ORNAMENTS OF STONE, BONE, ETC.
A large proportion of the articles found in the mounds may be classed
as ornaments. It is not undertaken to say, however, that all which
follow under this head were really designed as such. The purposes
of the remains of the mounds generally are so apparent, that little
doubt can exist as to the place which they should occupy in the
simple classification here attempted; but there are a few to which
it is extremely difficult to assign a position. For all essential
purposes, approximate conclusions are sufficiently exact; and
although a good deal of ingenuity and much space might be expended in
speculations upon the probable purposes of relics of doubtful use, it
is not likely that the final result would be of much importance in
its bearings upon archæological science.
BEADS.—The number of beads found in the mounds is truly surprising.
They may be counted in some instances by hundreds and thousands,—each
one the product of no inconsiderable amount of labor, unless our
estimate of the means and facilities at the command of the makers is
greatly underrated. The character of some of these beads, made of
shell and enveloped in metal, has already been noticed. Others are
composed of shell, worked into every variety of shape, round, oblong,
and flattened; others still of animal bones and tusks, and many of
«pearls» and small marine shells,—as the «marginella», «natica»,
«oliva», etc. The perforated teeth of the wild cat, wolf, and shark,
as well as the claws of animals and sections of the small bones of
birds, were also used in the manner of beads, either for purposes
of distinction and decoration, or as amulets. In all these we
observe remarkable coincidences with the decorations of the existing
tribes of Indians, who are extravagant in their use of beads and
pendants.[148]
The beads found with the skeletons, so far as observation has
extended, are composed of shell or tusks of animals,—those of shell
greatly predominating. The surfaces of some of these are much
discolored and corroded; many, however, [p232] retain their polish
and appear quite sound. They resemble sections cut from the ends
of rods or small cylinders, and subsequently more or less rounded
upon the edge: some are quite flat, and resemble the bone buttons
of commerce; others are perfectly round. Their diameter varies from
one fourth to three fourths of an inch; the size of the perforation
is also variable, usually, however, about one tenth of an inch. Many
exhibit circular striæ upon their surfaces, identical with those
produced by turning in a lathe; and it is possible they were formed
by some such process, instead of being slowly and laboriously «worn»
into shape by rubbing on stones, as was the practice of the modern
Indians. These are composed of the solid portion, the «columella», of
large marine shells. In some of the mounds, the unworked columella
has been found,—heavy and compact; probably that of the «strombus
gigas», which shell is common upon the coasts of Florida.[149]
In the sacrificial or altar mounds a much greater variety of beads
is found than in those devoted to sepulture; a fact for which we
cannot account, unless by supposing that the articles most valued
for their rarity or beauty were those especially dedicated to their
superstitions. It is unfortunate, however, that those placed upon the
altars, like everything else thus disposed of, are so much injured by
the fire as to preserve but little of their former beauty.
[Illustration: Fig. 129.]
The bead here represented is composed of shell, and is well wrought.
Some of this description have been obtained, which are not less than
two inches in length by half an inch in diameter. Abundance of others
have been found of similar material but different shape: some are
round, but most are oblong; a few are lens-shaped.
But the most interesting and remarkable of the whole series are
the «pearl beads», of which a large number have been found in the
altar or sacrificial mounds. By exposure to the heat, they have lost
their brilliancy and consequent value as ornaments; most of them,
indeed, are so much injured that they crumble under the touch. The
peculiarities of their form, and their concentric lamellæ, joined
to the lingering lustre which some retain, place their character
beyond dispute. Several hundreds in number, and not far from a quart
in quantity, are in our possession, which retain their structure
sufficiently well to be strung and handled. The largest of these
measures two and a half inches in circumference, or upwards of three
fourths of an inch in diameter. They are of all intermediate sizes,
down to one fourth of an inch in diameter. Most are irregular in
form, or pear-shaped; yet there are many perfectly round. They have
been obtained from separate localities, several miles apart, and
from five distinct groups of mounds. Great numbers were so much
calcined, that it was found impossible to recover them, and a large
number crumbled in pieces after removal from the mounds. It is no
exaggeration to say [p233] that a number of quarts of pearls were
originally deposited in the mounds referred to; probably nearly two
quarts were contained in a single mound.
