This volume is the latest attempt to demonstrate the trans-oceanic origins of native American civilizations. In this instance, strong emphasis is given to the Phoenicians and Carthaginians as the promethean purveyors of knowledge and stimulus leading to a civilized state for the beknighted American savage. This, however, does not mean that Mrs. Irwin excludes the evidence, purported and possible, indicating other transoceanic travels of gods and traders in pre-Columbian times. Although not exhaustive, a list of the evidence cited for these contacts contains most of the venerable and hoary proposals of many centuries standing as well as those of very recent date. A consideration of each of these would take another volume. Nevertheless, their collective presence does permit us to make some comments on the method of presentation and their scientific validity.
Perhaps the most disturbing aspect of this book lies in the way in which each piece of evidence purporting to show trans-oceanic influence in the Americas is treated. Each introduction to a particular subject is circumspect and cautious, given full careful inspection of its validity. However, to one’s dismay when one encounters this same subject in the succeeding chapter he discovers that an inter-chapter transmutation has taken place in which what was formerly open to question now is treated as demonstrated fact. In this way Mrs. Irwin has built up by the end of the book what seems to be an incontrovertible case for the extraAmerican origins of New World civilizations. It would do us little good to consider the various ways in which cultural elements are pulled out of context, the lack of knowledge concerning the demonstrated in situ developments of art styles which in their end points appear to parallel some in the Old World, or the chronological confusion which often appears in these pages. However, one cannot resist pointing out that bearded American Indians were by no means a rare thing in aboriginal America. It all depends which Indians one is dealing with whether there were beards or not, and ignorance of this sort only leads one to conclude, as with many other subjects in this volume, that Mrs. Irwin is beating a dead horse.
It is perhaps not fitting that one be so uncharitable in a book review. However, when one encounters the assertion by innuendo and implication that there has been, and still prevails, a conspiracy among anthropologists to surpress and denigrate any evidence indicating trans-oceanic contact in pre-Columbian times, it is clear that there is nothing scientifically valid about this book. Anthropologists have never denied that such contacts did take place, and, in fact, have long listed them. What has never been demonstrated is that cultural complexes reached the Americas sufficiently complete to have initiated a new culture, or even to have affected significant portions of the American recipient culture. In other words, scientists demand proof and not assertion achieved through the unwarranted association of cultural elements originally found scattered through time and space. One can only ask the question: when can we expect publishers and popular writers to treat such subjects with the care and validity they demand?
