completeness, I shall present a typical series of the best preserved
vessels of this class along with some notices of the circumstances under
which they were discovered. The treatment by districts or localities is
for convenience simply, and has no reference to distinctions in the
character of the ware.
DISTRICT OF THE RIO SAN JUAN.
Our first expeditions into the land of the cliff-dwellers were full of
interest. We were not, however, the first explorers. The miners of the
silver-bearing mountains to the north had made occasional excursions
into the sinuous cañons of the plateau district, and failing to bring
back the coveted gold, told tales of the marvelous cities of the cliffs,
and speculated upon discovering in the débris of ancient temples and
tombs a portion of the fabled gold and jewels of the provinces of Cibola
and Tusayan.
Notwithstanding our entire freedom from expectations in this direction,
the thought gave color to our anticipations, and it was not an uncommon
occurrence to hear, about the slumbering camp fire, half jocular
references to the "great pots of gold moons" that some one had whispered
might be hidden away in the inaccessible cliffs that overshadowed us.
I shall not soon forget the incidents connected with the discovery of a
pair of fine water-jars--one of which is illustrated in Fig. 239. On the
occasion of our first passage down the cañon of the Rio Mancos[4] I made
the discovery of a group of fine cliff-houses on the south side, far up
in the vertical walls. On our return I made it a point to camp for the
night directly below these houses, although a dense growth of underbrush
had to be cut away to give room for our beds by the side of the sluggish
stream.
[4] Tenth Annual Report U. S. Geological Survey of the Territories, p.
394.
The two finest houses were set in shallow, wind-worn caves, several
hundred feet above the valley. One was almost directly above the other,
the upper being reached by a number of notches picked in the nearly
vertical rock-face.
I had ascended alone and was busily engaged in studying the upper house
and tracing the plans of its fallen walls, when I heard a voice echoing
among the cliffs. Descending hastily to the lower house I found that
one of my men had followed me and was excitedly scratching with a stick
among the debris of fallen walls. He had just discovered the rim of a
buried pot, and was fairly breathless from the anticipation of "piles of
moons." By the aid of my geologic hammer we soon had the upper part of
the neck uncovered, but hesitated a moment with bated breath before
venturing to raise the rough stone lid. But there was no treasure--only
a heap of dust. I was content, however, and when by a little further
search we came upon a second vessel, a mate to the first, the momentary
shades of disappointment vanished.
[Illustration: FIG. 239.--Coiled vase from a cliff-house in the Mancos
Cañon, Colorado.--1/3.]
These vessels had been placed in a small recess, where the falling
walls had not reached them, and were standing just as they had been left
by their ancient possessors. The more perfect one, which had lost only a
small chip from the rim, I determined to bring away entire. This I
succeeded in doing by wrapping it in a blanket, and by means of straps,
slinging it across my back. I carried it thus for a number of days over
the rough trails of the cañons and plateaus. The other, which was badly
cracked when found, was pulled apart and packed away in one of the mess
chests. It is now with its mate in the National Museum, perfectly
restored.
The unbroken vessel is shown in Fig. 239 about one-third its real
height. Its capacity is nearly four gallons. The clay is tempered with a
large portion of sand, some grains of which are quite coarse. The color
of the paste is a light gray, apparently not having been greatly changed
by the baking. A few dark contact clouds appear on the sides of the
body. The walls are quite thin for a vessel of its size and are of very
uniform thickness. The entire weight hardly exceeds that of a common
wooden pail of the same capacity. The mouth is wide and the rim, which
is made of a plain rough band, is one inch wide and abruptly recurved.
The vessel can hardly be said to have a neck, as the walls round
gradually outward from the rim to the periphery of the body, which is
full and nearly symmetrical. The narrow strands of clay have been coiled
with something less than average care, the exposed surfaces being wide
in places and in others very narrow. The thumb indentations have been
carelessly made. Two small conical bits of clay are affixed to the neck
as if to represent handles. These may have been intended for ornaments,
but are as likely to owe their presence to some little superstition of
the archaic artisans.
