304 THROUGH THE HEART OF PATAGONIA 



which it was found, the atmosphere of which is not so damp as one might 

 at first imagine it to be, although it is situated in the woody regions near 

 to the glaciers and lakes. It is well to mention tha,t in 1877, under 

 similar conditions, and in a much smaller cave, scarcely five metres from 

 the waters of Lake Argentino, situated sixty miles more to the north, I 

 discovered a mummified human body painted red, with the head still 

 covered in part with its short hair wonderfully preserved, and wrapped up 

 in a covering made of the skin of a Rhea, and holding in its arms a 

 large feather of the Condor, also painted red ; this was all covered up 

 with a layer of grass and dust fallen from the roof of the cave. In 

 another cave in the neighbourhood I discovered a large trunk of a tree, 

 painted with figures in red, black, and yellow. The sides of the rock 

 close to the entrance of the cave were covered with figures, some repre- 

 senting the human hand, others combinations of curved, straight, and 

 circular lines, painted white, red, yellow, and green. Now, this mummy, 

 which is preserved in the Museum of La Plata, does not belong to any of 

 the actual tribes of Patagonia. Its skull resembles rather one of those 

 more ancient races found in the cemeteries in the valley of the Rio Negro 

 — a most interesting fact, since they belong to types which have com- 

 pletely disappeared from the Patagonian regions, and it is well known 

 that the actual Tehuelches may be considered to have been the last 

 indigenous races which reached the territory of Patagonia. Many a time 

 the Tehuelches have spoken to me of these caves as abodes of the evil 

 " spirits," and of the enigmatical painted figures they contained : some 

 attributed the latter to these same " spirits," others to men of other races, 

 of whom they have no recollection. In another cave, four hundred miles 

 farther to the north, in 1880, I discovered other human bodies, more or 

 less mummified and in good preservation, but of a different type, and 

 beside them some painted poles which served to hold up their small 

 tents, the use of which had already disappeared more than three centu- 

 ries ago ; together with the upper part of the skull of a child perfectly 

 scooped out like a cup. And yet the historical Tehuelches, the same as 

 all the indigenous races in the southern extremity of South America, hold 

 their dead in great respect, and never use such drinking-vessels. 



These proofs of the favourable conditions of the climate and of the 

 lands near to the Cordillera, which are revealed to us by the preservation 

 of objects undoubtedly dating from very remote epochs, strengthen my 

 opinion that this skin of a huge mammal, which has long since disappeared, 

 may well have been preserved till the present time. 



I may add that a further careful search is now being made in the 

 earth forming the floor of the cave, and I hope in due time to have the 

 honour of communicating the results to this Society. 