It may be inquired whence these pearls were obtained. Occasional
specimens are found in the fresh water molluscs of this region, but
they are exceedingly rare. They are very seldom discovered by our
indefatigable naturalists on the Scioto, (some of whom annually
collect thousands of the living shells,) and are never found of sizes
at all comparable to those of the mounds. We know that among the
natives of the West Indies, and the tribes of the Gulf, pearls were
found in great abundance. Raleigh, Greenville, and others speak of
them among the nations on the coasts of Virginia and the Carolinas;
and Soto and Ribaulde observed large quantities among the tribes
of Florida. It is a curious fact, that the Indians, observing the
eagerness with which Soto’s followers sought them, directed him,
according to the chronicler, “to search certaine grauves that were in
the town, and that he should find many; and that if he would send to
the grauves of these dispeopled towns he might load all his horses;
and they sought the grauves of the town, and there found fourteen
«rooxes» of perles, [three hundred and ninety-two pounds,] and little
babies and birds made of them.” At another place the chronicler
observes, they found “some perles of small valew, spoiled with the
fire, which the Indians do string them like beads and weare them
about their necks and hand wrists, and they esteem them very much.”
It is certainly not impossible that the “graves of the deserted
towns” were the mounds themselves; for nothing could possibly be more
in opposition to the Indian character, than to direct the hand of the
invaders to the tombs of their own dead. An extreme and religious
veneration and respect for the “graves of their fathers,” universally
characterizes the North American tribes.[150] They have been known
to undertake long journeys to visit their ancient burial-places, and
there perform the few simple rites enjoined by their superstitions.
Such tributes were supposed to be grateful to the spirits of the dead.
[Illustration: Fig. 130.]
Numerous beads composed of various small marine shells, of the genera
«marginella, oliva», and «natica», pierced longitudinally, have been
discovered. These are all found upon our Southern and South-western
coasts, and in the West Indies.
Another species of beads found in the mounds, were made from some of
the more beautiful varieties of the shells of the unios, so cut and
strung as to exhibit [p234] the convex surface and pearly nacre of
the shell. These must have formed very tasteful ornaments. Some neck
ornaments identical in form and appearance with these were obtained
by the Exploring Expedition, from Paumotou in the Pacific; they are
made of mother of pearl.
Other beads are composed of sections of the small bones of birds.
Similar ornaments are common among the Indians to the west of
the Mississippi, and have been observed among the natives of the
Caribbean islands.
In addition to these several varieties of neck ornaments, may be
enumerated the perforated canine teeth of certain animals, the wild
cat, wolf, and bear; also, the teeth of the shark and the alligator,
and the claws of animals. The latter, separated from the foot at the
first articulation, have been found in considerable numbers. Fig. 131
presents examples of these varieties. Some large imperforate teeth
of animals have been found with skeletons in such positions as to
favor the conclusion that they were inserted into the lobes of the
ear. No. 5 of the cut is an example. Several large «fossil» teeth of
the shark, some of them perforated, have also been obtained from the
mounds, and will be noticed, together with other singular remains of
like character, under the head of “«Fossils and Minerals from the
Mounds».” These relics were perhaps worn as amulets or charms.[151]
[Illustration: Fig. 131.]
A very tasteful variety of enamelled beads is frequently found upon
the surface or with the recent deposits in the mounds. They are
very erroneously supposed by some to have pertained to the race of
the mounds; so far is this from being the case, that they are all
clearly of European origin. The early voyagers availed themselves,
for purposes of traffic with the Indians, of their love of ornament,
[p235] and “brought from the potteries and glass-houses of Europe
various substitutes for the native wampum, in the shape of white,
opaque, transparent, blue, black, and other variously colored beads,
and of as many various forms as the genius of geometry could well
devise. They also brought over a species of paste-mosaic, or curious
oval or elongated beads of a kind of enamel or paste, skilfully
arranged in layers of various colors, which, viewed at their poles,
presented stars, radii, or other figures.”[152]
[Illustration: Fig. 132.]