The companion vessel has also a capacity of about four gallons. Its form
differs from that of its mate, being considerably more elongated above
and having a more pronounced neck. The material is about the same, but
the color is darker and the workmanship is superior. The surface is
coated with soot, indicating use over a fire in cooking food or in
boiling water. The coil was laid with a good deal of care and the
indentation was done in a way to produce a series of sharp points along
the margin of the coil. The interior of the rim was finished with a
polishing stone. A small cord of clay was neatly coiled into a double
scroll and attached to the narrowest part of the vessel, corresponding
in position to the knobs in the other example. This ornament, though
small, is nevertheless effective. Similar scrolls are found upon vases
from many parts of the Pueblo Province.
It is an interesting fact that this vessel had been successfully mended
by its owners. A small perforation near the base had been stopped by
cementing a bit of pottery to the inside with clay paste. These vases
were evidently the most important of the household utensils of the
cliff-dwellers, especially as in this place water had to be carried, at
least during a part of the year, from the creek five hundred feet below.
It is probable that baskets and skins were sometimes used for carrying
water, and that the earthen vessels were used as coolers, as are similar
vessels among many primitive peoples. That they were used for carrying
water up the cliffs is indicated by the fragments that lie upon the
slopes and point out the location of houses invisible from the trails
below.
A large fragment of a similar olla was picked up in the valley of Epsom
Creek, southeast Utah. This vessel was larger, neater in finish, and
more elegant in shape, than either of those described. A sufficiently
large fragment was discovered to show satisfactorily the character of
the rim, the outline of the body, and the details of surface finish.
(Fig. 240.) The rim is but slightly recurved and the neck is high and
upright. The body swelled to a diameter of about eighteen inches at the
greatest circumference. The paste, as usual, indicates a gray clay
tempered with coarse sand. The inside is smooth and the walls are
remarkably thin for so large a vessel, being about one-fourth of an inch
in thickness. The coil is very neatly laid and indented, a variety to
the effect being given by leaving occasional plain bands. This vessel is
described by W. H. Jackson in the Bulletin of the U. S. Geological
Survey of the Territories, Vol. II.
[Illustration: FIG. 240.--Part of a large vase from Epsom Creek,
Utah.--1/8.]
Fragments of this class of ware are found throughout the cañoned region
of southern Utah and for an undetermined distance into Nevada. I have
already described fragmentary specimens from Kanab and therefore pass on
to the west.
DISTRICT OF THE RIO VIRGEN.
The most notable collection of this coiled ware ever yet made in any one
locality is from a dwelling-site tumulus near Saint George, Utah, nearly
three hundred miles west of the Rio Mancos.
About the year 1875, the curator of the National Museum obtained
information of a deposit of ancient relics at the above locality, and in
1876 a collector was sent out to make an investigation. The result, so
far as collections go, was most satisfactory, and the account furnished
gives an insight into the customs of this ancient people not yet
obtained from any other source. On the Santa Clara River, a tributary of
the Rio Virgen, about three miles from the Mormon town of Saint George,
a low mound, which I suppose to have been a sort of village-site
tumulus, was found. The outline was irregular, but had originally been
approximately circular. It was less than ten feet in height, and
covered about half an acre. One side had been undermined and carried
away by the stream. The work of exhumation was most successfully
accomplished by means of water. A small stream was made to play upon the
soft alluvium, of which the mound was chiefly composed. The sensations
of the collector, as skeleton after skeleton and vase after vase
appeared, must have been highly pleasurable.
It is thought that the inhabitants of this place, like many other
primitive peoples, buried their dead beneath their dwellings, which were
then burned down or otherwise destroyed. As time passed on and the dead
were forgotten, other dwellings were built upon the old sites, until
quite a mound was formed in which all the less perishable remains were
preserved in successive layers.
Following the customs of most primitive peoples, the belongings of the
deceased were buried with them. Earthen vessels were found in profusion.
With a single body, there were sometimes as many as eight vases, the
children having been in this respect more highly favored than the
adults. There seems to have been no system in the arrangement either of
the bodies or of the accompanying relics.
The majority of the vases were either plain or decorated in color, but
many of the larger specimens were of the coiled variety. About sixty
vessels were recovered. Those of the former classes will be described
under their proper headings.
[Illustration: FIG. 241.--Vessel from the tumulus, at Saint
George.--1/3.]
