SECTIONAL TEANSACTIONS.— H. 393 



It is probable that the cult of the stone axe was carried on after the Neolithic Age 

 into that of Bronze, and possibly into the prehistoric Iron Age. 



The polished stone axe engraved on dolmens in Brittany probably belong to this 

 cult, and the highly polished stone axes in the burial mounds of France, Germany, and 

 Britain were probably made for the cult and were not intended for use. They are 

 all of the French type, with the small end tapering to a point, and are singularly 

 perfect. The occurrence of one of these in a burial mound near Stonehenge makes it 

 likely that it was used in the cult of that ancient temple. 



28. Prof. Sir Flinders Petrie, F.R.S. — Egyipt and the Caucasus. 



A recent suggestion that some names in the Caucasus region were like those in 

 the mythology of the Egyptians seemed to have support from the probability of a 

 northern origin of the Badarian civilisation. To test this all the place-names in the 

 Book of the Dead were extracted, with their indications of position. Most of these 

 names are found in the Caucasus in their relative positions, and the physical nature 

 of the region agrees to the descriptions. The importance of any such connection makes 

 full discussion desirable. 



29. Miss E. W. Gardner. — The Recent Geology of the Northern Fayum 



Desert. 



The country north of the Birket Qerun is now desert, consisting topographically 

 of two plateaus, an eastern and a western, separated by a low-lying area running north 

 for five miles from the lake towards the high cliffs forming the northern boundary of 

 the Fayum. 



Detailed examination has shown that the lake-beds of the plateaus, originally 

 described by Beadnell and regarded by him as belonging to the prehistoric ancestor 

 of Lake Moeris, must be divided into at least two series. Those which occur up to 

 222 ft. above the Birket Qerun belong to an earlier lake, which was certainly connected 

 with the Nile at one time, as is shown by the fauna. Subsequently the connection seems 

 to have been broken, the lake dried up, and the deposits were consolidated and greatly 

 eroded. 



At some later date a second lake came into existence, but only reached a maximum 

 of 205 ft. above the present lake. 



From that time all the evidence points to a fall of the water-level, probably in 

 stages, down to the modern Birket Qerun — 148 ft. below sea-level. 



30. Miss G. Caton-Thompson. — The Neolithic Culture of the Northern 



Fayum Desert. 



During the past two seasons work has been carried on in this region to determine 

 the cultural status and relative date of the makers of the fine pressure-flaked flint- 

 work hitherto known only from surface collections. 



This industry appeared to be foreign to the Nile Valley, until recent finds in the 

 oldest stratum at Badari, Upper Egypt, furnished a possible connection. 



Evidence has been provided by systematic excavation of habitation mounds lying 

 some miles north of the present Birket Qerun ; objects denoting the domestic, agri- 

 cultural, hunting, and fishing activities of the period have been obtained from these, 

 and tlie culture is shown to be of an advanced Neolithic type. The sites fringe the 

 shores of the second lake period, and rest upon sands and clays deposited by the old 

 high-level lake ; they show no sign of a subsequent submergence in historic times. 



The topography of the ground and the distribution of high-level gravels emphasise 

 the long period which elapsed between Middle Palaeolithic times and the arrival of the 

 Fayum flint-workers. 



Wednesday, August 11. 



31. Mrs. Zelia Nuttall. — Fresh Light on the Ancient Calendar Systems 



of America. 



