Article : Ancient American Civilization
Références bibliographiques
- The Popular Science Monthly, 1876, may, p. 118-119.
- Disponible sur Internet, url : <https://archive.org/details/sim_popular-science_1876-05_9/page/118/mode/1up>.
Transcription
Ancient American Civilization.—In the “Congress of Americanists,” held last July at Nancy, France, a very learned paper was read by Prof. Foucaux, of the Collége de France, in favor of the theory that the ancient civilization of America is the work of Buddhist missionaries. The theory was hotly attacked by several of the distinguished men present, among them by Friedrich von Hellwald. The latter compared the story of Huei-shen to that of the seaserpent. Dr. Hellwald is of the opinion that this theory received its death-blow at the Congress. Two other theories were also very badly damaged, namely, those of a lost continent of Atlantis and of Phoenician settlements in America. M. Léonde Rosny delivered a masterly address on the Maya hieroglyphics. The Maya was the sacred language of the ancient inhabitants of Yucatan, and the monuments of that country bear a number of inscriptions in a hieroglyph which has been only very partially deciphered as yet. M.de Rosny first critically analyzed the attempts at decipherment made by his predecessors, the Abbé Brasseur de Bourbourg and H. de Charencey. The Bishop Diego de Landa first discovered a clew to the meaning of these hieroglyphs; he made out the meaning of seventy-one signs, and the number has been increased to one hundred and thirty-two by De Rosny. The latter has also determined the order in which these signs should be read. As a rule, they run from left to right, but in exceptional cases from right to left. M. Oscar Comettant, of Paris, a musician and composer, attended the Congress expressly for the purpose of reading a deeply interesting paper on “ Music in America before its Discovery by Columbus.” The author described the Peruvian flute, and, to give the audience an idea of ancient Indian music, had a few simple native Peruvian melodies performed by members of the garrison band. The effect was very pleasing. A comparison of this music with that of China shows that the two are in no respect alike. Here was a new and unexpected argument against the truth of the Huei-shen story. The next meeting of the “ Congress of Americanists ” will be held in 1877, in the city of Luxembourg.
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Olivier Jacquot (12 novembre 2025). Article : Ancient American Civilization. Amoxcalli. Consulté le 13 décembre 2025 à l’adresse https://doi.org/10.58079/154po
