The Prehistoric World or Vanished races Part 16

Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Axes--First Form.-----------

The most important implement was the ax. Our civilization has originated from many small things. It is difficult to overestimate the importance of the ax in advancing civilization. The stone axes, easily blunted and broken, could have made but little impression on the vast forests of pine, oak, and beech, covering the greater part of Britain and the continent in the Neolithic Age. Clearings necessary for pasture and agriculture must unquestionably, then, have been produced princ.i.p.ally by the aid of fire. Under the edge of the bronze ax clearings would be rapidly produced, pasture and arable land would begin to spread over the surface of the country; with the disappearance of the forests the wild animals would become scarce, hunting would cease to be so important, agriculture would improve, and a higher culture inevitably follow. "When first the sound of the woodman's ax was heard in the forests of the north, the victory of man over his natural environments was secured, and the forest and mora.s.s became his forever."<12>

The bronze ax was used for a great variety of purposes, not only as an ax, but as chisel, hoe, etc. As might be expected, the oldest axes were simply modeled after the stone ones. The preceding cut represents these simple forms.

They were inserted into the handle much the same as they did the stone axes. It never occurred to these ancient workers to cast the axes with a hole in them for the handle.

Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Axes--Second Form.------Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Axes--Third Form.--------

The above cut represents the second form of the ax. The trouble with the first was that much usage would inevitably split the handle. To remedy this, a stop or ridge was raised across the celt, and the metal and the wood were made to fit into one another. The small figure ill.u.s.trates this method of hafting. It would be quite natural to bend the sides of this second form around, and thus would arise a third form in which the handle was let into a socket, of which we also give a cut. As a general thing, bronze axes were plain, but they were sometimes ornamented with ridges, dots, and lines.

In addition to axes, they of course had many other implements of bronze.

Chisels were made much the same as at present, except that the handle fitted into a socket. A few hammers have been discovered in the Swiss lake villages. Bronze knives of different styles and sizes were quite numerous. The workmans.h.i.+p on them is generally skillful. They were, as a rule, fitted into a handle of bone, horn, or wood, and the blade was nearly always carved. In some cases the knives also ended in a socket into which the handle fitted.<13>

Ill.u.s.trations of Chisel, Hammer and Bronze Knives.-------

In matters of personal ornament, the men and women of the Bronze Age were as willing to make use of artificial helps as their descendants to-day, and no doubt fas.h.i.+on was quite as arbitrary in her rule then as now. Among some savage nations the dressing of the hair--especially of the men--is carried to a very elaborate pitch.<14> In this respect, some of the dandies of the Bronze Age certainly excelled. They evidently built up on their heads a great pyramid of hair; in some cases large enough to allow of the use of hair-pins two feet long. Of course such a structure as this was intended to last a life-time. So careful were they of this head-dress that they used a crescent-shaped pillow of earthenware, so that it might not be disturbed when they slept. Dr.

Keller, who first described these crescent-shaped articles, thought they were religious emblems of the moon. He may be right, as the matter is not yet decided, but some think they were the pillows in question. At first thought this would seem absurd, but when we learn of the habits of the natives of Abyssinia and other savage races, we cease to wonder.

Ill.u.s.trations of Crescent, Bracelet, and Hair-pin.--------

In speaking of the ornaments of the Bronze Age, a caution is necessary, because ornaments of bronze may belong to any age. Bracelets and rings have been quite numerous. The bracelets vary much in shape, are decidedly artistic in workmans.h.i.+p, and often set off with carved designs. Some of this shape are composed of a single ring of varying width, the ends of which almost meet and terminate by a semicircular clasp; others are a combination of straight or twisted wires ingeniously joined to one another. "Some of these ornaments remain even up to the present day in a perfect state of preservation. In an urn from one of the lake settlements six specimens were discovered, the designs of which appeared quite as clearly as if they had only just been engraved."<15>

We are called on to notice one important point in reference to these bracelets and rings. That is, they are so small they could scarcely be worn nowadays; a fact leading us to infer that the people must have been of small size. It has also been noticed that the handles of the swords are smaller than would be convenient for soldiers now. Some ornaments of bronze were worn as pendants. For this purpose they were provided with a circular hole, and were probably worn suspended around the neck.

Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Pendants.-------

Ornaments were not always of bronze. Necklaces were sometimes made of amber, and gold beads were quite common. We give a cut of both. They are from burial mounds of this age in England. We remember the ornamentations on implements in the Paleolithic Age was by engraving animal forms. In the Neolithic Age they seem to have cared very little for ornamenting. During the Bronze Age the ornamentation was of a simple but pleasing and uniform style. It consisted of simple geometrical patterns, combination of circles, dots, and straight lines. In this next figure we have given the princ.i.p.al designs found in France.

