Having studied the application of shell material to the various
utilitarian arts, I turn to the consideration of what may, with more or
less propriety, be called the arts of taste.
The skill acquired by the primitive artisan in shaping the homely spoon
or the rude celt served a good purpose in the more elegant arts, and
opened the way to a new and unique field for the development and display
of the remarkable art instincts of these savages. It probably required
no great skill and no very extended labor to fashion the various
utensils and implements of the outer walls of the univalves or the thin
valves of clams and mussels; but to cut out, grind down, and polish the
columellæ of the large conchs required a protracted effort and no little
mechanical skill. Of the various objects shaped from the columellæ,
beads are probably the most important; but a large class of pin-shaped
articles naturally come first, as they consist of entire or nearly
entire columellæ dressed down to the desired shape.
The use of these objects is still problematical. As they are found in
most cases deposited with human remains, they were doubtless highly
valued. They must have served a definite purpose in well-established and
wide-spread customs, as they are found distributed over a district
almost co-extensive with that occupied by other shell vestigia of marine
origin.
Let us first study the process of manufacture. A considerable number of
the larger species of marine univalves have been brought into
requisition. Various species of _Busycon_, _Strombus_, and _Fasciolaria_
offer almost equal facilities; the former, however, seems to have been
decidedly the favorite, the _Busycon perversum_ having furnished at
least three-fourths of the columns used. This result may be attributed,
however, to the fact that, for reasons already mentioned, the
_perversum_ was so universally employed for vessels, the axes extracted
from these being then ready for further manipulation. The outer case of
the shell being somewhat fragile it is probable that the sea has very
frequently broken it away, leaving the dismantled columella to be washed
ashore in a shape convenient for manufacture or for inland trade. If the
demand for these objects was very great, it is to be presumed that on
shores where they abound these shells were broken open and the columns
extracted for purposes of traffic. The State of Tennessee is found to be
the great store-house of these as well as other ancient objects of
shell. This is probably owing to two causes: first, that far inland,
where they were difficult to procure, and very costly, they were highly
esteemed, and hence consecrated to the use of the dead; and, second, the
conditions under which they were buried had much to do with preserving
them from rapid decay, while on the coast or when exposed to the
atmosphere they soon disappeared.
An interesting series of specimens illustrating the various stages of
manufacture of articles from the columella is presented in Plate XXIX.
In Fig. 1 a section of a _Busycon perversum_ is given. The position of
the columella and its relations to the exterior parts may be clearly
seen. The reverse whorl of the spire will be noticed, and the consequent
sinistral character of the groove. Fig. 2 illustrates the extracted
columella in its untrimmed state. A similar specimen is shown in Fig. 3,
Plate XXXI. It was obtained from the site of an old Indian lodge on the
island of Martha's Vineyard. This, with a number of smaller specimens,
may be seen in the National Museum. They show no signs of use, and were
probably destined for manufacture into pins or beads.
Columellæ in this state are very frequently found in the mounds and
graves of the interior States; a majority probably belong to the
_Busycons_, but a considerable number are derived from the _Strombidæ_.
A few specimens of large size may be seen in the national collection.
Fig. 3 represents a roughly dressed pin, of a type peculiar to the
Pacific coast.
Fig. 4 illustrates a completed pin of the form most common in the middle
Mississippi province.
Fig. 5 shows a rather rare form of pin, pointed at both ends. Bone pins
of this form are quite common.
Fig. 6 represents a nearly symmetrical cylinder.
Fig. 7 illustrates the manner of dividing the cylinders into sections
for beads.
[Illustration: PL. XXIX--MANUFACTURE OF IMPLEMENTS AND ORNAMENTS.
1. Section of _Busycon perversum_.
2. Roughly trimmed columella.
3. Headless pin, western form.
4. Tennessee form.
5. Pin pointed at both ends.
6. (Omitted.)
