Abstract
PROF. FESSENDEN is an ardent advocate of the urgent necessity of archaeological exploration in the Caucasus. While archleologists will agree that investigations in this area are likely to afford evidence which will help in the elucidation of a number of problems in the ethnology and archeology of prehistoric and early historic times, they will scarcely be prepared to endorse Prof. Fessenden 's arguments, although they may wish him all success in his research. He holds that the Caucasus is the cradle of mankind; that it was there that the flood to which early records refer took place, and that it was thence that the races of mankind dispersed after their differentiation. By an elaborate analysis of Semitic, Egyptian and Greek traditions and of local names, he seeks to show that not only was this the site of Eden, but also that on his assumption it is possible to unravel the inconsistencies in the geography of the Greek legends and explain why, for example, the search for the lost pillars of Hercules towards the west was unsuccessful. The rise of water level in the Caspian area and the formation of an Atlantean Sea of 18oo miles breadth east of the Black Sea were responsible for the disappearance of the country to which the traditions referred and the consequent dislocation of the ancient geographical system. Prof. Fessenden has worked out his case in great detail and with considerable ingenuity. His arguments will he more convincing if, and when, he can produce archwological evidence to support them.
The Deluged Civilization of the Caucasus Isthmus.
Prof.
R. A.
Fessenden
By. Pp. ix + 139. (Boston, Mass.: T. J. Russell Print; London: F. and E. Stoneham, Ltd., 1923.) 25s. Large paper edition, 5 guineas.
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The Deluged Civilization of the Caucasus Isthmus. Nature 114, 892 (1924). https://doi.org/10.1038/114892c0
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/114892c0