Ill.u.s.tration of Necklace and Beads.---------

In the arts of living an increase in culture is noticeable. We have seen that in Neolithic times they were acquainted with the use of the distaff. In the Bronze Age they manufactured woolen cloth. We have but few specimens of this cloth, because it is under only very exceptional circ.u.mstances that woolen fabrics can be preserved for any great length of time. From examinations of burial mounds of this period, it would appear that the better cla.s.s of people were clad in linen and woolen.

Probably the use of the skins of animals for dress purposes was mostly discontinued during this age. Woolen cloaks of this period have been found in Denmark, though probably dating from near the close.

Ill.u.s.tration of Ornamental Designs.---------------

In agriculture we detect only such advances as improved implements would suggest. They used the sickle in gathering in the harvest. We find no implements which we are sure were used for agricultural purposes. Yet they must have had some means of preparing the ground for the cereals.

The day of wild animals was gone. In the lake settlements of this age the domestic animals outnumbered the wild species.<16>

Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Sickle.-----------

During this age the horse was used for riding and driving, and oxen were used for plowing.

The proof of this fact is certain sketches found in Denmark. But the use of bronze in that country continued after iron had been introduced in the south of Europe. Pottery was more carefully made--though the wheel for turning it was not yet introduced. The shapes were varied and elegant; sometimes, instead of having a flat base, they came to a point below--in which case they had to be placed in a support before they could stand upright. Nearly all the pottery bears the ornamentation peculiar to the Bronze Age--that is, straight lines, dots, etc.

Ill.u.s.tration of Clay Vessel and Support.-----------

During this age, the inhabitants were as much given to war and conquest as any rudely civilized people: we, therefore, meet with remains of their weapons. The princ.i.p.al ones were swords, daggers, spear-heads, and arrows. The swords are always more or less leaf-like in shape, double-edged, sharp-pointed, and intended more for stabbing and thrusting, rather than cutting. No hand guards were used.

Ill.u.s.tration of Bronze Weapons.-----------------

Sometimes the handles were fastened to the swords by means of rivets; and, at other times, the handle was plaited with wood or bone. They are of different lengths, intermediate between the sword and the dagger. It is doubtful whether they made use of s.h.i.+elds.

Bronze s.h.i.+elds are, indeed, found; but, from the ornaments and other circ.u.mstances they are generally considered to belong to the Iron Age: for we shall subsequently learn that the introduction of iron did not prevent the continued use of bronze. The bow was well known; and this must have necessitated the use of arrows. Some bronze arrows have been found; but a flint arrow is nearly as serviceable as bronze, and much cheaper, so we may be sure they were more common. They also employed spears and javelins, and the bronze heads of these weapons are found in various places. The invading Celt found many camps and fortified places already in existence, and continued them in use after the original occupant had been driven away.

Ill.u.s.tration of Mold.---------------

As we have spent some time in learning the different objects manufactured out of bronze, it may be of interest to learn somewhat of their methods of working bronze. We have already stated how the amateur worker in bronze would follow on after the trader--and so the objects of bronze would be made in all the countries of Europe. Molds have been found in various places. This is a mold for casting the axes having a socket in which to put the handle. It was found in the cave at Heathbury Burn, already mentioned. None of the bronze objects were forged out, as a smith forges out objects of iron--they were cast. In the absence of steel, it would be almost impossible to cut bronze; hence it was necessary to make the casting as nearly perfect as possible. Sometimes the molds were cut out of stone, as in the figure just given. The molds themselves were, in this case, difficult to make; besides, they could scarcely be made so perfect as not to leave a little ridge, where the two halves of the mold came together, which, as just explained, owing to the absence of steel, it would be very difficult to remove. In process of time they discovered an easier way of making the molds, that employed at the present day--that is, by the use of sand. The ridge would still remain, and is to be plainly seen on specimens of ancient bronze.