PENDANTS.—These ornaments are of frequent occurrence in the vicinity
of the ancient works, though seldom found, if indeed found at all,
in the ancient mounds themselves. They for the most part resemble
the «plumbs» of the architect, and are usually made of rare and
beautiful materials. No. 1 may be taken as the predominant form. It
is symmetrically worked from a variety of greenstone, interspersed
with large crystals of mica. It is drawn of half the dimensions of
the original, which measures three and a half inches in length by
one and a fourth in its greatest diameter, and weighs not far from
four ounces. No. 2, also of half size, is well worked from a dark
brown hematite, and is highly polished. No. 3 is also of hematite.
It differs from the others in its shape, which is double conoid,
and has the groove around the middle. Hematite seems to have been
a favorite material for these ornaments. No. 5 is of quartz, and
is much the rudest which has fallen under notice. These articles
were all evidently designed for suspension. It has been suggested
that they were used as ear ornaments; their weight, however, seems
too considerable for such a purpose. To this day some of the savage
tribes have the lobes of their ears greatly distended, in the
language of the early writers, “like hoops,” and the disfiguration is
deemed a great improvement upon nature. “Some of the Indians,” says
Lawson, “wear great «bobs» in their ears, and sometimes in the holes
thereof they put eagle’s feathers, for a trophy.”[153] [p236]
GORGETS.—Numerous relics of the description here presented are
found in the mounds, generally with the skeletons. They seem to be
identical in purpose, (differing only in respect of material,) with
the articles of metal, described under this division (Figs. 89 and
90) in a previous page. They consist of plates or tablets of rare or
beautiful stones, such as may easily be worked, and which admit of a
high finish. In shape they are as diverse as fancy can suggest, but
always of tasteful outline. Some are square, others oblong, oval,
cruciform, or lozenge-shaped. Some are perforated with one, but
most with two holes; the latter have always one, occasionally both,
surfaces perfect planes.[154] Many have considerable thickness and
display one face in relief; those with a single perforation often
have both faces slightly convex. They exhibit, in general, much care
and labor, and are elegantly finished. A few have been discovered
which are quite rude, but possessing the general form of those more
elaborately worked.
[Illustration: Fig. 133.]
Fig. 133. No. 1 is composed of a very compact limestone. The surface
is much corroded, but there are a few spots where it retains its
original condition, and these exhibit a very high polish. Its form is
sufficiently well indicated in the sketch. It measures, in length,
three and a half inches; in width two inches; in thickness one inch
and one tenth. It was found in a sepulchral mound near Chillicothe.
(See page 164.) No. 2 is of the beautiful veined slate already
described (page 224). Length, three inches; width, one and three
fourths; thickness, three fourths of an inch. Found on the surface of
the earth near Chillicothe. [p237]
[Illustration: Fig. 134.]
[Illustration: Fig. 135.]
Fig. 134 is of similar material with that last mentioned. It is three
inches long, one and three fourths wide, and three fourths of an inch
thick. Fig. 135 (half size) differs in material and shape from those
above described. It is composed of a compact ferruginous stone, much
altered by heat, and was found on the altar in the remarkable “Pipe
Mound,” in “Mound City” (page 152). It has but a single perforation.
It is a singular fact that the holes in the three specimens first
noticed, as also in some of those which follow, are placed exactly
four fifths of an inch apart. This could hardly have been the result
of accident. These relics were found at different localities, several
miles distant from each other.
[Illustration: Fig. 136.]
The above engraving presents at one view seventeen figures of as
many different relics of this description,—all of which, with the
exception of No. 7, and Nos. 12 to 17, are drawn of one fourth the
size of the originals. [p238]
No. 1 is a vertical view of Fig. 133, No. 1, and is introduced here
better to illustrate its form. No. 2 was found at Marietta, and is
in the cabinet of Dr. Hildreth of that town. It measures: length,
three inches and a half; width, one inch and nine tenths; thickness,
three fourths of an inch. The material resembles that of which No.
1 is composed. No. 3 is of similar material, and was found beside
a skeleton, in a mound formerly standing within the limits of
Chillicothe.[155] Dimensions: length, six and a half inches; width at
centre, two inches; thickness, four fifths. Nos. 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10,
and 11, as also Nos. 15, 16, and 17, were found at various points in
the Miami valley, and are in the possession of Mr. McBride. Most are
of slate, either dark or variegated. No. 7 is cruciform in shape, and
is composed of coralline limestone, of a very beautiful variety.
