The thunderweapon in religion and folklore, a study in comparative ...

ANCIENT GREECE 17
this form of the Greek thunderstone belief. Several prehistoric
stone axes have been preserved which at a later date were
engraved with figures and inscriptions to act as charms [115^],
the reason being that they were looked upon as thunderstones.
A remarkable discovery of this nature was brought to light
during the excavations at Pergamon ; three flat stone slabs
sawn out of prehistoric stone axes, with similar inscriptions
engraved on both sides, were found together with other
objects, evidently forming a complete apparatus of magic.
As the pictures which have hitherto appeared of them have
chiefly aimed at showing the inscriptions, one of these objects is
depicted in figs. 5 A and 5 B, showing the original rounded exterior
of the stone axe ; on the back is seen the even surface produced
by the axe being sawn through ; at the top is a hole for a string,
by means of which the axe could be worn as an amulet. A
much older amulet of a similar kind, which has
at least been shaped by a Greek hand, was part
of the discovery made at Vettersfelde [115;^],
viz. the small stone axe set in gold shown in
fig. 6. The discovery was made in Germany,
and the stone axe has perhaps, as Furtwangler
supposes, been worn by a Scythian chief But
its gold setting is of the same kind as the other
gold work in the discovery, and must be re-
garded as Ionian Greek work of the sixth
century B.C. The stone axe itself, as far as p. g
it can be examined, seems most to resemble
some of the axes of Asia Minor in the collection at Smyrna
as, however, the author has no knowledge from personal ob-
servation of the stone implements of South Russia, it is possible
that it may come from those districts to which Furtwangler
assigns the discovery in its entirety.
The ideas, however, to which these discoveries and literary
references bear witness can be traced back to still earlier periods
of Greek history.
The excavations of Mr Evans at Knossos in
Crete have brought to light especially valuable evidence from
the Mycenaean period of the worship of the double-axe as a holy
being (discussed by Karo in Archiv fiir Religionswissenschaft,
;