7. Manner of cutting into beads.
8. Derivation of a celt from _Busycon_.
9. Derivation of ornaments from _Haliotis_.
10. Derivation of ornaments from _Busycon_.
11. Bead with cylindrical, countersunk perforation.
12. Bead with conical perforation.
13. Bead with bi-conical perforation.
14. Bead imperfectly perforated.]
In 1881 some very important additions to the National Museum were made,
from the mounds of Tennessee. These include a great wealth of objects in
shell. From the McMahan mound at Sevierville, Tenn., there are a dozen
shell pins, all made from the _Busycon perversum_. The entire specimens
range from three to six inches in length; two are fragmentary, having
lost their points by decay. In shape these objects are quite uniform,
being, however, as a rule, more slender in the shaft than the average
pin. The heads range from one-half to one inch in length, and are
generally less than one inch in diameter. They are somewhat varied in
shape, some being cylindrical, others being conical above. The shaft is
pretty evenly rounded, but is seldom symmetrical or straight. It is
rarely above one-half an inch in diameter, and tapers gradually to a
more or less rounded point. The groove of the canal shows distinctly in
all the heads, and may often be traced far down the shaft. In a number
of cases the surface retains the fine polish of the newly-finished
object, but it is usually somewhat weathered, and frequently discolored
or chalky. These specimens were found in the mounds along with deposits
of human remains, and generally in close proximity to the head; this
fact suggests their use as ornaments for the hair.
Two illustrations are given in Plate XXX. Fig. 1 represents a fine
example, six and a quarter inches in length. The head is deeply grooved,
and is apparently cut from the middle part of the columella, the shaft
being formed from the spine-like basal point. The spiral canal, which is
clearly defined, makes but one revolution in the entire length of the
pin. In Fig. 5 a somewhat similar specimen is represented. Two fine
specimens come from a mound on Fain's Island, Tennessee River. The
larger one is made from the columella of some heavy shell, probably the
_Strombus gigas_. The head is cylindrical, and the shaft large, but
imperfect. The smaller is a little more than two inches in length, the
head being small and conical, and the point more than usually blunt.
Another specimen was obtained from a mound at Taylor's Bend, near
Dandridge, Tenn. The head is almost spherical, and the point broken off;
the whole surface is new looking and highly polished. A number of bone
pins pointed at both ends were obtained from Fain's Island, besides many
perforators and other well-made implements of bone.
Prof. C. C. Jones describes[55] a number of shell pins without
mentioning localities, stating, however, that such pins have been
obtained from a mound on the Chattahoochie River, below Columbus, Ga. He
publishes illustrations of two varieties. One, of the ordinary type, is
five and a half inches in length, one inch of that distance being
occupied by the head, which is an inch and a quarter in diameter. The
shank is an inch and a half in circumference, and, while tapering
somewhat, is quite blunt at the point. The other is of somewhat rare
occurrence, being pointed at both ends. An example of this variety is
given in Fig. 4, Plate XXX. They are usually small and short, seldom
exceeding three inches in length.
In the national collection there are ten fine pins, obtained by C. L.
Stratton from a mound on the French Broad River, fifteen miles above
Knoxville, Tenn. Four only are made from the _Busycon perversum_. The
largest specimen has a very large, cylindrical head, with an extremely
deep groove. The shaft has been at least five inches long, and is nearly
one-half an inch in diameter. Another fine specimen is five inches long,
very slender, and nearly symmetrical. A small, almost headless pin, not
quite one and a half inches in length, is peculiar in having a
longitudinal perforation. It has probably been strung as a bead. A
fourth specimen is five and three-quarters inches in length. The head is
well rounded above, and the shaft tapers gradually to a slender
symmetrical point. The other specimens from the same locality are in an
advanced stage of decay, the points being entirely destroyed.
The Peabody Museum contains a large number of very fine specimens of
this class. The most important of these were obtained from the
Brakebill, Lick Creek, and Turner mounds of Tennessee, by the Rev. E. O.