[Illustration: Fig. 137.]
These illustrations might be indefinitely multiplied. The above will,
however, give a very clear conception of the general character of
this singular class of relics. Fig. 137 illustrates the manner of the
perforation. The holes are bevelled from one or both surfaces, and
at the narrowest point are seldom more than one eighth of an inch in
diameter. The circular striæ left in the process of boring, are to be
observed with great distinctness in almost every instance.
These relics have been classed as «gorgets», from their «apparent»
purpose. It is not undertaken to say that such was their real
purpose, for none of the many curious remains obtained from the
mounds have more successfully baffled scrutiny. At first glance it
seems obvious that they were designed for suspension, but there
are many circumstances which it is not easy to reconcile with that
conclusion. In common with the perforated copper plates, already
described, they exhibit slight traces of friction upon the edges of
the holes, which for the most part are as sharp as if newly cut.
This could hardly be the case had they been worn suspended from the
neck or upon any part of the person. Their material, shape, and
style of workmanship, would seem to imply an ornamental purpose. It
has been suggested that they were designed as implements, probably
for condensing the raw hide or sinews used as bow-strings. This
hypothesis is founded upon the character of the perforation, which
is certainly such as would best subserve the purpose suggested;
but the slight evidence of friction, already remarked, constitutes
an objection to this conclusion which it is difficult to surmount.
[p239]
The specimen dug up within the limits of Chillicothe, is said to have
been found resting upon the breast of the skeleton with which it was
deposited. The recollection of different individuals varies upon that
point; hence no conclusion can be founded upon the position in which
the relic was discovered. Those taken from the sepulchral mounds have
uniformly been found by the side of the skeleton, near the bones of
the hand.
Whatever their purposes, whether worn as ornaments or badges of
authority and distinction, or designed as implements, it is certain
they were in very general use. Not far from one hundred have been
examined, which were procured from localities extending over the
States of Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Illinois, and
Indiana.[156]
[Illustration: Fig. 138.]
Fig. 138 (half size) also presents examples of a large class of
remains probably of kindred character with those last described,
and, like them, always composed of an ornamental kind of stone. The
engravings will best illustrate their form, which, in almost every
specimen, is slightly varied. They have holes perforated diagonally,
at their lower corners, in which marks of wear from suspension or
use are distinctly visible. The field of their occurrence is equally
extensive with that of the relics last described.
It may reasonably be concluded from the uniform shape of these
articles, and from their apparent unfitness as implements, as also
from the wide range of their occurrence, that they were invested with
a conventional significance as insignia or badges of distinction or
as amulets. We know that the custom of wearing certain stones as
preventives of disease, or as safeguards against accidents or the
malice of evil spirits, has not been confined to one continent or a
single age. It is not entirely obliterated among certain classes of
our own people. Regal authority is still indicated by rich baubles of
gold and gems. It matters little whether the [p240] index of royalty
be a sceptre, or a simple carved and polished stone, so that it is
sanctioned with general recognition.
[Illustration: Fig. 139.]
Fig. 139 (half size) is made of a beautiful variety of quartz, of
a white ground, clouded with green. It is smoothly wrought and
polished, and is perforated from the ends. The shape is well shown by
the engraving and supplementary section. It was probably designed for
suspension, as an ornament.
[Illustration: Fig. 140.]
Fig. 140 (quarter size) is wrought from the beautiful variegated
slate so often referred to. It is marked upon its upper convex
edge with notches, twenty-eight in number. Its purpose must remain
entirely a matter of conjecture.
[Illustration: Fig. 141.]
