I shall not attempt to take up the various classes of objects in shell
in the order of their development, as it would be hard to say whether
food utensils, weapons, or ornaments were first used. It is also
difficult to distinguish weapons proper from implements employed in the
arts, such as celts, knives, hammers, etc., as it is probable they were
all variously used according to the needs of their possessors.
Having briefly treated of natural vessels, it seems convenient to go on
with vessels shaped by art. Early explorers in many portions of the
American continent record, in their writing, the use by the natives of
shells of various kinds as vessels. We have in this case historic
evidence which bears directly upon prehistoric customs. Indeed, it is
not impossible that the very shells used by the natives first
encountered by Europeans, are the identical ones exhumed so recently
from burial places, as many of the finer specimens of shell objects have
associated with them articles of undoubted European manufacture. A
notice of the earliest recorded use of these objects naturally
introduces the prehistoric use.
With many nations that were bountifully supplied with convenient earthen
and stone vessels, as well perhaps as others of the hard shells of
fruits, the sea-shell was nevertheless a favorite vessel for drinking.
Herrera describes the use of silver, gold, shell, and gourd cups at the
banquets of the elegant monarch Montezuma II, who "sometimes drank out
of cocoas and natural shells richly set with jewels." Other authors make
similar statements. Clavigero says that "beautiful sea-shells or
naturally formed vessels, curiously varnished, were used." In many of
the periodical feasts of the Florida Indians shells were in high favor,
and it is related how at a certain stage of one of the dances two men
came in, each bearing very large conch-shells full of black drink, which
was an infusion of the young leaves of the _cassine_ (probably _Ilex
Cassine_, L.). After prolonged ceremonies, this drink was offered to the
king, to the whites present, and then to the entire assembly.[4] It is a
remarkable fact that a similar custom has been noticed among the Moquis
of Arizona. Lieutenant Bourke witnessed the snake dance of that tribe a
few years ago, and states that in front of the altar containing the
snakes was a covered earthen vessel, which contained four large
sea-shells and a liquid of some unknown composition, of which the men
who handled the snakes freely drank. Vessels thus associated with
important ceremonial customs of savages would naturally be of first
importance in their sepulchral rites. De Bry, in the remarkable plates
of his "Brevis Narratio," furnishes two instances of such use. Plate 19
shows a procession of nude females who scatter locks of their hair upon
a row of graves, on each of which has been placed a large univalve
shell, probably containing food or drink for the dead, and in Plate 40
we have another illustration of this custom, the shell being placed on
the heap of earth raised above the grave of a departed chieftain. In
Plate XXI, Fig. 1, an outline of the shell represented is given; it
resembles most nearly the pearly nautilus, but, being drawn by the
artist from memory or description, we are at liberty to suppose the
shell actually used was a large _Busycon_ from the neighboring coast,
probably more or less altered by art. Haywood, Hakluyt, Tonti, Bartram,
Adair, and others mention the use of shells for drinking vessels, and in
much more recent times Indians are known to have put them to a similar
use.
On account of the rapidity with which they decay, we can know nothing of
surface deposits of shells by prehistoric or even by comparatively
recent peoples. It is only through the custom of burying valued articles
with the dead that any of these relics are preserved to us. When we
consider the quantity of such objects necessarily destroyed by time,
exposure, and use, we marvel at the vast numbers that must have been,
within a limited period of years, carried inland. In the more recent
mounds there may be found specimens obtained by the Indians through the
agency of white traders, but the vast majority were derived doubtless
from purely aboriginal sources. Many instances could be cited to show
that the whites have engaged in the trade in shells. Kohl, in speaking
of early trade with the Ojibways of Lake Superior, states that when the
traders "exhibited a fine large shell and held it to the ears of the
Indians, these latter were astonished, saying they heard the roaring of
the ocean in it, and paid for such a marvelous shell furs to the value
of $30 or $40, and even more."[5]
Cabeça de Vaca[6] traded in sea-shells and "hearts" of sea-shells among
the Charruco Indians of the Gulf coast nearly three hundred and fifty
years ago.
The form of vessel of most frequent occurrence is made by removing the
whorl, columella, and about one-half of the outer shell of the large
univalves. The body of the lower whorl is cut longitudinally, nearly
opposite the lip and parallel with it. The spire is divided on the same
plane, a little above the apex, giving a result well illustrated in
Fig. 1, Plate XXII. A very convenient and capacious bowl is thus
obtained, the larger specimens having a capacity of a gallon or more.
The work of dividing the shell and removing neatly the interior parts
must have been one of no little difficulty, considering the compactness
of the shell and the rudeness of the tools.
For nomadic peoples these vessels would have a great superiority over
those of any other material, as they were not heavy and could be
transported without danger of breaking.
In the manufacture of these vessels the _Busycon perversum_ seems to
have been a great favorite; this may be the result of the less massive
character of the shell, which permits more ready manipulation. The
spines are less prominent and the walls more uniform in thickness than
in shells of most other varieties found along the Atlantic seaboard.
