6l2 



NATURE 



lApril 26, 1888 



gave the ancient hieroglyphic or hieratic forms of some 

 cuneiform characters, with their values. Among these is a 

 triangle the sides of which are represented by doubled 

 lines carefully finished off, while the base, which is to a 

 certain extent dissevered, is represented only by a single 

 line or wedge. We thus see a tendency already to that 

 dropping of the base exemplified in the Cypriote symbol. 

 But is the meaning the same ? The cuneiform character 

 giving the value is unfortunately gone, except a small 

 portion of a single wedge, which alone would yield but 

 slender grounds for determining the import of the triangle. 

 We are able, however, to take, together with the small 

 portion of the wedge, the archaic cuneiform character 

 denoting "life," and still retaining the semblance of an 

 equilateral triangle. The value of "life" was that 

 assigned to the triangle as it appears on the broken 

 tablet, by M. Menant ; and Mr. Pinches, of the British 

 Museum, is also of opinion that the fragment of the 

 wedge remaining is entirely in accordance with this view. 



Whence the idea originated that the primordial source 

 of life was of triangular form, it is of course impossible to 

 say. This was, however, an idea which prevailed very 

 widely indeed in the East. A distinguished scholar and 

 archaeologist has directed my attention to symbols found 

 on Indo-Scythian coins as being analogous to the Hittite 

 and Cypriote symbols (see Fig. V, 4). It is not difficult 

 to discern the two sides of the triangle and the horizontal 

 stroke or bar. Instead, however, of the circular or 

 rounded head, there are four vertical strokes, which 

 there can be little difficulty in recognizing as a symbol of 

 fire, a symbol which, in the case of Zoroastrians and fire- 

 worshippers, would be entirely suitable. 



In connecting the Hittite symbol of the Tarsus seal 

 with the Babylonian hieroglyphic triangle, we have gone 

 back to an antiquity very remote indeed. But if we are to 

 regard the symbols already discussed as connected also 

 with the well-known Egyptian symbol of life, the ankh, and 

 with other Egyptian symbolic forms, our demand on time 

 must probably be much greater. That the Egyptian 

 talismans (Fig. Z, 2, 3, 4) might have been evolved from 



123 



Fig. Z —I, Ankh, Egyptian symbol of life, from coffin of Men-ka-ra, in the 

 British Museum ; 2, 3, 4, Egyptian talismans in the British Museum. 



a form identical with, or resembling, the headed triangle 

 of the Phoenician monuments, it requires no great stretch 

 of imaginative power to discern. ^ But with regard to the 

 ankh (i), so often seen in the hands of deities, though the 



' The distinguished Egyptologis', Mr. Le Page Renouf, now Keeper of 

 Oriental Antiquities at the British Museum, tells me that, while (2) and (3) 

 may not be earlier than the eighteenth dynasty, (4I is of very great antiquity, 

 occurring in the name of Hor-em-sa-f, one of the Pyramid kings. 



points of resemblance are tolerably obvious,^ yet it may 

 seem difficult to understand how the triangle could have 

 assumed the form of the vertical bar. True, the bar is 

 pointed at the apex ; and elsewhere on the Egyptian 

 monuments an acute-angled triangle in the correspond- 

 ing position is sufficiently common. But it is remarkable 

 that this latter form is not seen on a monument so very 

 ancient as the coffin of the king Men-ka-ra. Still, on the 

 whole, it can scarcely be regarded as other than probable 

 that the ankh, like the other Egyptian forms depicted, 

 must be referred ultimately to the headed triangle. But, 

 if this view is just, and the triangle had collapsed, as 

 shown in the figure, when the coffin of Men-ka-ra was 

 constructed, the period of man's existence on the earth 

 in a condition of somewhat advanced civilization must 

 be of exceedingly protracted duration. 



As to the age of the greater Hittite monuments, it is 

 impossible to speak. To argue that the Hittite hiero- 

 glyphs could not have remained long in use by the side 

 of either the cuneiform syllabary or the Phoenician 

 alphabet would be somewhat perilous. A better argu- 

 ment for their great antiquity is furnished by the total 

 absence, so far as can be seen, of any indication ot 

 horses or chariots. Yet, in the wars with the Egyptians 

 some fifteen or sixteen centuries before Christ, the Hit- 

 tites appear well equipped with this kind of forces, in a 

 state of organization from which lengthened usage may 

 be reasonably inferred. 



What has been said may suffice to show the extremely 

 great interest of the questions suggested by the Hittite 

 monuments. Unfortunately the material for investiga- 

 tion is at present but scanty, though there are probably 

 hundreds, perhaps thousands, of monuments awaiting 

 the spade of the excavator. The very important results 

 obtained by the British Museum from the excavations at 

 Jerablus have not prevented these excavations from being 

 for a considerable time wholly suspended. That this 

 should be the case is certainly matter for regret ; for I 

 hope that I have at least succeeded in showing that the 

 idea that the solution of the Hittite problem is hopeless 

 is one which cannot be reasonably entertained. 



CLASS EXPERIMENTS. 



1''HE following is a brief account of some experiments 

 shown to the students of the Natural Philosophy 

 Class in the University of Glasgow during the present 

 Session. It is communicated to Nature with the per- 

 mission of Sir W. Thomson. 



I. (i) Suspend a heavy ball by a long wire, as shown 

 in Fig. I. To the middle of the ball attach a worsted 

 thread, A D. Pull the thread in the direction of the 

 arrow-head, with a pull that will not break it, and let 

 the pull be finished before the ball is sensibly displaced. 

 Observe the greatest subsequent displacement of the ball. 



(2) Bring the ball to rest. Pull it now with a pull suf- 

 ficient to break the thread. Note that the displacement 

 is smaller than in case (i). 



(3) Bring the ball to rest once more. Give a very 

 sudden pull to the thread : it breaks, and the displace- 

 ment of the ball is hardly perceptible. 



In each of the three cases the momentum is equal to 



I Ydt for the whole duration of the pull. The pull 



in case (i) is smaller than the pull in cases (2) and (3), 

 but the duration of the pull is greater in a greater ratio ; 

 hence the momentum communicated, being the time in- 

 tegral of the pull, is the greatest for case (i). Although 

 the pull in case (2) is equal to the pull in case (3), still its 



' The connection with, or analogy batween, the Tarsus and Cypriote 

 symbols and th» ankk was suggested by Mr. Pinches, and subsequently, 

 with respect to the Tarsus symbol, on different ground.s, by Prof. Sayce. 



