The Ketchum keystone. [volume] (Ketchum, Idaho) 1885-1899, 1898-04-16

cal events and prophesies engraved upon
them, like Joe Smith and other great ex
| plOrers, but have come upon something
| in the work of which there 10 much moro
than a book of doubtful history, more
| than whole Libraries of guesswork. Silent,
ELOQUENT, unwritten. but it is great study
and furnishes fund of information that
| no book, ancient or modern, has been able
| to give relating to the prehistorics of our
continent. 1t is connecting link be-
| tween the ancient American and oldest
Egyptian civilization.
This is simply a very wonderful piece
of statuary, which | have recently seen
and handled, and which come out of the
rubbish and ruins of one OF those prehis-
toric cities of which Mexico is noted, and
of which the natives Of the country have
not the remotest traditions regarding
them or their origin. 1t represents the
bust of a man, and is an ideal Egyptian
| work of art, or of that peculiar and at
the same time very artistic style of scuip-
ture always recognized as Egyptian, and
never before found any where but among
Eyytian ruins. 1t is about fifteen inches
in height and probably ten inches across
the breast and is carved from lava rock.
The statue was no doubt attended for
mantel or library ornament, and resembles
much the figures in statuary and bas relief
taken from excavations of the ancient
cities Of the Nile, and claimed to repre-
sent the different beings and noted per-
sOnages OF the early dynasties. The face
is strong and full of character, has a cold,
intelligent, fixed gaze, Sphlnx-like, as if
10 deep thought, but.o classic features.
1t has the conventional bordered headgear
that comes down to the shoulders, as is
shown in Egyptian statuary and paintings,
and which has always been the style Of
the Nile people.
How many thousands or how many
tens of thousands of years old is this lava
god or idol, or representative of charac.
ter that could only be preserved in almost
imperishable lava stone, no one knows.
1t is certainly many thousands Of years
old, for even the lava Of which it is carved
looks aged and worn, and shows signs Of
decay in spots. 1t may have been of the
days of the first Egyptian civilization,
upon the ruins OF which the PharaOahs
builded, and who remembered their an
cestors only in dim traditions aud legends
so distant that they have been saved only
in Mythology. This strange relic looks
old enough to be the Oldest OF all works
of sculpture--as old, no doubt as Osiris
and Osis or any of the Egyptian gods and
gOddesses-and no doubt would have per-
ished long ago through natural wear and
tear of time, had it been cut from any
stone save lava.
This ancient piece Of handiwork has
been secured for a Denver collection of
prehistoric curios, where it will be further
heard from when the government profess
sors get around to it. Tue unearthing of
piece of art work decidedly Egyptian
in its every phase, in this portion of the
country, naturally calls up the query, was
Mexico colonized by Egyptians who
brought this strange statue with them. or
was Egypt originally founded by the first
inhabitants of this portion Of North
America. Lava abounds in Mexico, but
not in the land Of the Nile that l am
aware of, and no works of art have been
found there of lava.
My own opinion Is that there was a
very high order of civilization here many
thousand years ago, and that shipbuildlng
and navigation were not unknown to the
people, and that they reached out to other
lands and established themselves in coun-
tries whose Climate and resources CORE
sponded with their own. Wherever we
have found any great degree of civlliza-
ton on land, corresponding degree of
maritime progress has kept pace with ii
and il requires no greater skill to navigate
the seas than 1t does to found magnificent
cities and develop the resources Of the
land.
The old cities of Mexico, now in ruins
and buried deep in the rubbish of ages
we're in all probability destroyed by
aud the natives through fear
abandoned city life and eventually lost
their former civilization aud became the
nomads of the mountains and plains-the
recognized Aztecs of more modern times
whose ancestry we're lost to their mem
DRY through the din of earthquakes and
the dust OF ages. have seen some very
marked prehistoric types Of humanity in
Mexico, more especially among the women
whose every feature Is Egyptian as we
see them in bas relief and in paintings
and sculpture in the tombs and temples
of Egyptian ruins. But have given you
the facts as lind them, and you can take
your choice. But you can make up your
mind to one thing sure. and that is that
this whole country was inhabited SO long
ago 10y progressive, Intelligent people,
that tine balance Of the world Sd far as we
have any record of the inhabitants might
all, from Adam down to the present, be
recognized as Johnny come latelys.
One would very naturally conclude that
from its near proximity to the sun, and
on the red pepper belt, this would be at
least semi -tropical country if not tropi
Cal. But it has been cold spring; no
new grass and nothing to indicate ap
prOach of summer. High, raw winds
prevail, with occasional real billiards
minus the moisture. March has been all
through as cod rs December or February,
and ice Is very common thing around
the watering places in the morning.
My next lecture will be on people, mines
and resources of the Rio Grande country.
This is recommended as good latitude
to grow up on as for instance: A few |
days ago l picked up country newspaper
in hotel and my attention was drawn to
a historical article on old towns and early |
settlers about here, and among them the
old town of Dona Ana. give an inter
esting paragraph Us printed:
'AbOut this time came to DOna Ana |
another young STRIPPING of boy destined |