e voyage of
any Deluge hero in his boat or ark represents the daily journey of
the Sun-god across the heavenly ocean, a conception which is so often
represented in Egyptian sculpture and painting. It used to be assumed by
holders of the theory that this idea of the Sun as "the god in the boat"
was common among primitive races, and that that would account for the
widespread occurrence of Deluge-stories among scattered races of
the world. But this view has recently undergone some modification in
accordance with the general trend of other lines of research. In recent
years there has been an increased readiness among archaeologists
to recognize evidence of contact between the great civilizations of
antiquity. This has been particularly the case in the area of the
Eastern Mediterranean; but the possibility has also been mooted of
the early use of land-routes running from the Near East to Central and
Southern Asia. The discovery in Chinese Turkestan, to the east of the
Caspian, of a prehistoric culture resembling that of Elam has now been
followed by the finding of similar remains by Sir Aurel Stein in the
course of the journey from which he has lately returned.(1) They were
discovered in an old basin of the Helmand River in Persian Seistan,
where they had been laid bare by wind-erosion. But more interesting
still, and an incentive to further exploration in that region, is
another of his discoveries last year, also made near the Afghan border.
At two sites in the Helmand Delta, well above the level of inundation,
he came across fragments of pottery inscribed in early Aramaic
characters,(2) though, for obvious reasons, he has left them with
all his other collections in India. This unexpected find, by the
way, suggests for our problem possibilities of wide transmission in
comparatively early times.

(1) See his "Expedition in Central Asia", in _The
Geographical Journal_, Vol. XLVII (Jan.-June, 1916), pp. 358
ff.

(2) Op. cit., p. 363.

The synthetic tendency among archaeologists has been reflected in
anthropological research, which has begun to question the separate and
independent origin, not only of the more useful arts and crafts, but
also of many primitive customs and beliefs. It is suggested that too
much stress has been laid on environment; and, though it is readily
admitted that similar needs and experiences may in some cases have given
rise to similar expedients and explanations, it is urged that