A PECULIAR GROUP OF TRONATTAS. 

 (PLATE L, IL, IIL) 



By Fritz Noetling, M.A., Ph.D., etc. 

 (Read 3rd May, 1909.) 



As the AlDorig-ines of Tasmania called their stone 

 implements " tronatta," I think it advisable to use this 

 word in preference to all others When speaking of them. 

 " Tronatta " means a stone implement manufactured by 

 the Tasmanian Aborigines, and it does not bear on the 

 vexed question whether we have to consider these 

 amorpholitic implenTents as eolithes or as archaeolithes. 

 I may, however, add t!hat I have no reason to alter the 

 conclusion arrived at in my first paper, read before the 

 Fellows of the Royal Society (i), viz., that the tronatta 

 represents the typical archaeolithic stage in the evolu- 

 tion of the stone implements, somewhat modified by a 

 considerable admixture of implements of eolithic cha- 

 racter. 



Since I commenced these researches my collection 

 of tronattas has greatly increased. I also obtained a 

 large collection of oligocene, miocene, and diluvial 

 archaeolithes and eolithes from Belgium and France,, 

 and this has enabled me to fix the position of the Tas- 

 manian tronattas somewhat more accurately in the 

 ladder of evolution. 



Li none of the collections that have been sent to me 

 are there specimens which in any way approach the hig^h 

 finish of some of the tronattas. On the other hand, it 

 would be going too far to assume that those who kindly 

 sent me these specimens included in their collection 

 so'me highly finished ones, unless these were pretty 

 common. The well-finished tronattas are by no means 

 very common ; I almost doubt whether they represent 



(i) Notes oil the Tasmanian Amorpholithes, Pap. and 

 Proceed. Royal Soc. of Tas., 1906-1907, pag. 1I-37. 



