Pelliot a "Chinologist"

"The more we study the history of the ancient Far East, the more we see that Chinese civilization, in spite of the fact that it has developed along its own lines and has an entirely distinct character, has, nevertheless, not been secluded and entirely cut off from the rest of the ancient world," declared Professor Paul Pelliot, who recently gave a series of lectures on Neolithic Art in Northern China at the Fogg Museum, in a special interview with the CRIMSON.

"I am what one might call a chinologist," said Professor Pelliot after he had welcomed his interviewer with the greatest kindness and bienseance, "that is to say, I make a study of Chinese antiquities, and I have come to this country at the request of Columbia University to give a course on Chinese scholarship. My reception in this country has been very gratifying.

"I came here to Harvard to speak on some very important discoveries made recently in China which give an insight into the early stage of the evolution of the arts and culture of that region, and also the ancient connections, to some extent economic, existing between the Far East and other portions of the then civilized world.

Neolithic Settlements Found

"Some time ago, about 30 neolithic settlements were found in China which prove rather conclusively that even in those very early times there was a cultural connection, shown by a comparison and study of the painted ceramics which have been discovered, between China, Southern Russia and the Messopotamian countries. Therefore, although it may be difficult to trace these connections later, we must admit that they existed many centuries before the beginning of the Christian era, possibly as early as 3,000 B. C. The painted ceramics of Northern China are, by the way, about the best which have been found anywhere.

"Some recent discoveries," continued the archaeologist, "in fact, the ones on which I lectured at the Fogg Museum, have been made in Northern China by a Russian, Colonel Kozlov. These discoveries consist of a number of early tombs all dating from about the first century before our era which contained an enormous number of textiles in a truly remarkable state of preservation." Professor Pelliot then went on to describe the tombs more in detail.

Tombs Were Made of Wood

The tombs which Colonel Kozlov discovered were made of wood and consisted in a typical instance of one chamber, measuring about seven by ten yards, placed inside another so as to leave a rather large corridor around the outside. Within the inmost chamber, a heavy, lacquered and decorated coffin lay upon a thick woolen carpet. In the second chamber were found the valuable textiles and other objects. No golden or silver pieces were found in any of the tombs due to the fact that they had already been broken into by robbers at a much earlier date. Human remains were also not to be discovered, although as many as 17 queues of human hair wrapped up in silk were found hanging in a single tomb probably as a sign of mourning.

"One of the most marvelous things about the whole discovery," said Professor Pelliot, "is the remarkable way in which the large numbers of very perishable materials such as woolen and silk textiles, and even furs have been preserved. It is particularly extraordinary when we realize that they are in this state of preservation in spite of the