Among the many traces which man has left of his existence in long past
ages on the face of the earth, says a correspondent of the _Scotsman_,
none are more interesting and instructive than the lake dwellings of
Switzerland and other countries, which have been discovered within the
last fifty years or so. Although these relics of the past are far more
modern than those which we referred to in a late article on "Primeval
Man," and are probably included within the range of Egyptian and
other chronologies, yet they stretch far beyond the historic period,
so far as Europe is concerned, and throw a flood of light on the
habits of our ancestors, or at any rate predecessors, in these
regions. We are tolerably well acquainted with the history of the Jews
when David worked his way up from the shepherd's staff to the royal
scepter, or when Joshua drove out the Canaanites and took possession
of their land, but of what was going on in Europe in these times we
have hitherto had no knowledge whatever. These lake dwellings,
however, were in all probability inhabited by human beings somewhere
about the time when the events we have referred to took place, and may
have been inhabited before the earlier of them.
The first hint we had of the existence of these remarkable dwellings
was obtained in 1829, when an excavation was being made on the shore
of a Swiss lake. Some wooden piles, apparently very old, and other
antiquities were found by the workmen. Not much attention, however,
was paid to this discovery till 1854, when a Mr. Aeppli drew attention
to some remains of human handiwork found near his house, in part of
the bed of a lake which had been left dry during a season of great
drought. The workmen employed in recovering some land from the lake
found the heads of a great many wooden piles protruding through the
mud, and also a number of stags' horns, and implements of various
descriptions. Stimulated by this discovery, search was made in various
lakes, and the result was truly astonishing. In every direction
remains of the habitations of prehistoric man were discovered, and
relics were found in such abundance that the history of this unknown
past could be traced through long ages, and the habits of the people
ascertained with a very considerable amount of probability. The
details are so numerous that it would be impossible in the space at
our disposal to go into them all.
Of course, during the long time that has elapsed since these
structures were erected, their remains have been reduced to mere
ruins, and it is only by comparing one with another that we are able
to picture to ourselves what they were originally like and what sort
of life was led by the men who inhabited them. The oldest of these
dwellings belong to the stone age, when man had not acquired any
knowledge of the use of metal; when all his instruments were merely
sharpened stones, fixed in wooden handles, or pieces of bone, horn, or
other natural material. They are therefore somewhat roughly finished,
but at the same time exhibit considerable ingenuity and skill. The
method of construction seems to have been somewhat as follows: A
suitable situation, not far from the shore, where the water was not
very deep, having been fixed upon, these prehistoric builders drove
into the muddy bottom of the lake a number of piles or long stakes,
arranged generally pretty close together, and in some sort of regular
order. These piles were formed generally from stems of trees, with the
bark on, but occasionally from split wood. The ends were sharpened to
a point by the aid of fire or by cutting with stone axes. On a
sufficient number being driven in, and their upper ends brought to a
level above the surface of the water, platform beams were laid across,
fastened by wooden pegs, or in some cases fixed into notches cut in
the heads of the vertical piles. The platform was generally very
roughly made, just a series of unbarked stems placed side by side and
covered with layers of earth or clay, with numerous openings through
which refuse of all kinds fell into the water beneath. In many cases
connection with the shore was made by means of a narrow bridge or
gangway, constructed in the same manner. On this rude platform huts
were erected by driving small piles or stakes which projected above
the floor, and to these were fastened boards standing edgeways like
the skirting of our ordinary rooms, and marking out the size of each
building. The walls of the huts were formed of small branches of twigs
interwoven and plastered over with clay. The roof was made of straw or
reeds like a thatched cottage. In size these huts were probably
eighteen to twenty feet long, eight or ten feet broad, and about six
feet high. They may have been divided into rooms, but there is no
evidence of this. Each was provided with a hearth formed of three or
four slabs of stone. The number of huts in each settlement must have
been considerable, in fact, they must have formed villages of no mean
extent, for as many as forty, fifty, or even a hundred thousand piles
have been found spread over a large extent of ground, forming the
foundation of one such settlement. It is probable, however, that these
were not so numerous when first erected, but were gradually added to
as the population increased. This fact, along with many others, shows
that these dwellings were inhabited for long periods of time, during
which the population pursued their ordinary life in comparative peace
and quietness in their island homes.
Such is, in brief, a general account of these remarkable structures.
