1890.] 
447 
[Wright. 
using a few drops of hydrochloric acid upon the clay, and the re- 
heating. Even deeper tints than are seen in the original can thus 
be secured. This process has not been tried upon the duplicate 
image, but has been upon other portions of the same material, not, 
however, until after the original had been returned to its owner, 
so that exact comparisons have been, as yet, impossible, or, it may 
be said that the extreme color may be due to a different selection 
of materials, including more iron oxide, for example, or, to some 
accidental feature in the process of burning. In none of my own 
experiments, however, has that apparent tint been obtained, ex- 
cepting by the use of an acid. 
IS THE IMAGE AN ANCIENT ONE ? 
Without entering at all upon the other lines of evidence which 
bear upon the theory of the antiquit}' of the image, I have only 
to state in conclusion, that I have not been able to find, in this 
examination, anything that is satisfactory in confirmation of such 
a theory. If tlie image is really older than the three hundred 
feet of sedimentary and volcanic deposits under which it was 
buried, its age must at least be many hundreds, and probably 
many thousands of years. While it would be difficult, even if all 
the chemical conditions were known, to tell beforehand what the 
effects of such protracted burial might be, we should still expect 
that some tangible evidence would appear. As to the proper in- 
terpretation of the characters which the image does present, we 
might well be uncertain, so long as there was no standard with 
which to compare it. But when we find that it is possible in a 
few hours to produce a duplicate which exhibits all the external 
and internal characters of the original, there is nothing left in the 
image itself to sustain the theory of its antiquity. Whoever com- 
pares the two will see that the tool marks are as distinct and fresh 
in the original as in the duplicate. He will see the same corroded 
surface on the duplicate as on the original. The interior tenac- 
ity, composition and color are the same in both. The variations 
in the external color have been fully set forth. 
While therefore it would be a great pleasure to be able to con- . 
firm the evidence of its antiquity brought forward from other sources 
by my friend and co-laborer Professor G. F. Wright, I am still 
compelled to say that I can find no satisfactory marks of the tooth 
of time upon it. 