Specimens of the _Strombus_, _Cassis_, and _Fasciolaria_ were
occasionally used. The specimen illustrated in Fig. 1, Plate XXII, is
from a mound at Ritcherville, Ind., and is now in the National Museum at
Washington. It is made from a _Busycon perversum_, and is ten and
one-half inches in length by six and one-half in width at the most
distended part. The body and spire have been cut in the manner described
above, and the interior whorl and columella have been skillfully taken
out. The rim is not very evenly cut, but is quite smooth. The outer
surface of the shell has been well polished, but is now worn and scarred
by use. The substance of the shell is very well preserved. A second
example, now in the national collection, is from an ancient mound at
Naples, Ill. It is very similar to the preceding, being made from the
same species of shell. It is eleven inches in length by seven in width.
The body of the shell is well preserved, the apex, however, being broken
away. A small specimen, also in the National Museum, was obtained from a
mound at Nashville, Tenn., by Professor Powell. It is three and a half
inches in length, and very shallow, being but a small portion of the
lower whorl of a _Busycon_.
[Illustration: PL. XXII--VESSELS.
1. Shell vessel made from a _Busycon perversum_, Ind. (2/5)
2. Earthen vessel made in imitation of shell, Mo. (3/4)]
Among the more recent acquisitions to the national collection are two
very fine specimens of these _Busycon_ vessels. One of these was
obtained from a mound at East Dubuque, Ill. It is eleven inches in
length by seven in width at the widest part; the exterior surface is
highly polished; the interior is less so, having suffered somewhat from
decay; the beak is very long and slender, and has been used as a handle.
The whole vessel has a dipper-like appearance.
The finest example of these vessels yet brought to my notice was
obtained from a mound at Harrisburg, Ark., by Dr. Palmer, in October,
1882. It differs from the other specimens described in having an
elaborate ornamental design engraved on the exterior surface. In shape
it corresponds pretty closely to the first specimen figured, no part of
the spire, however, being cut away; the interior parts have been
removed, as usual. The surface is quite smooth, and the ridges on the
inner surface of the spire are neatly rounded and polished. Its length
is eleven inches, and its width seven. Plate XXIII is devoted to the
illustration of this specimen. The entire exterior surface, from apex to
base, is covered with a design of engraved lines and figures, which are
applied in such a manner as to accord remarkably well with the expanding
spiral of the shell. The upper surface of the spire is unusually flat,
and has been ground quite smooth. It will be seen by reference to
Fig. 2, Plate XXIII, that a series of lines, interrupted at nearly
regular intervals by short cross lines and rectangular intaglio figures,
has been carried from the apex outward toward the lip. Another series of
lines begins on the upper margin next the inner lip of the shell, passes
around the circumference of the upper surface, and extends downward over
the carina, covering, as shown in the other figure, the entire body of
the vessel, excepting the extreme point of the handle. The base of the
shell, which is perforated, has a small additional group of lines. The
lines of the principal series are, on the more expanded portion of the
body of the shell, about eight inches long, and are interrupted by two
rows of short lines and two rows of incised rectangular figures. The
space between the latter contains the most interesting feature of the
design. Three arrow-head shaped figures, two inches in length by one and
one-half in width, are placed, one near the outer lip, another near the
inner lip, and the third in the middle of the body, a little below the
center. These figures are neatly cut and symmetrical, and resemble a
barbed and blunt-pointed arrow-head. Near the center of each is a small
circle, which gives the figure a close resemblance to a variety of
perforated stone implements, one specimen of which has been found near
Osceola, Ark. Whatever may be the significance of this design, and it is
undoubtedly significant, it is at least a very remarkable piece of work
and a highly successful effort at decoration. The pottery of this region
which is generally highly decorated with painted and incised lines,
contains nothing of a character similar to this, and it is probable that
what I have come to consider a rule in such matters applies in this
case; the design on the shell is significant or ideographic, that on the
pottery is purely ornamental.
[Illustration: PL. XXIII--ENGRAVED VESSEL.
Harrisburg, Ark.]
For the purpose of showing the very wide distribution of vessels made
from large seashells, especially the _Busycon perversum_, I introduce
here descriptions of most of the specimens heretofore reported.
Dr. Rau, in his paper on ancient aboriginal trade in North America,
states that in the collection of Colonel Jones, of Brooklyn, there is a
vessel formed from a _Cassis_ which is eight and a half inches long, and
has a diameter of seven inches where its periphery is widest. It was
obtained from a stone grave near Clarksville, Habersham County,
Georgia.[7]
Two fine specimens of the _Cassis flammea_ were taken from mounds in
Nacoochee Valley, Georgia. They were nearly ten inches in length and
about seven inches in diameter. The interior whorls and columellæ had
been removed, so that they answered the purpose of drinking cups or
receptacles of some sort.[8]
From a stone grave mound near Franklin, on the Big Harpeth River, Prof.
Joseph Jones took two large sea-shells, one of which was much decayed.
