of it lay the irregular grave in which the cylinder was found. Close
to the surface lay two skeletons and a _maj[=u]r_, the pot was to the
north; the two skeletons, both in the contracted position, and with
heads to the north, faced one another. Below these was another
skeleton, lying upon its right side, with head to the east; below it,
and to the west, another, the skull of which lay crown downwards, the
line of the body north and south. This was the only skull that could
be got out unbroken; it was very weak, and in spite of very careful
packing, was broken before it reached England. Below this were parts
of two more skeletons, and there was another in the large _maj[=u]r_;
further, leaning in the south-west corner at the bottom of the grave,
was a sandstone slab, behind which was yet another contracted burial;
the skeleton was on its left side, with the head to the north. The
cylinder was below the first pair of skeletons. The other objects in
the tomb were a IVth dynasty pot (35), an ivory comb and spatula, a
shell and some green paint. This grave had evidently been to some
extent disturbed, and it is just possible that the cylinder and the
burials are not contemporaneous, but the simplest explanation is that
they are, and that the grave was cut through the early mastaba. When I
was clearing this tomb, Mr. (now Sir William) Richmond was sitting on
the edge watching me, and we were both struck with the singular shape
of the unbroken skull, the strong projection of the cheekbones
reminding us of the Mongol type. No great weight can be attached to
this observation, as measurements of the skull could not be taken, but
I mention it as showing how important it may be that any unbroken
skeleton found in a _maj[=u]r_ should be preserved. The early date
of these burials can hardly be doubted, but it has not yet been
determined whether they belonged to the same race as do the ordinary
Neolithic graves, the _maj[=u]r_ being a cheap substitute for the
wooden roof of the earlier time, or whether they belonged to some
other element in the population, as the presence with them of the
two illegible black cylinders would suggest.

The burials in pottery cists, not hitherto mentioned, may now be
taken. These cists were found at Ballas both in "stairway" tombs and
in open Neolithic graves. At El Kab they have been already mentioned
as occurring in mastaba wells. The cists are short coffins, about 3
feet in length, made of a coarse a