72 ABORIGINAL MONUMENTS
count of the proprietor of the mound, who opened it, were discovered “one thousand seven hundred ivory [shell] eads, five hundred shells of he involute species [margi- nella], five copper bracelets, fifty slips of mica, and the relic in question. It is of the size and shape indicated in the engraving. and is described as composed of a compact sandstone of a light color.* The so-called inscription is arranged in three parallel lines, and comprises twenty-four distinct characters, accompa- nied by a supposed hieroglyphic or ideographic sign. An analysis of this inscription has been undertaken by:a num- ber of learned individuals, with various results. Mr. Schoolcraft regards twenty-two of the characters as un- questionably alphabetic, four of which he identifies as cor- responding with the ancient Greek, the same number with the Etruscan, five with the Runic, six with the ancient Gallic, seven with the old Erse, ten with the Pheenician, fourteen with the old British, and sixteen with the Celte- beric. These results are substantially the same with those arrived at by Mr. Rafn, of the Danish Antiquarian Society. A coincidence between some of the characters and certain ancient alphabets of Africa, has been remarked by M. Jomard, the eminent President of the Geographical Society of Paris, and by our distinguished countryman, W. B. Hodgson, Esq., late U. 8. Consul at Tunis.+
- The engraving is from a drawing made from the original by Mr. School-
craft, and published in the first volume of these Transactions. It is probably the only correct copy ever published.
+ Pol. By the mass! and’t is like a camel, indeed! Ham. Methinks it is like a weasel. Pol. It is backed like a weasel. Ham. Or like a whale? Pol. Very like a whale !—Shaks.
