In shape discoidal beads range from the concavo-convex sections of the
curved walls of the shell to totally artificial outlines, in such forms
as doubly-convex disks, cylinders, and spheroids. In size the disks vary
from very minute forms, one-tenth of an inch in diameter and
one-thirtieth of an inch in thickness, to two inches in diameter and
nearly one-half an inch in thickness. The thickness of the finished
beads is governed in a great measure by the thickness of the shell from
which they are manufactured.
The _Venus mercenaria_ of the Atlantic coast and the heavier _Unios_ of
the Mississippi Valley give a general thickness of from one-eighth to
three-eighths of an inch, while others, such as the heavy clams of the
Pacific, are very much thicker. The walls of univalves, especially near
the base, are often extremely heavy, while the smaller varieties of
shells furnish specimens of wafer-like thinness.
In Plate XXXIII a series of beads of this class is given, beginning with
the smaller disks and ending with those of large, though not the
largest, size.
In Fig. 1 I present two views of a minute disk, obtained, with many
others of similar shape and size, from a mound on Lick Creek, Tenn. The
perforations in these specimens, as well as in most of those that
follow, are bi-conical, and sufficiently irregular in form to indicate
that they are hand-made. Beads of this general appearance have been
found in a multitude of graves and mounds, distributed over a large part
of North as well as of South America. A vast majority of these beads are
doubtless of aboriginal make, as they are found in the oldest mounds.
Fig. 2 represents a minute form from Santa Cruz Island, Cal. The
peripheral surface is ornamented with a net-work of incised lines.
Fig. 3 illustrates a small cylindrical bead, with large perforation,
from a mound near Prairie du Chien, Wis. It was found, with a number of
others, near the neck of the skeleton of a child.
Fig. 4 represents a small spheroidal bead from the great mound near
Sevierville, Tenn.; it is neatly made and well preserved.
Figs. 5 and 6 illustrate specimens of roughly finished concavo-convex
disks, much used by both ancient and modern tribes of California,
Arizona, and New Mexico.
I essayed at one time to purchase a long necklace of these homely
ornaments from a Navajo Indian in Arizona, but soon discovered that it
was beyond my reach, as my best mule was hardly considered a fair
exchange for it. These beads are made from the _Oliva_ chiefly, but to
some extent from small bivalves.
This bead is not common in the mounds of the Mississippi Valley, but is
used by many modern savages. It seems to be the form called, by the
Indians of Virginia, "roenoke," which, according to Beverly, is made of
the cockle-shell, broken into small bits, with rough edges, and drilled
through in the same manner as beads.
Fig. 7 represents a smoothly cut bead of medium size, said to have been
obtained from a grave at Lynn, Mass. It has been cut from the curved
wall of some large univalve, and is very similar to modern specimens in
use over a greater part of the United States.
Fig. 8 belongs to a necklace brought from the northwest coast, and is
very much like the specimen shown in Fig. 7.
Fig. 9 is a well-made specimen from Sevierville, Tenn. The sides are
ground perfectly flat and the edges are well rounded. The shell is very
compact, and well preserved, and bears a close resemblance to bone or
ivory.
Fig. 10 represents a thin, fragile disk, from a mound in Southern
Illinois. It is made of a _Unio_, and separates into thin sheets or
flakes, like mica.
Figs. 11 and 12 illustrate two compact, nearly symmetrical specimens
from a mound at Paint Rock Ferry, Tenn.
Fig. 13 is from the same locality, and is hemispherical in shape.
Fig. 14 represents a button-like disk, with large conical perforation,
from a mound at Paint Rock Ferry, Tenn. It has probably been made from
the wall of a large marine univalve.
The fine specimen shown in Fig. 15 comes from a mound in Cocke County,
Tenn., and is unusually well preserved. It is very compact, having the
appearance of ivory, and has probably been made from the basal portion
of a large univalve. The perforation is extremely large, and is conical,
having been bored entirely from one side.
Figs. 16 and 17 represent two fine specimens from California. They are
nearly symmetrical, the faces being flat or slightly convex. The smaller
one has been coated with some dark substance--the result, probably, of
decay--which has broken away in places, exposing the chalky shell. The
edges are ornamented with shallow lines or notches. Such disks, when
used as ornaments, probably formed the central piece of a necklace, or
were fixed singly to the hair, ears, or costume. As long as these larger
specimens retained the color and iridescence of the original shell, they
were extremely handsome ornaments, but in their present chalky and
discolored state they are not prepossessing objects.
This plate will serve as a sort of key for reference in the study of
beads of this class, as the specimens are typical.
[Illustration: PL. XXXIII--DISCOIDAL BEADS.
(1/1)]