MICA ORNAMENTS.—Thin sheets of mica, cut in the form of scrolls,
discs, etc., have been occasionally found in the mounds. Fig. 141
presents examples. The scrolls, in this instance, measure six
inches in length, and the discs are two inches in diameter. These
are composed of the silvery or opaque mica, and are shaped with the
utmost precision. The edges are perfectly smooth, as if cut with a
very sharp instrument. They exhibit not the slightest irregularity,
but are geometrically correct. Each piece is perforated with a small
hole, such as would be formed by thrusting a blunt needle through
it. They were probably in some way attached as ornaments to the
dress.[157] [p241]
In the Grave creek mound were found, with one of the skeletons,
about one hundred and fifty bits of mica, an inch and a half or two
inches square, each perforated with two or more small holes. These
slips were about the thickness of ordinary writing paper, and it
is supposed they were attached together, forming a sort of scarf
or ornamental article of dress.[158] Many of the mounds, it may
here be observed, contain mica, sometimes in plates of considerable
thickness, but usually in simple folia, with ragged outlines.
In a mound excavated a year or two since near Lower Sandusky,
Ohio, upwards of twenty oval plates of mica of great beauty were
discovered, each perforated with a small hole at one end, evidently
for the purpose of suspension. They were of the beautiful variety
of the mineral known as “hieroglyphic” or “graphic” mica, and the
natural markings were taken by the persons who discovered them to be
veritable hieroglyphics—the records of an extinct people.
Most of the relics found in the mounds fall under the foregoing heads
of classification. There are many, however, the purposes of which are
entirely enigmatical. Whether designed as implements or ornaments,
or whatever their particular purpose, it is not easy, and probably
of not much importance, to determine. They are only valuable as
illustrations of the skill of their makers, and can have but a slight
bearing upon the more important questions connected with American
archæology.
FOOTNOTES:
[148] Clavigero says of the ancient Mexicans: “It would be difficult
to find a nation which accompanied so much simplicity of dress with
so much variety and luxury in other ornaments of their persons.
Besides feathers and jewels, with which they adorned their clothes,
they wore ear-rings, pendants at the upper lip, and many likewise
at their noses, necklaces, bracelets for the hands and arms, and
also certain rings like collars around their legs. The ear-rings and
pendants of the poor were shells, pieces of crystal, amber, or some
other shining little stones; but the rich wore pearls, emeralds,
amethysts, or other gems, set in gold.”
[149] Several thousands of these beads were found in the Grave creek
mound. They are much thinner than those discovered in the Scioto
valley; otherwise they closely resemble them. They were for a long
time supposed to be «ivory». Their true character was first detected
by Mr. Schoolcraft. See Transactions of American Ethnological
Society, vol. i. p. 398.
[150] “The tombs of the dead,” says Charlevoix, “are held so sacred
in this country, that to violate them is the greatest hostility that
can be committed against a nation.”—«Canada», vol. 2, p. 153.
“Notwithstanding the North American Indians inter the whole riches of
the deceased with him, and so make his corpse and the grave heirs to
all, they never give them the least disturbance;—even a blood-thirsty
enemy will not despoil or disturb the dead.”—«Adair», p. 178.
The Indians of the Columbia river, it seems, have less faith in the
veneration of their race. They take care to bend the gun barrels,
break holes in the vessels, and otherwise render valueless the
various articles deposited with their dead; thereby removing the
temptation to sacrilege.
[151] “Amulets and neck and ear ornaments constituted a very ancient
and important department in the arcanum of the Indian’s wardrobe.
They were connected with his superstitions, and were part of the
external system of his religion. The aboriginal man who had never
laid aside his oriental notions of necromancy, and believed firmly in
witchcraft, wore them as charms. They were among the most cherished
and valued articles he could possibly possess. They were sought
with great avidity, at high prices, and, after having served their
purposes of warding off evil while he lived, were deposited in his
grave at his death. Bones, shells, carved stones, gems, claws and
hoofs of animals, feathers of carnivorous birds, and above all the
skins of serpents, were cherished with the utmost care and regarded
with the most superstitious veneration. To be decked with suitable
amulets, was to him to be invested with a charmed life. They added to
his feeling of security and satisfaction in his daily avocations, and
gave him new courage in war.”—«Schoolcraft’s Notes on the Iroquois»,
p. 226.
[152] SCHOOLCRAFT, “Notes on the Iroquois,” p. 227. It is undoubted
that some of the Indian tribes to the west of the Mississippi
have the art, it is not presumed to say how or where acquired, of
making a sort of enamelled beads, which they contrive to color of
various shades. Some of these, of tolerable workmanship, are in
the cabinet of the authors. They were obtained from the celebrated
«Fond de Bœuf», into which they were thrown under some superstitious
impulse. Lewis and Clarke give an account of the manufacture of these
ornaments, which is fully sustained by the peculiarities of the beads
here mentioned.
