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Rh Madeleine (Dordogne). The inscription is composed of eight signs, some of which resemble certain letters of the Phenician and ancient Greek alphabet, as well as Cypriote signs. While these may not have been real letters to the Magdalenians, they did become so in passing from a symbolic and phonetic stage combined to one purely phonetic.

The first sign resembles the Phenician guimel, the gamma of ancient and modern Greek and a sign in Asylian writing which dates from the epoch of transition between the paleolithic and neolithic. Allowing for some negligence in execution, the second sign is comparable to the Phenician alef, the alpha of ancient and classic Greek, and A of our own alphabet. The third character is the Phenician guimel, the gamma of primitive and classic Greek. The fourth sign is the same as the third, only reversed. This is also found in the Asylian. The fifth and sixth signs are alike; they are comparable to the letter l of the Lycian alphabet and of the classic Greek—the equivalent of the Cypriote sign go. The seventh sign, which is also found on one of the painted pebbles of Mas d'Azil, resembles the character ti, di, thi of the Cypriote alphabet. The eighth character bears some analogy to the Cypriote vi or yi.

Cursive wanting was developed still further during the Asylian epoch (fig. 18), which is the connecting link between the paleolithic and neolithic periods. The transitional character of this epoch is revealed in both faunal and industrial remains. The fauna is composed entirely of species still living in temperate regions. Asylian culture is a heritage from the Magdalenian. It is characterized by