Of course there were several variations in the methods of fixing these
piles, one of which may be mentioned as showing the ingenuity of the
builders. Where the piles did not get a firm hold of the lake bottom,
they carried out in boats or rafts loads of stones, which they threw
down between the piles, thus firmly fixing them, just as modern
engineers sometimes do for a similar purpose. As to the habits of the
people who dwelt in these lake dwellings, we get a considerable amount
of information from the various implements, refuse, etc., which fell
through the imperfectly closed platforms into the lake, and which have
been preserved in the mud at the bottom. They were fishers, hunters,
shepherds, and agriculturists. Skeletons of fish are found in large
abundance, and in some settlements even the fishing nets, and hooks
made of boar's tusks, have been discovered. Then again there is an
abundance of remains of the hunter's feast; bones of the stag, wild
boar, bear, wolf, otter, squirrel, and many other wild animals are
found in rich profusion, and often these are split and the marrow
extracted. These ancient men, however, did not entirely rely on such
precarious provision for their wants, but were so far advanced in
civilization that they kept cattle and domestic animals of various
kinds. They possessed dogs in great numbers, as well as cows, sheep,
goats, and pigs, and in winter time had these housed on their
settlements, as among the remains found are litters of straw, etc.,
which had evidently served as bedding for these animals. This, of
course, necessitated the gathering of grass or other material for
their food. They also cultivated wheat, barley, flax, and a number of
other vegetable products. Their methods of cultivation were no doubt
very rude, consisting of a mere scratching of the ground with crooked
branches of trees or with simple instruments made of stags' horn; but,
nevertheless, they succeeded in getting very good results. Among the
relics which they have left are found stones for crushing corn, the
grain which they used, and even the very cakes or bread which they
made. There are also fruits, such as the apple, pear, nut, etc.; so
that the bill of fare of prehistoric man was by no means contemptible.
He had fish, game, beef, mutton, pork, bread, and fruit, besides a
plentiful supply of water from the lake at his door. He was acquainted
with the potter's art, and manufactured earthen vessels of various
kinds. He seems to have produced two kinds--a coarser and a finer; the
former made from clay mixed with a quantity of grains of stone, and
the latter of washed loam. These he ornamented in an elementary
fashion with certain lines and marks. Some of the vessels he used have
been found with a burnt crust of the porridge which he had been making
adhering. As to his clothes, these were probably formed in great part
from the skins of wild or domestic animals, but he also used fabrics
made from flax, which he had learned to weave, as remains of cloth,
twine, rope, etc., are not infrequently found in his dwellings.
One prominent feature in the history of these lake dwellers is their
gradual advance in the arts of civilization. While the main features
of their settlements remain very much the same during the whole period
of their residence, there is a gradual improvement in the details; the
settlements become larger, and the implements, etc., better finished.
And this is especially observable in the change of material which the
dweller uses. In the earlier stages of his existence stone is the
predominant feature, all his knives, saws, chisels, axes, etc., are
made from this substance; but as time rolls on, one or two implements
are found made of bronze, which is a mixture of tin and copper, and
requires for its production a certain amount of knowledge and
mechanical skill. Gradually the number of bronze implements increases
until eventually stone is superseded altogether, and improved forms of
weapons of war make their appearance, and his work has a more finished
look, arising from his improved implements. Whether the manufacture of
bronze was an original discovery of his own, or whether it was an
importation from some more advanced race, is not certainly known; but
as he undoubtedly had intercourse with the East, it is probable that
the first bronze was imported, and that afterward he discovered the
way to manufacture it himself. However this may be, it seems evident
that the introduction of this material greatly aided his development.
As stone gave place to bronze, so in the course of time this latter
gave place to iron, probably introduced in the same manner some
considerable time before the dawn of history; and this metal held its
place until these habitations were finally abandoned.
With regard to the religion of these lake dwellers, if they had any,
nothing is known. From some curious objects formed somewhat like the
crescent of the moon, which are found in considerable numbers, it has
been supposed that they worshiped that body; but there seems to be
really no evidence for this supposition, and these objects may only
have been ornaments, or perhaps charms, fixed above the doors of their
huts something after the manner of the horse shoe nailed over the door
in modern times to keep away evil spirits. So far as can be inferred
from the remains that have been examined, the same race seems to have
inhabited these dwellings from their commencement to their end. There
is no appearance of invasion from without; all seems continuous.
Probably his race came in early time from the East, and were a
pastoral people, with flocks, herds, and domestic animals, and built
their peculiar habitations to protect themselves from human enemies.
Certainly the arrangements were well fitted for the purpose in those
days, when the club and the spear were almost the only weapons of
offense. Dr. Keller, who has investigated this subject with great
care, is of the opinion that these lake dwellers were a branch of the
great Celtic race.
* * * * *
[New England Farmer.]