Figures 20, 21, 24 are cupped, or cup and duct stones; 22 is a female figurine; 23 is a heart-shaped charm stone.
On all this weighty mass of stone objects, Dr. Munro writes thus:
“Since the MS. of this volume was placed in the hands of the publishers a new side-issue regarding some strange objects, said to have been found in Portuguese dolmens, has been imported into the Clyde controversy, in which Mr. Astley has taken a prominent part. In a communication to the Antiquary, April, 1904, he writes: ‘I will merely say here, on this point, that my arguments are brought to a scientific conclusion in my paper, ‘Portuguese Parallels to Clydeside Discoveries,’ reported in your issue for March, which will shortly be published.
“I have seen the article in Portugalia and the published ‘scientific conclusion’ of Mr. Astley (Journal of B.A.A., April and August, 1904), and can only say that, even had I space to discuss the matter I would not do so for two reasons. First, because I see no parallelism whatever between the contrasted objects from the Portuguese dolmens and the Clyde ancient sites, beyond the fact that they are both ‘queer things.’ And, secondly, because some of the most eminent European scholars regard the objects described and illustrated in Portugalia as forgeries. The learned Director of the Musée de St. Germain, M. Saloman Reinach, thus writes about them: ‘Jusqu’à nouvel ordre, c’est-à-dire jusqu’à preuve formelle du contraire je considère ces pierres sculptées et gravées comme le produit d’une mystification. J’aimerais connaitre, à ce sujet, l’opinion des autres savants du Portugal’ (Revue Archéologique, 4th S., vol. ii., 1903, p. 431).”
I had brought the Portuguese things to the notice of English readers long before Mr. Astley did so, but that is not to the purpose.
The point is that Dr. Munro denies the parallelism between the Clyde and Portuguese objects. Yet I must hold that stone figurines of women, grotesque heads in stone, cupped stones, stones with cup and duct, stones with rays proceeding from a central point, and perforated stones with
linear ornamentation, are rather “parallel,” in Portugal and in Clydesdale.
So far the Scottish and the Portuguese fakers have hit on parallel lines of fraud. Meanwhile I know of no archaeologists except Portuguese archaeologists, who have seen the objects from the dolmen, and of no Portuguese archaeologist who disputes their authenticity. So there the matter rests. [130] The parallelism appears to me to be noticeable. I do not say that the styles of art are akin, but that the artists, by a common impulse, have produced cupped stones, perforated and inscribed stones, figurines in stone, and grotesque heads in stone.
Is not this common impulse rather curious? And is suspicion of forgery to fall, in Portugal, on respectable priests, or on the very uncultured wags of Traz os Montes? Mortillet, educated by priests, hated and suspected all of them. M. Cartailhac suspected “clericals,” as to the Spanish cave paintings, but acknowledged his error. I can guess no motive for the ponderous bulk of Portuguese forgeries, and am a little suspicious of the tendency to shout “Forgery” in the face of everything unfamiliar.
But the Portuguese things are suspected by