473 
But a similar kind of the socket celt itself is found amongst 
the Galbo and Betuan tribes of Africa, differing in no conceiv- 
able point from the celt of our own forefathers, save in the 
material of which the implement is composed. In Africa, as 
in Siberia, it is of iron. 
‘«¢ There is, perhaps, nothing which so much attracts the 
attention of the stranger in visiting your noble collection, or 
on which, perhaps, you pride yourself more, than the unri- 
valled collection of gold ornaments which enrich this Museum; 
and you have, no doubt, reason to be proud of them, because 
they indicate an advanced stage of culture and a widely ex- 
tended commercial intercourse between your forefathers and 
other nations of the world; but I would warn you to value 
them only on this account, for believe me, no more fatal 
danger can arise to Archxology, or, indeed, to the moral de- 
velopment of man, than fixing the eyes upon the intrinsic 
value of articles of ornament, rather than upon the art itself 
with which they are adorned. With the sole exception of the 
Museums of Scandinavia, which probably derived many of 
their treasures from successful thefts in this island, there is 
scarcely one European collection which shows anything like 
so great a wealth of personal ornament formed of precious 
metal. It is, indeed, possible that Gaul may have rivalry with 
you in its wealth of gold. Unhappily, the discoveries that 
have been made there have not been preserved with sufficient 
care, and avarice has consigned to the melting-pot specimens 
of ancient art, the study of which might have led us to con- 
clusions of the utmost importance. There is nothing in those 
grand tiaras of gold which strike every stranger who enters 
the next room, that is unexampled in the Museums of Northern 
Germany, except as to the metal of which they are formed. 
The general outline is the same, and a good deal of the orna- 
ment is so also; but it is precisely at this point that I touch 
upon the archeological distinction, which, in my mind, is of 
the utmost possible importance, and to which I venture to call 
