Primitive Man

by Louis Figuier

"Next, a new period succeeded, when the bodies were burned, and the remains collected together. All the ancient customs were not, however, at once given up. Thus, as the dead were formerly buried in woollen garments, the débris of the bones were now wrapped in pieces of cloaks made of the same material. Subsequently, however, this custom also disappeared, and the ashes and remains of bones were simply collected together in urns. This custom was observed until the bronze epoch, and characterises, so to speak, its second and last period—which was, however, the longest of that age.

"There were, then, in short, two distinct epochs in the bronze age; firstly, that in which the dead were quite simply interred, either in small sepulchral chambers or wooden coffins, and, secondly, that in which the bodies of the dead were incinerated.

"One of the most remarkable 'finds,' as regards the first period of the bronze epoch, was made in 1861, in the two mounds known by the names of Treenhöi and Kengehöi, and situated near Kongeaa, in Jutland. In each of these tumuli two people had been buried, both having a double coffin, made of magnificent trunks of oak-trees. The skeletons had been almost entirely destroyed by the damp which, on the contrary, had preserved the garments. These individuals seem to have been dressed almost like the Scotch; at least they must have worn a sort of woollen petticoat, and bands by way of trousers, very like those worn by the warriors depicted in the Carlovingian miniatures, and, in addition, a cloak, a cap, and also perhaps a shawl. With these garments were found some bronze swords in wooden sheaths; also some bronze knives, a comb, some boxes, cups, small wooden coffers, a tin ball, and, lastly, in one of the coffins, a small flint arrow-head. A fragment of the cloak was to be seen in the Palace of the Champ de Mars (No. 596).

"Another 'find' made a few miles from this tumulus, at Höimp, in North Schleswig, has also brought to light skeletons in oak coffins together with bronze implements.

"Discoveries of no less interest have been made in Zealand. Thus, in 1845, in a tumulus at Höidegaard, near Copenhagen, a tomb belonging to the first period of the bronze epoch was found; it was searched in the presence of some of the principal Danish archæologists. The tomb was placed at a distance of more than 10 feet below the summit of the tumulus, and was built of stones; it was more than 6 feet in length, and its width on the eastern side was about 2 feet, and on the western side 19 inches. The bottom was lined with a layer of small flint stones, on which was found, in the first place, a skin, doubtless that of an ox, and above it, besides a piece of tissue containing remains of human bones, a bronze sword with a wooden sheath, covered with leather, and in a perfect state of preservation; lastly, a box containing the following articles:—1st, a fragment of an amber bead; 2nd, a piece of reddish stone; 3rd, a small shell, which can be none other than the Conus mediterraneus; it is perforated so as to be worn as a pendant for the neck; 4th, a fragment of a flint point, doubtless an amulet; 5th, the tail of a serpent (Coluber lævis); 6th, a small cube of pine or fir-wood, and 7th, a bronze knife with a convex blade and ornamented handle.

"According to the investigations of various savants, these bones belong to a man, who, to judge from the objects placed by his side in his tomb, must have been some distinguished personage, and perhaps combined the functions of a warrior and a sorcerer. The cube of pine-wood leads us to conjecture that that tree had not then completely disappeared, and from this fact we may infer that the period at which the sorcerer in question lived was very remote. It is, however, possible that this piece of pine-wood, as well as the shell, were introduced from some other country. The existence of the Conus mediterraneus seems to establish the fact that Denmark had already formed some kind of connection with the Mediterranean.

"The second period of the bronze epoch is characterised by the custom of the cremation of the dead, which generally took place in the following way: the body of the defunct was usually placed, together with his weapons and ornaments, on the funeral pile, which was built on the exact spot which was destined to form the centre of the tumulus; the fire was then lighted, and, after the body was consumed, the remains of the bones were collected together in an urn. The rubbish that resulted was left on the spot, surrounded with stones, and covered with earth till the tumulus was complete. The urn which contained the ashes was then placed in another part of the tumulus. This course of procedure was not the only one employed; in some cases the weapons and other articles of adornment were not placed upon the funeral-pile, but were afterwards brought and placed round the urn.

"The number of tombs of the bronze epoch which have been discovered in Denmark is very considerable. There are thousands of tumuli, and many of them contain a large number of funeral urns. A great many of these tumuli have been searched at various times and have produced a number of different bronze articles. The Museum of Copenhagen possesses no less than 600 swords dating back to the bronze epoch."[38]

Twenty years ago, however, a very curious discovery was made at Lübeck (Pomerania), for it exhibited, so to speak, in the same tomb, the three modes of interment belonging to the pre-historic epochs of the stone, bronze, and iron ages.

At Waldhausen, near Lübeck, a tumulus was found, which was 13 feet 9 inches in height. This tumulus was pulled down in horizontal layers, and the following details were successively brought to light.