Page:Palæolithic Man and Terramara Settlements in Europe.djvu/132

78 protrudes through the meadow-land. It rises to the height of 16 metres at its highest point, and presents an abrupt face looking southwards. At the present time this rocky wall is only slightly overhanging, but this feature, owing to long-continued disintegration, is probably less striking than it was in earlier times. Roughly speaking, it is a concave hollow, approximating along its base to a semi-ellipse, the major axis of which measures 36 metres, and the greatest distance of the rock from this line is 12.5 metres. The semi-elliptical area thus defined covers 207 square metres, and the gradual accumulation of debris over its floor, partly from the disintegration of the overhanging rocks, and partly from vegetable mould and other sub-aerial causes, had raised its surface to 2.5 metres above the surrounding plain. Dr Nüesch informs us that during the day the heat within a few yards of the wall was almost unendurable, on account of the reflection of the sun's rays from the surface of the limestone rock; and hence he inferred that the shelter would remain free from snow in the winter time. Its elevation above the sea is 472 metres, and as it occupies the watershed of the valley, it was not subject to flooding. These topographical and natural advantages rendered the rock-shelter of Schweizersbild a common rendezvous to the hunters of all ages. The discovery of this fact by Dr Nüesch in 1891 induced him to have it thoroughly and systematically explored.

Although these explorations were finished in 1893, it was not till 1897 that the final results were given to the world, the delay having risen partly from the vast amount of material to be examined, and partly owing to the severe illness of the author. The work now published is enhanced by the fact that all the relics collected have been examined and reported on by specialists. Besides the explorer's description of the archæological discoveries, the work contains articles by ten other contributors, the whole forming vol. xxxv. of the Neue Denkschriften der allgemeinen schweizerischen Gesellschaft für die gesammten Naturwissenschaften.

The names of Professors Th. Studer, A. Nehring, and J. Kollmann, who have between them exhaustively treated of the fauna, are a sufficient guarantee that we have here set before us the most trustworthy results that modern science can produce.