The interior surface of these shells had been painted red, and the
exterior had been marked with three large circular spots.[9]
In the grave of a child, near the grave just mentioned, the following
relics were found: "Four large sea-shells, one on each side of the
skeleton, another at the foot, and the fourth, a large specimen, with
the interior apartments cut out and the exterior surface carved, covered
the face and forehead of the skull."[10]
In a small mound opposite the city of Nashville, Tenn., Professor Jones
found "a large sea-conch." The interior portion or spiral of which had
been carefully cut out; it was probably used as a drinking vessel, or as
the shrine of an idol as in a case observed by Dr. Troost.[11]
Two large shells of _Busycon_, from which the columellæ had been
removed, were obtained from the Lindsley mounds, sixty miles east of
Nashville, by Professor Putnam.[12]
Professor Wyman, writing of the mounds of Eastern Tennessee, says that
"among the implements are well-preserved cups or dishes, made of the
same species of shell [_Busycon perversum_] as the preceding, but of
much more gigantic size than those now found. One of them measures a
foot in length, though the beak has been broken off. When entire its
length could not have been less than fourteen or fifteen inches. These
shells probably came from the Gulf of Mexico, and found their way into
Tennessee as articles of traffic. The dishes are made in the same way,
and not to be distinguished from those found in Florida at the time of
the first visit of the Europeans, or from those, as will be seen
further, found in the ancient burial mounds. The great similarity in the
style and make of these dishes renders it quite probable that they were
manufactured in Florida."[13] A number of similar dishes, made from the
same shell, were obtained from mounds at Cedar Keys, Florida, by
Professor Wyman.[14]
Francis Cleveland, C. E., who, in 1828, had charge of the excavation
known as the "deep cut" on the Ohio Canal, informed Colonel Whittlesey
that at the depth of twenty-five feet in the alluvium several shells
belonging to the species _Busycon perversum_ were taken out.[15]
Dr. Drake, writing of the Cincinnati mounds, mentions "several large
marine shells, belonging, perhaps, to the genus _Buccinum_, cut in such
a way as to serve for domestic utensils, and nearly converted into a
state of chalk."[16]
Mr. Atwater states that "several marine shells, probably _Buccinum_, cut
in such a manner as to be used for domestic utensils, were found in a
mound on the Little Miami River, Warren County, Ohio."[17]
A _Cassis_ of large size, from which the inner whorls and columella had
been removed to adapt it for use as a vessel, was found in Clark's
mound, on Paint Creek, Scioto Valley, Ohio.[18] This specimen is eleven
and a half inches in length by twenty-four in circumference at the
largest part. It is further stated that fragments of these and other
shells are found in the tumuli and upon the altars of the
mound-builders. In digging the Ohio and Erie Canal, there was found,
near Portsmouth, its southern terminus on the Ohio River, a cluster of
five or six large shells, which appeared to have been thus carefully
deposited by the hand of man. They were about three feet beneath the
surface. The columellæ of some large shells, probably the _Strombus
gigas_, were also discovered.[19]
Several large marine shells were found in a mound near Grand Rapids,
Mich. They were all hollowed out, apparently for carrying or storing
water, and in one case perforated at the upper edge on opposite sides
for suspension by a cord or thong.[20]
Mr. Farquharson mentions a vessel made from a _Busycon perversum_,
obtained from a mound near Davenport, Iowa. The shell has been cut
through about an inch above the center; it is thirteen inches in length
by seven in width, and has a capacity of nearly two pints.[21] He also
describes a large specimen of _Cassis_ from a mound in Muscatine County,
Iowa.[22]
Long, in his expedition from Pittsburgh to the Rocky Mountains in 1819,
speaks of a large shell which seems to have been reverenced as a kind of
oracle. This may have been one of the large, brilliantly-colored fossil
_Baculites_ so common in the upper Missouri region. His description will
be given in full in treating of the sacerdotal uses of shells.
In the Naturalist for October, 1879, Mr. Frey describes a sea-shell
drinking vessel, somewhat modified by art, having a length of four and
one-half inches. This, with other relics, among which were many shell
beads, was found in an ancient grave in eastern New York, probably in
the Mohawk Valley.
These vessels of shell have also served as models for the primitive
potter. The ancient peoples of the middle Mississippi district were
extremely skillful in the reproduction of natural objects in clay, and
it is not surprising that they should imitate the form of the shell.
In the Peabody Museum is an earthen vessel copied from a shell vessel of
the class just described, the characteristic features being all well
imitated. It is about nine inches wide, eleven long and four deep. It is
neatly made, and ornamented with the red and white designs peculiar to
the pottery of this region. It was taken from one of the Stanley mounds,
Saint Francis River, Ark.
A small earthen vessel made in imitation of these shell vessels is
illustrated in Fig. 2, Plate XXII. It is of the ordinary blackish ware
so common in the middle Mississippi district. The general shape of the
shell is well represented; the sides, however, are nearly symmetrical
and the spire is represented by a central node, surrounded by four
inferior nodes. It is four inches wide and five and one-half long. Three
others represent shell vessels, somewhat less closely, the spires and
beaks being added to the opposite sides of ordinary cups.