To overcome the difficulty just mentioned, they invented a third method of casting, which displays great ingenuity. A model of the object desired was made of wood or wax, and inclosed in prepared earth mixed with some inflammable material, in order that, when subjected to heat, it might become porous. The whole was then heated until the wax or wood disappeared. The mold was then ready for use. The great advantage of this method was that there were no projecting lines of junction to disfigure the complete implement. This seems to have been the most common method employed. This explains the fact, that we seldom find any two bronze objects exactly similar to one another. Any impression left on the wax model would be faithfully reproduced. Marks of the spatula, with which the wax was worked, are frequently found; and, in one case, the impression of the human finger was observed.<17>

A people as highly cultured as those of the Bronze Age must have had some system of government, and one that was a sensible advance over the government of the Neolithic people. In the Neolithic Age it was, doubtless, tribe against tribe. Confederacies, the union of several tribes for common purpose of defense, must have been more common at this age.<18> The first Aryan tribes to arrive in Europe, as we have seen, were the Celts. In time, they had to withstand the pressure of invasion themselves. The Belgae, and other Germanic tribes, were also on the move. But war at this period would partake more of the nature of people against people, than of tribe against tribe. The civil and the military departments of government must have taken more definite shape, and we are not without evidence of fairly organized and disciplined forces. As early as two thousand eight hundred years before Christ, the sea-coast people of Europe, while yet in the Bronze Age, allied their forces for the conquest of Egypt.<19>

We have referred to the influence of trade in shaping civilization. It is commerce that to-day is carrying civilization to remote corners of the globe. Long before the dawn of history, it was an active agent in advancing culture. It is important to note the great expanse of commerce, both inland and marine, which prevailed during the Bronze Age.

An important article of trade was, of course, bronze. The people who first learned the secret of its manufacture would speedily find a demand for their wares from surrounding tribes, and we have already pointed out how this trade would quickly give rise to local manufactures. But, to produce bronze, we know tin is just as necessary as copper--and all the countries of Europe are not provided with these metals; so more or less trade would inevitably take place. In various ways the stores of the bronze merchant might be lost, and only revealed in after years by accident. One of these deposits, found in France, is evidently the store of a merchant or trader from Etruria to the tribes of the north and west, and so gives us a quite vivid idea of the trade of that early time. It consisted of over four hundred articles of bronze, "comprising knives, sickles, lance-heads, horse-bits, rings, b.u.t.tons, pendants, and bracelets."<20>

As an article of adornment, amber was highly prized, not only by the people of Europe during the Bronze Age, but also by the people of the preceding Neolithic Age. This caused a trade to spring up which certainly did its share in enlightening the people. The main supply must have been obtained from the sh.o.r.es of the Baltic. That the trade was of importance is evidenced by the fact that amber has been found scattered over Europe in the tombs of the Neolithic and Bronze Ages.

We have given a pa.s.sing glance at the religion of each age we have examined. It must be confessed that great uncertainty hangs over the results. From a close examination of their industries, we can gather considerable as to the home life and general enlightenment of prehistoric times. A knowledge of religious belief is gathered mainly from a study of their burial customs. This is a very important part of our investigation, because a religious belief is one of the exponents of the culture of a people.

We have seen that in the Neolithic Age the dead were buried surrounded by implements, weapons, and ornaments for use in the future life. The descendants of these people throughout Europe, even in the Bronze Age, would still continue this custom. The implements buried with the body were more often of stone than bronze. We must constantly bear in mind that bronze was costly. This will explain its absence in many cases. It is interesting to note in this connection that these are "cases in which it is evident that flint implements were deposited in graves rather in deference to ancient customs than because they were still in every-day use."<21> We also notice that during this age, often the objects placed in the graves were, from their shape, obviously not intended for daily use. This would clearly indicate that the popular mind became impressed with the fact that these votive offerings, however freely given, could be of no a.s.sistance to the departed, but they still continued the custom because it was sanctioned by usage of past years.

But the dead were not always buried during the Bronze Age, nor, indeed, as a general rule. The invading race doubtless brought with them a new religion. Many of the ornamentations on their swords, vases, and other articles, are supposed by some writers to be religious symbols. From the frequent occurrence of the circle, and combinations of circles, it has been suggested that they wors.h.i.+ped the sun. And the occurrence of customs observable even at a late day, in various portions of Europe, as pointed out by Prof. Nelson, show that the wors.h.i.+p of the fire-G.o.d, or the sun, was once widely extended in Europe.<22> On this point we are further told: "That even as late as the time of Canute the Great,<23> there is a statute forbidding the adorement of the sun and the moon."<24> So it is not strange that in the new faith a different method of burial would be followed. That was by cremation. "The dead were burned, were purified by being pa.s.sed through the fire along with their possessions."<25> The ashes was then gathered together and placed in urns and burial mounds and barrows. The votive offerings of flint and bronze articles in daily use were also thrown in the fire, and their burnt remains placed with the other ashes in the burial urn. The cut is that of a bell-shaped barrow of the Bronze Age.

Ill.u.s.tration of a Burial Mound.-----------------