NOTES TO PKOCES YEEBAUX. 
459 
“ covcke noire (the most ancient of the fluyiatile gravels, according to Mr. Prcst- 
“ wich) without its being penetrated by iron or manganese infiltration.” (W. B. C ) 
Note 36.—The sections of teeth exhibited by Mr. Busk were:—1. Of two from 
skulls found in peaty deposits in Suffolk, and regarded by the Rev. Mr. Gunn as 
belong ing to the ancient peat period ; 2. Of a tooth from a skull of similar appear¬ 
ance found also in peat, in Northamptonshire ; 3. From a skull dredged up from a 
depth of 20 feet in the bed of the Thames; 4. Of a tooth from the “coprolite jaw;” 
5. Of one from a Gallo-Roman cranium from St. Acheul. All these crania, except 
the last, it is to be remarked, were of a deep brown or blackish colour, which per¬ 
vaded the entire thickness of the bones. 
In all, the crusta petrosa and dentine, were more or less deeply coloured ; the 
colour corresponding with that of the skull to which the tooth belonged. In the 
dentine the colour appeared to proceed from the central or pulp cavity, and to 
diminish in depth towards the periphery. The crusta petrosa was in all more deeply 
tinted than the interior substance. 
The object in exhibiting these specimens was to show that in teeth of a compa¬ 
ratively much more recent date than the quaternary period, and even in those belong¬ 
ing to the historical period, and found under a variety of circumstances, the den¬ 
tine was coloured. It was thence deduced that the complete absence of any colora¬ 
tion in the dentine of the Moulin-Quignon tooth, notwithstanding the faint coloration 
of the crusta petrosa, might be assumed to indicate that it could not be of any very 
great antiquity. (G. B.) 
Note 37.—The specimen referred to is a very remarkable lower jaw of a human 
subject, now belonging to Dr. Robert Collyer. It is reputed to have been found in 
the gravel-heap of a coprolite-pit near Ipswich. Although retaining a portion of its 
gelatine, it is infiltrated through and through with iron. The Haversian Canals are 
filled with red oxide, and a section of the fang shows that the ivory is partly infil¬ 
trated with the same metal. This specimen proves that a human jaw, if favourably 
placed, is equally susceptible of impregnation with metallic matter, as the bone of 
any other mammal. The 4 detached molar/ and the 4 human jaw* were reputed 
to have been found so situated in the 4 black seam,’ yet they were exhumed entirely 
free from infiltratien. Mr. Busk has subsequently ascertained that a part of a human 
pelvis in the collection of M. de Perthes, and other bones belonging to two bodies 
probably interred (as supposed by Mr. Prestwich, and Mr. Evans) in the gravel 
below the loess near Mesnieres, during the early part of the Celtic period, were all 
more or less marked with dendrites. (H, F. & G. B.) 
Note 38.—The metallic patches here referred to by M. Desnoyers were uni¬ 
versally recognized, but they washed off readily under the use of a brush ; and Mr. 
Busk accidentally found that a very similar appearance was presented by minute 
particles of the argillaceo-metallic black matter on the 44 couche noire ” adherent 
to the surface of polished ivory. (Vide postea, Note 48). (G. B.) 
Note 39.—The characters yielded by the jaw, when sawn across and washed, 
were as follow :—The section was so conducted as to include a portion of one of 
the fangs of the solitary tooth. The black coating was washed off readily by means 
of a sponge, and the residuary spots in the minute hollows were removed by the 
aid of a tooth-brush. The general colour of the washed surface was a light buff, 
mottled with brown stains. The outer surface was tolerably smooth, presenting 
little indication of the superficial erosion commonly seen in old buried bones. 
There was no appearance of dendritic deposit either on the exterior or within, and 
no infiltration of metallic matter. The substance of the bone was dry and friable, 
especially towards the alveolar border, but, on the whole, it was tolerably firm 
under the saw, and the fresh section afforded a distinct odour of sawn hone. The 
internal cancellated structure was of a faint brownish tinge, and the cells free from 
any incrustation. The most remarkable appearance observable in the section was 
the lining of the dental canal with a thin layer of fine gray sand, free from admix¬ 
ture with the black metallic matrix which blocked up the orifice of the canal below 
the condyle. The section of the fang showed that the dentine, so far as exposed 
was white, and in no respect different from that of a recent tooth. The enamel 
was white and brilliant. The socket towards the upper part was not completely 
