^22 A A\t('/i//v Discovered Skc/r/oii i)i Scoskd CavCy LillDudalc. 



and llie sanu; perhaps may also be said of the Permian — were 

 probably to some extent comparable with those existing ni 

 certain of the more central parts of Asia, such as Persia or 

 Turkestan. 



A RECENTLY DISCOVERED SKELETON IN SCOSKA 

 CAVE, LITTONDALE.* 



HAROLD BKODRICK, M.A., and C. A. HILL, M.B., B.A. 



ScosKA Cavk is situated about a mile beyond the villai;-e of 

 Arncliflfe and at a height of 230 feet above the river Skirfare. 

 The opening of the cave is about 7 feet high and 15 feet wide. 

 At a distance of 250 feet from the entrance the cave branches, 

 the right branch being more than 400 yards in length. The 

 left branch (which contains a small stream) is entered by 

 creeping under a ledge 18 inches high ; the roof soon rises to a 

 height of 4 feet, and continues at this level for 400 feet ; at this 

 point the roof lowers, and a few yards beyond many bones in a 

 good state of preservation have been found. All the bones 

 belong to one person, and were for the most part almost entirely 

 buried in stalagmite ; they were scattered along the floor of the 

 cave over a distance of about 20 feet. The skull is that of 

 a female Celt, being of the brachycephalic type. All the teeth 

 are present, with the exception of the two back molars, which 

 evidently fell out subsequently to death. The teeth show signs 

 of considerable attrition, being worn flat with the loss of the 

 enamel in the molars ; this has evidently been caused by eating 

 corn ground between gritstones, the grit being left in the flour. 

 Just above the right mastoid process is a small, irregularly 

 shaped hole, which has penetrated the inner table of the skull 

 and has e\ idently been the cause of death. The blow would 

 not prove instantly fatal, so that the woman had probably 

 crawled up the cave to die, the position in which the bones 

 were found precluding the idea of burial. Detailed measure- 

 ments of the skull, &c., were given. t 



* A ijupcr i-rad to .Si-clioii W (if the Mccliiii; of the Mritisli Assoriatioil, 

 York. 



t Witli ic.ufard to lliis ' tind,' il slioiihl he poiiitctl out that whilst it is 

 within thi- bounds of ]K)ssibility tlial this skrloton is that of a fi-niak' Celt, 

 there is no proof of its aj^-e, and it seems even ])roI)able that the skeleton is 

 of imieh more recent date than the authors consider. The measurements of 

 the skull, t^^iveii when the paper was read, are no criterion, and in the 

 absence of any associated relics, our best archajolog-ists would hesitate to 

 date tile remains.- l^li. 



Naturalist, 



