Chapter 8

THE "FALL OF MAN" AND ANTHROPOLOGY.

The two antagonistic views regarding the life of man on the earth The theory of "the Fall" among ancient peoples Inheritance of this view by the Christian Church Appearance among the Greeks and Romans of the theory of a rise of man Its disappearance during the Middle Ages Its development since the seventeenth century The first blow at the doctrine of "the Fall" comes from geology Influence of anthropology on the belief in this doctrine The finding of human skulls in Quaternary deposits Their significance Results obtained from the comparative study of the remains of human handiwork Discovery of human remains in shell-heaps on the shores of the Baltic Sea In peat-beds The lake-dwellers Indications of the upward direction of man's development Mr. Southall's attack on the theory of man's antiquity An answer to it Discovery of prehistoric human remains in Egypt Hamard's attack on the new scientific conclusions The survival of prehistoric implements in religious rites Strength of the argument against the theory of "the Fall of Man"