Manchester Memoirs, Vol. Ix. (191 5), No. 1. 13 



coast, particularly between Konigsberg and Memel, and 

 from Denmark. 10 The Baltic distribution is therefore 

 that of megalithic structures : places such as Finland, the 

 Gulf of Bothnia in the Baltic, and the North and North- 

 western coasts of Norway being devoid of amber and of 

 megalithic structures. Moreover, the inland distribution 

 of megalithic structures in South Sweden and Norway 

 agrees very well with that of mineral deposits : I am 

 unable to say whether ancient mine-workings have been 

 found there. The coincidence of the distribution of 

 megalithic monuments and the sources of amber does 

 not prejudice the consideration of the routes by which 

 amber reached the Mediterranean : it merely suggests as 

 a possibility that the people who controlled the obtaining 

 of amber were megalith-builders. 



The consideration of the places whence amber was 

 obtained in the past suggests a possible further develop- 

 ment, one, however, which presents enormous difficulties : 

 but as it concerns a region of ancient mining it cannot 

 be ignored. Amber ornaments and beads have been 

 found in considerable quantities in the lake-dwelling 

 regions of Switzerland and Upper Austria and the 

 Terramara settlements of Italy. These settlements range 

 from the earliest Neolithic cultural phases down to dates 

 well within the Christian era. It is commonly believed 

 that this amber came overland from the Baltic and that 

 the Terramara people reached Switzerland and Upper 

 Austria from the Danube basin 17 , but certain other 

 considerations cannot be disregarded. The main thesis 

 of Dr. Elliot Smith and myself is that Egyptian culture 

 has had an enormous effect upon the civilisation of the 



1G Streeter. "Precious Stones and Gems,"' p. 240, et seq. London, 

 1898. 



17 T. E. Peet. " The Stone and Bronze Ages in Italy and Sicily/'" 1909, 

 p. 510. 



