when flint-working had attained its apogee, and copper had just begun to be used—­are undoubtedly the most remarkable stone weapons ever made in the world.  The grace and utility of the form, the delicacy of the fluted chipping on the side, and the minute care with which the tiny serrations of the cutting edge, serrations so small that often they can hardly be seen with the naked eye, are made, can certainly not be parallelled elsewhere.  The art of flint-knapping reached its zenith in Ancient Egypt.  The specimen illustrated has a handle covered with gold decorated with incised designs representing animals.

The prehistoric Egyptians may also fairly be said to have attained greater perfection than other peoples in the Neolithic stage of culture, in other arts besides the making of stone tools and weapons.  Their pottery is of remarkable perfection.  Now that the sites of the Egyptian prehistoric settlements have been so thoroughly explored by competent archaeologists (and, unhappily, as thoroughly pillaged by incompetent natives), this prehistoric Egyptian pottery has become extremely well known.  In fact, it is so common that good specimens may be bought anywhere in Egypt for a few piastres.  Most museums possess sets of this pottery, of which great quantities have been brought back from Egypt by Prof.  Petrie and other explorers.  It is of very great interest, artistically as well as historically.  The potter’s wheel was not yet invented, and all the vases, even those of the most perfect shape, were built up by hand.  The perfection of form attained without the aid of the wheel is truly marvellous.

The commonest type of this pottery is a red polished ware vase with black top, due to its having been baked mouth downward in a fire, the ashes of which, according to Prof.  Petrie, deoxidized the haematite burnishing, and so turned the red colour to black.  “In good examples the haematite has not only been reduced to black magnetic oxide, but the black has the highest polish, as seen on fine Greek vases.  This is probably due to the formation of carbonyl gas in the smothered fire.  This gas acts as a solvent of magnetic oxide, and hence allows it to assume a new surface, like the glassy surface of some marbles subjected to solution in water.”  This black and red ware appears to be the most ancient prehistoric Egyptian pottery known.  Later in date are a red ware and a black ware with rude geometrical incised designs, imitating basketwork, and with the incised lines filled in with white.  Later again is a buff ware, either plain or decorated with wavy lines, concentric circles, and elaborate drawings of boats sailing on the Nile, ostriches, fish, men and women, and so on.

[Illustration:  017.jpg (right) BUFF WARE VASE, Predynastic period, before 4000 B.C.]