Dunning. The largest of these is upward of six inches in length. An
unusually symmetrical and well-preserved specimen from the Lick Creek
mound is nearly seven inches in length. One specimen only in this
collection differs from the type already described; this has been made
from a dextral-whorled shell; the head is somewhat spherical, but is
unusual in having an umbonate projection at the top. It is illustrated
in Fig. 6, Plate XXX.
Another small pin, which is about one and one-half inches in length, has
a poorly defined head, and would seem useless for the purposes
ordinarily suggested for the larger specimens.
A recent collection from Pikeville, Tenn., includes a number of
specimens made from the spike-like base of the _Busycon perversum_. They
are roughly finished, and taper to a point at both ends. The larger ones
are six inches in length and nearly one inch in diameter. All are
perforated longitudinally. This perforation is neatly made and about
one-eighth of an inch in diameter. In one specimen which has been broken
open two perforations may be seen running almost parallel with each
other, as if they had been bored from opposite ends and had failed to
meet. The length of these perforations is quite remarkable, and it is
difficult to understand how, with the primitive tools at the disposal of
these people, a uniform diameter could be given throughout. One of these
objects is shown in Fig. 3, Plate XXX.
Other States besides Tennessee have furnished a limited number of shell
pins. Their occurrence in a mound near Columbus, Ga., has already been
mentioned.
The national collection contains a fine specimen from Macon, Ga.,
collected by J. C. Plant. The Peabody Museum has a number from mounds on
the Saint Francis River, Ark. One of these is illustrated in Fig. 8,
Plate XXX. They differ from the pins heretofore described, being in all
cases unsymmetrical. The shaft is flat and somewhat curved, and joins
the mushroom-shaped head near one edge. This results from the peculiar
shape of the portion of the shell from which the pin is derived, the
head being cut from the peripheral ridge and the shaft from the body
below or the shoulder above. Two specimens of this class have recently
been obtained from a mound at Osceola, Ark. A profile view of one is
shown in Fig. 10, Plate XXX.
A pin of this class, from a burial mound at Black Hammock, Fla., is
described and illustrated by Professor Wyman.[56] From the fact of its
being perforated at the point, he regards it as a pendant ornament. He
states that it is cut from the suture, where a whorl joins the preceding
one. In this respect it resembles the specimens from Arkansas. It is
made from a _Busycon perversum_.
In the National Museum we have two specimens from Florida. One of these,
from Pensacola, is illustrated in Fig. 2, Plate XXX, and is of the
ordinary form. The other is a short, broad-headed specimen, illustrated
in Fig. 7, Plate XXX.
In the Peabody Museum are two small specimens of the ordinary type, from
a mound near Jamestown, Va. One of these, a small, pointed variety, is
given in Fig. 9, Plate XXX.
[Illustration: PL. XXX--PINS--EASTERN FORMS.]
In Volume VI of Schoolcraft's Indian Tribes, a pin, probably of shell,
is shown in a plate illustrating relics from South Carolina.
A few localities have furnished bone, stone, and clay pins similar to
these in shape. Specimens of the latter may be found both in the
National and Peabody museums. They were probably intended as stoppers
for bottle-shaped earthen vessels. Bone pins are generally headless, and
have in most cases been intended as implements for perforating and for
sewing. Mr. Schumacher found a pin-like object of bone on the island of
San Clemente, Cal. It resembles the shell pins pretty closely, having a
somewhat spherical head. It is figured by Professor Putnam in a recent
work.[57]
As already stated, the exact uses to which these pins were applied by
the mound-building tribes are unknown; various uses have been suggested
by archæologists. The favorite idea seems to be that they were
hair-pins, used by the savages to dress and ornament the hair. It would
seem that many of them are too clumsy for such use, although when new
they must have been very pretty objects. The shorter and headless
varieties would certainly be quite useless. Similar objects of bone or
ivory, often tastefully carved, are used by the natives of Alaska for
scratching the head, although it seems improbable that this should have
been their most important function.
