Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1910-06-23
ART OF CAVE JEWELLERS.
some Samples of the Ancient Mans
Ideas OF Beauty.
Nrom the Scientific American.

(From the Scientific American.l
a very noteworthy discovery of caves.
which has brought 10 light n number If
art objects of the Oldest Inhabitants l.
reported by Professor Moser in a late
number Of Cmschau In d depression.
which has the appearance of a trough. of
The valley extending from the Karst
'Austrian) plateau, Trieste. Nabressina,
Dunno, TO the Volnik mountains. are
found numerous caves to which leads a
gate of rock under the projecting wall OF
the cliff. Their interiors are rooms small
or spacious, which We're first only places
of sojourn for the Karst cave-dwellers
who, originally nomads. later settled
down TO habitual residence in them Tha,
the caves have served long time as
abodes Is proved by the fact that in them
are found frequent very thick layers Of
clay interstratiied twice. thrice. four
times with ashes. In the latter are relics
Of the household. Among the caves visit
ed, the Rothsart cave. situated near the
viaduct of the Southern railway, near
Nabressna, was subjected to the most
persistent examination Professor Moser
has yet made. In this cave were found
four such layers of clay separated by lay
ers of ashes. While relics of the new
stone age were found In tho nrst and sec
ond layer of ashes, In the third and fourth
layers were discovered remains of the
painters mussel land snais, the bony
scales Of the swamp turtle, and a mann
NAL fauna, such az the otter, beaver
goat. stag and wild boar. which manifest
ly point to the fact that the first cave
jewellers resorted to the fresh water dis
tricts for their Sustenance, while the later
cave jewellers found much more gen
erous source Of noulishment along the
coast. An important fact is the presence
in these oldest layers Of frequent tools,
and to the same layers belong the espe-
cially interesting art objects engraving.
on animal bone, described pictoriapy
many OF them, In the professors report.
on polished piece OF stays horn, for
instance, may be seen the rudely- made
drawing OF human figure that stands
between two tree trunks, showing many
branches. AS In the set drawings of
children, the head is represented by a
round depression, and hands and feet by
Sits slightly curved.
on a second engraved piece 0f bone. a
jawbone, that was found In the third
layer of ashes is pictured. with a con-
tour OF almost straight lines, d wild boar
Of which the head Is almost triangular.
the tuslss being family indicated, the
oristles on its back appearing with per-
feet distinctness and he curl In Its tail
being rather indistinct That the artist
OF the cave sought to reproduce the as
pect or nature in which he had often
seen and slain the wild boar Is shown by
the high grass in which the animal
stands. and which is represented by
strong incisions on "a thigh bone IS easily
recognized the head of a sea-turtle with
eye and deeply cleft mouth; the scales
ana folds OF the skin are indicated by
easy strokes and above the head u
auflclont hint of "A nuttering dragoh-ny
ana not far from 1t are tufts Of reed iha
two last engraved pieces Of bone the pro-
lessor attributes to an early se'''"'''''
H. the new stone-ago, while tho ""k""ru
portrayal Of the man may be co'''''''''
as derived from the ola stone-ase'
While tho layers Of ashes conta'hea