[153] LAWSON’S Carolina, p. 193. We have discovered none of these
ornaments in the mounds, and it is difficult to say whether or not
they are genuine relics of the mound-builders. It is possible they
were used both by the earlier and later races. In the Museum of
the East India Society at Salem, Mass., are a number of articles
of similar character, which were found while making excavations in
that city. They are larger and of much ruder workmanship than those
of Ohio, but of the same shape, and grooved in like manner. It has
been suggested that those of hematite, which are most numerous, were
carried about the person for the purpose of supplying an ornamental
paint. Rubbed upon any sharp grit with water, they furnish a dull
red pigment,—much inferior, however, to the French preparations
for the toilette. Irregular fragments of the same material are
sometimes found bearing the marks of frequent trituration. Such may
have been the secondary use of some of these articles; the frequent
occurrence of those made from other materials establishes that they
were primarily designed for other purposes. One composed of pieces of
copper, rudely hammered together with little slips of silver inserted
in the crevices, was found at Marietta, and is now in the cabinet of
the Worcester Antiquarian Society; another, found at Cincinnati, and
composed of quartz crystal, is in the Museum of the Philosophical
Society at Philadelphia. Although found in mounds, it is exceedingly
doubtful whether they were part of the original deposits.
[154] One of these articles, in the possession of Dr. Hildreth of
Marietta, Ohio, is fourteen inches in length and is perforated with
no less than «seven» holes. This seems to have been an exception to
the general rule, perhaps it was designed for a different purpose.
[155] A relic, almost identical in shape with No. 4, was found in
the great mound at Grave creek, and was supposed to be «ivory»,
altered by long exposure in the earth. («American Pioneer», vol. ii.
p. 200.) Mr. Schoolcraft, who examined it subsequently, describes it
as “white, heavy, easily cut, moist, and possessing very much the
appearance and feel of certain oxides,” and suggests that a plate of
some oxidable metal may still exist in the centre. («Transactions of
American Ethnological Society», vol. i. p. 402.) This description
would have applied to the articles described in the text, at the
period of their removal from the earth. They, however, lost their
moist feel and became quite hard upon exposure to the air. The
material was a matter of speculation, until the fracture of one of
the relics disclosed its character. The Grave creek relic measures
six and a half inches in length.
[156] ADAIR mentions ornaments worn by the “high priests” of the
Southern tribes of Indians, which may have been identical with
those here described. He says: “The American archi-magus wears a
breast-plate, made of a white conch shell, with two holes bored in
the middle of it, through which he puts the ends of an otter-skin
strap, and fastens a buck-horn button to the outside of each.”
(«Adair’s American Indians», p. 84.) Our author does not fail to
identify this badge with the sacred urim and thummim of the Jewish
high priest, and draws a notable argument therefrom in support of his
hypothesis of the Jewish origin of the American Indians. A similar
ornament is mentioned by Beverly, as one of the principal decorations
of the Indians of Virginia. He describes it as “a tablet of fine
shell, smooth as polished marble.” («History of Virginia», p. 141.)
[157] Humboldt states that the «Guaynares» of the Rio Caura in South
America are accustomed to stain themselves with arnotto, and to make
broad transverse stripes on the body with some unctuous substance on
which they stick spangles of silvery mica. Seen at a distance they
appear to be dressed in lace clothes («Pers. Narration», ch. xxiv.)
Other nations, both of South and North America, used gold dust or
other shining material, “with which they sprinkled their bodies and
seemed to be gilt.” («Hackluyt», vol. 2, p. 57.)
[158] Mr. Schoolcraft observes that some of the Algonquin bands,
on the sources of the Mississippi, construct war-scarfs out of the
brilliant-colored filaments of skins, ornamented with shells and the
quills of the porcupine, and with the fine black points of deer’s
hoofs to produce a jingling sound. These are attached by strings
to the breast, and are worn only by the warriors.—«Transactions of
American Ethnological Society», vol. i. p. 400.
[p242]