tubers promi- 

 nent, and the occiput broad and flattened, he 

 applied the name br achy cephalic (short-head- 

 ed) ; and to the other, which would appear in 

 time to have succeeded the former, and which 

 is characterized by relative length of the ante- 

 ro-posterior dimension, tending to the more 

 modern oval form, and having a prominent 

 and narrow occiput, he gave the name of doli- 

 chocephalic (long-headed). 



It should be remarked that Prof. Nillson has 

 claimed to establish a third type of cranium, 

 having the antero-posterior dimension still 

 longer than in the second, while at the same 

 time marked with greater prominence at the 

 sides. This he regards as having belonged to 

 a Celtic race, who in his opinion introduced 

 the use of bronze. To another variety of con- 

 formation, first observed in certain of the most 

 ancient skulls found in Scotland, of which the 

 most marked characteristics are the narrow- 

 ness and length of the top of the head, the 

 forehead being narrow and retreating, and the 

 occiput narrow and extremely prolonged back- 

 ward, Dr. Wilson has given the name of Tcum- 

 becephalic (boat-headed), also written cymbece- 

 phalic. , 



At a meeting of the London Anthrop. Soci- 

 ety, November 3d, 1863, during a renewal of 

 the discussion upon the cranium from the Ben- 

 net Hill cist, already mentioned, Mr. 0. C. Blake 

 called attention to the uncertainty which still 

 attended Retzius' distinctions of ancient skulls, 

 and then proceeded to state M. Broca's im- 

 provement upon that classification, by basing 

 the distinctions upon exact numerical compari- 

 sons, and introducing a third or middle class. 

 The term " index," as here used, denotes the 

 ratio of the breadth of a given cranium to its 

 length. Thus, Broca, in arranging certain 



skulls obtained from a cemetery at La Cit6, had 

 adopted the following division : 



Pure Dolichocephali : tho index 



1. DoucnocEPHALi, J-Tj leS ft,!h. a ",,ii<>n cephaH : the index 

 776. 



the index from 



SA. Pure Dolichi 

 less than .75. 

 B. Sub-dolicho 

 from .75 to .77' 



iA. Bnb-brachycephali : the index from 

 B.'^nre^Brachycephali: the index 

 .85, and upward. 



Antiquities of Northumberland. Mr. Georgo 

 Tate gave, before the British Association, 1863, 

 an account of the explorations made, during 

 the two preceding years, into the ancient Brit- 

 ish remains found among the Cheviots, in the 

 valley of the Breamish, and on Yevering Bell 

 and its neighborhood. These are in the wild 

 hilly districts of the northern part of North- 

 umberland, and they consist of fortified towns ; 

 strong, small fortlets on the slopes of the hills, 

 and in the high valleys ; hut-circles, and bar- 

 rows, or sepulchres. A fortified town site near 

 Linhope, the most remarkable of its kind, cov- 

 ers twenty acres. Here are found remains of 

 the environing walls, and within these many 

 hut-circles, some of these being flagged M'ith 

 flat stones of porphyry. Some of the hearth- 

 stones, which usually appear in the centre of 

 the circles, still retain marks of fire. Strong 

 forts crown many of the higher hills. The so- 

 called fortlets have a diameter of from thirty 

 to one hundred and fifty feet. 



All the appearances indicate a period when 

 the hilly country was held by separate tribes 

 and clans, and which were often at war with 

 each other. In various portions of the ruins 

 and barrows are found, pottery; glass orna- 

 ments (supposed to have been brought from 

 Phoenicia) ; bronze and flint weapons ; and oc- 

 casionally rude querns for grinding grain. In 

 one barrow, along with flint implements and 

 potsherds, some lumps of iron slag were found ; 

 and similar heaps have long been met with 

 elsewhere through this part of the country, at 

 a distance from modern habitations. 1 The au- 

 thor suggests the probability that iron with 

 the few who could afford it was in use earlier 

 than has been supposed in the theory of suc- 

 cessive stone, bronze, and iron ages ; and that 

 the rarity of iron implements is in part at least 

 to be accounted for by the circumstance of 

 their having perished by rust. The skulls 

 found in the remains here described were all 

 brachycephalic ; and this is believed by the au- 

 thor to have been the true type of the North- 

 umbrian Celts. 



Ancient Shell-Mounds of Scotland. The Rev. 

 Georgo Gordon having mentioned, in the " Nat- 

 ural History Review," for April, 1863, the find- 

 ing, on the shores of Moray Frith, of several 

 shell-mounds somewhat resembling tho Danish 

 " kjokkenmoddings," Mr. John Lubbock subse- 

 quently visited that region in company with 

 the. former the account of their explorations 

 appearing in the same journal for July follow- 

 ing. 



