The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1892-05-22

! plication. Mr.. Gardner goes back to an inter
| esting statement Of Thucydides In his FRS
book. He says that when in his own time tht
| Athenians at Delos proceeded to purify the
island by removing the dead bodies buried
| there. tho majority Of these corpses appeared
to DO OF Carian nationality. to Judge from the
character OF the arms buried with them and
the fashion Of their interment More than one
series OF excavations has been undertaken In
Delos during the last few years. in order to as
certain more exactly the meaning Of Thucydi-
des In this passage. and to discover Just what
kind OF value is to be attached to his observa-
lions. Then. again. the excavations on the
Athenian Acropols. OF which an account is
given in this book. servo to clarity and enrich
our notions OF tho character OF tho rule OF
Peisistratus and OF the doings OF the Athonians
Just after tho battle OF Platra-
Tho fourth test Is that OF coins. which are at
once works OF art and inscriptions. and which
are rendered especially useful to tho historian
by tho certainty OF their date. Thus II is only
by numismatic testimony that we are able
to TX the dates OF certain Parthian Kings.
whose regns were synchronous with import
ant events Of Roman history. and help us to
determine the policy OF Augustus on various
occasions An example OF tho correction or
expansion OF history BY numsmatic testimony
is tho demonstration OF the existence OF a
union among the cities OF Arcadia long before
the establishment OF the Arcadian League by
Epaminondas. OF such union there Is no
literary record. Yet. on turning to coins. We
find n various and extensive series belonging
othe sixth and nth centuries. the inscription
OF which. "Arkadikon." Is sufficient to prove
that some kind OF federal union. involving at
least the use OF q common coinage. must have
existed in Arcadia IA early as the time
- l,n Dnro fon AL l,u no In
taken from Patrie in Achaia. which. accord
ing to Polybius and Pausanas. was entire
ly destroyed in b. c. 146. Yet we are told that
Marc Antony. whom no sailed against Angus
tus. made PatrB his Headquarters This In
consistency would be inex plicable but for the
silver coins OF Patrn, which show that city to
have been commercially hourishinG In the first
century before the Christian era. The most
remarkable addition. however. made BY numis-
matte evidence to ancient history Is in tho
case Of the Greek Kingdoms in India belonging
to the second and first centuries before our era.
Tho coins prove that Hellenic civilization in
India. although cut off by the wedge Of Par
THAN conquest from Syria and Egypt. and
scarcely heard OF in the West. long continued
to run its own course. The very idea Of q
Greek kingdom In India. though familiar to
the archmoloEist. is quite strange to most
students Of ancient history. Yet we know
from numismatic testimony and rock sculp-
lures that It was both powerful and extern
sive. and that Its consequences were far
Mr.. Gardner even deems It prob
able that Chinese and Japanese art are In no
small degree indebted for their peculiar quail.
tiles to Hellenic influence.
Nv.
Tho Illuminating effect Of tho spade upon
literary history is exemplifled by the excavs-
ions at MycenB. In the text OF Grote's his
;ory there Is only one place where MycenD is
mentioned. and there it Is spoken OF as tho
seat Of mythical race Of Kings. Apparently
irote did not know that the walls OF MycenB
ire still extant. nor did it occur to him that |
here are existing facts bearing the i'm press Of |
he city's history. His readers might suppose
hat MycenB no more admitted Of historical |
Investigation than Atlantis or Sodom. Yet |
much OF tho ancient history OF MycenB has |
low been resuscitated with the aid OF tho |
pade. In the first place Schliemann discov-
red tho graves Of its heroes incomparably
ich In works OF early art: and since then |
he Archaeological Society OF Athens has |
brought to light on the Acropolis OF Mycenm |
he palace Tits prehistoric rulers. from which |
We learn much Of their splendor and their Gus
oms. The fruits OF the excavations tell also |
II the destruction Of Mycenw by the Areives. |
md Of the colony which they sent to dwell |
within the wall. They show that this colony was
Established In the third century. B. c.. and re-
NAMED for some centuries: and some inscrip- |
ions recently unearthed tell of q transplant |
ng Of tho Inhabitants to Lacedmmon BY Nabis. |
he tyrant OF Sparta. and OF their subsequent |
eturn to their own city: from the same tes-
imony we gain information about their
government and tribal divisions These in
criptions prove the insccurncy Of three an
lent writer's. Strabo. Diodorus, and Pausa-
has. who all assert that MycenB was de-
troyed by the Arglves after the Persian
vars. and remained thenceforward an unin-
,abited ruin. Some OF these corrections OF
current historical statements may seem to
he render Insignificant Mr.. Gardner admits
hat there Is some force In this objection. but |
10 reminds us that in scientific historical in
luiry. as in physical science. it is never posi-
lie to tell what facts may have a wide bearing.
t continually happens that archaeological
lnta. to which their dIscoverers attach very
title Importance. havo been at once seized on
y historians. by the men OF general views. as
If the highest Significance We are referred |
o Busolt's New History OF Greece" for nu-
nervous examples OF this phenomenon. No
,ody. in truth. can say what Is a negligible |
Quantity in history. for sometimes the
rock OF reality will upset
Whole cargo OF received views and send them
o limbo forever.
There is another viewpoint from which we
re invited to compare tho testimony OF monu-
acnts with that OF ancient historians. The
FORKS OF many OF the latter are lost. and. to
II appearances. irrecoverablo. Practically
ur stock OF ancient histories is complete and
as been complete for centuries. Notwlth-
landing the recent discovery OF tho treatise
n tho Constitution OF Athens, attributed to
.ristotle. We may say that not much fresh
Material is likely to reach us through the re-
overy OF lost manuscripts. On the other hand.
he number Of ancient historical monuments
ccessible to us Is increasing at such pace
hat tho greatest OF German scholars find the
tmost difficulty in saving themselves from
eing overwhelmed by its mass Boeckh's
o,pus OF Greek Inscriptions was compiled
My few decades ago: 1t contains
bout 10000 Inscriptions. In 1875 the mum.
er OF extant inscriptions had so much In
reased as to be estimated at 10000 to 10000.
n tho last ton years tens Of thousands have
aa nd IN ha hor |