Professor Dall suggests that some of the shell pins may have been used
as were the "blood-pins" of the Indians of the northwest coast. When
game is killed by an arrow or bullet, the pin is inserted in the wound,
and the skin drawn and stitched over the flat head, so that the much
valued blood may be prevented from escaping. A small, very tastefully
carved specimen of these pins is given in Plate XXXI, Fig. 4. It was
obtained from the Indians of Oregon. A similar specimen comes from San
Miguel Island, Cal.
It is possible that they may have served some purpose in the arts or
games of the ancient peoples; yet when we come to consider the very
great importance given to ornaments by all barbarians, we return
naturally to the view that they were probably designed for personal
decoration.
From the Pacific coast we have shell pins of a very different type. They
also are made from the columellæ of large marine univalves, and were
probably used as ornaments, doubtless to a great extent as pendants.
These objects have been obtained in great numbers from the ancient
graves of the California coast, at Santa Barbara, at Dos Pueblos, and on
the neighboring islands of Santa Clara, Santa Catalina, San Clemente,
and Santa Rosa. Professor Dall is of the opinion that the shell mostly
used is the _Purpura crispata_, the smaller specimens probably being
derived from the _Mitra maura_.
Such a very concise description of these objects is given by Prof. F. W.
Putnam in a recent paper that I beg leave to quote it here, omitting his
references to figures: "A columella was ground down to the required size
and shape, and made into a pendant by boring a hole through the larger
end. In order to make this pendant still more attractive, the spiral
groove is filled with asphaltum, or a mixture of that material and a red
pigment. Sometimes the spiral groove was so nearly, or even wholly,
obliterated in the process of grinding the columella into shape as to
make it necessary to enlarge or even recut the groove in order to make a
place for the much-loved asphaltum." Another form, made from another
shell, is described, the whorls of which are "loose and open, so that a
natural tube exists throughout the length of the spire; at the same time
the spiral groove in the central portion is very narrow; consequently it
has to be artificially enlarged for the insertion of the asphaltum,
which thus winds spirally about the shell. As the natural orifice at the
large end of the shell seems to have been too large for properly
adjusting and confining the ornament as desired, this difficulty was
overcome by inserting a small shell of _Dentalium_, or by making a
little plug of shell, which is carefully fitted and bored."[58]
The national collection contains upward of fifty of these pins, which
come from ancient graves at Santa Barbara and Dos Pueblos, Cal., and
from the islands of Santa Cruz and San Miguel. These vary in length from
one to five inches, the well-finished specimens seldom reaching one half
an inch in diameter. At the upper end they round off somewhat abruptly
to an obtuse point, but taper to a sharp point at the lower end,
something like a cigar. Two fine examples are shown in Figs. 1 and 2,
Plate XXXI. All show the spiral groove, and nearly all have portions of
the asphaltum remaining. The columellæ from which they are made may be
to some extent naturally perforated, but are certainly not sufficiently
so to permit the ready passage of a cord. The points are seldom sharp,
and are often broken off. A bit of _Dentalium_ inserted into the
perforation and set with asphaltum helps to enforce the point and to
guard against further breakage. The larger specimens are seldom
perforated transversely at either end, while the smaller ones are almost
always perforated at the larger end, which is slightly flattened. A good
example is shown in Fig. 5, Plate XXXI.
A peculiar bulb-pointed specimen is illustrated in Fig. 6, Plate XXXI.
The bulb is made from the upper end of the columella. There are six of
these pins in the collection.
The consideration of these pins leads naturally to the presentation of
other classes of objects manufactured from the columellæ of marine
univalves among which beads are the most numerous and important.
[Illustration: PL. XXXI--PINS--PACIFIC COAST FORMS.
1. Shell pin from San Miguel Island.
2. Shell pin from Dos Pueblos, Cal.
3. An untrimmed columella.
4. Bone pin from Oregon.
5. Shell pin from San Miguel Island.
6. Shell pin from San Miguel Island.
(1/1)]