The shapes of the corrugated vases are of the simplest kind. The
prevailing form corresponds very closely with the Cliff House specimen
illustrated in Fig. 239. One unusually large example was brought back in
fragments, but has since been successfully restored. It stands nearly
seventeen inches high and is sixteen inches in diameter. The plain part
of the rim is one and one-half inches wide, and the lip is well rounded
and strongly recurved. The lines are quite graceful, the neck expanding
below into a globular body which is just a little pointed at the base.
The color is dark, from use over the fire. The fillets of clay were
narrow and very neatly crimped. Roughly estimated, there were at least
three hundred feet of the coil used. The vessel has a capacity of about
ten gallons.
[Illustration: FIG. 242.--Vase from the tumulus at Saint George.--1/2.]
Vases of this particular outline may be found, varying in size from
these grand proportions to small cups an inch or two in height. Of a
somewhat different type is the vessel shown in Fig. 241. The outline is
symmetrical. The neck is comparatively high and wide and swells out
gently to the widest part of the body, the base being almost
hemispherical. A band about the neck is coiled and roughly indented,
while the body is quite smooth. The plain band about the mouth is broad
and sharply recurved. The coils are wide and deeply indented. They have
been smoothed down somewhat while the clay was still soft. The vase
shown in Fig. 242 is characterized by its upright rim, elongated neck,
round body, and plain broad coils. The fillets are set one upon another,
apparently without the usual imbrication. This latter feature occurs in
a number of cases in the vessels of this locality.
The bottle given in Fig. 243 is quite comely in shape. The neck expands
gracefully from the rim to its junction with the body, which swells out
abruptly to its greatest fullness. The coil is not neatly laid. The
indentation began with the coil, but was almost obliterated on the lower
part of the vessel while the clay was yet soft. The fillets are not so
well smoothed down on the interior surface as usual, a ridged
appearance being the result. This comes from the difficulty of operating
within a much restricted aperture. The color is gray, with a few
effective clouds of black, the result of firing. Another, of similar
form, was taken from the collection by unknown persons.
[Illustration: FIG. 243.--Vase from the tumulus at Saint George.--1/2.]
The only example of coiled ware from this locality having a handle is a
small mug. Its body is shaped much like the larger vessels, but it is
less regular in outline. The single vertically placed handle, now
partially broken away, was attached to the side of the body near the
top, and consisted of a rough cord of clay less than half an inch in
diameter. The Saint George tumulus furnished a number of vessels with
smooth, unpainted surfaces, very similar in form and size to the coiled
vessels. They are generally blackened by use over fire, and, like the
large coiled pots, were evidently used for culinary purposes. A few
smaller vessels of the same style of finish exhibit forms characteristic
of the painted ware, as will be seen by reference to the illustrations
of these two groups.
From the same source we have two bowls of especial interest, as they
have coiled exteriors and polished and painted interiors. One of these
is illustrated in Fig. 244. They form an important link between the two
varieties of ware, demonstrating the fact that both styles belong to the
same age and to the same people. A similar bowl, found in possession of
the Zuñi Indians, is illustrated in another part of this paper, Fig.
254. Another was obtained at Moki. Fragments of identical vessels are
found occasionally throughout the whole Pueblo district. One piece from
the San Juan Valley has figures painted upon the coiled exterior
surface, the interior being polished and unpainted. Specimens from the
vicinity of Springerville, Arizona, have designs in white painted over
the coiled surface. A large number of well-made, hemispherical bowls
from this locality have a coiled band about the exterior margin, but are
otherwise plain and well polished. Some are brownish or reddish in
color. Many of them have been used over the fire.
[Illustration: FIG. 244.--Bowl with coiled exterior and painted
interior: Saint George.--1/2.]
[Illustration: FIG. 245.--Vase from Parowan, Utah.--1/2.]
The ceramic remains of Utah present some puzzling features. As we go
north from the Rio Virgen there is an apparent gradation from the
typical Pueblo ware to a distinct group characteristic of Salt Lake
Valley. The interesting problems suggested by this condition of things
cannot be discussed in this place, and I will stop only to present a
specimen of the coiled ware from Parowan, which is in some respects the
finest example known. The form, so far as it is preserved, seems
unusually graceful, and the laying and indenting of the coil is
surprisingly perfect. This vase is in the Salt Lake Museum, and the cut,
Fig. 245, is made from a photograph furnished by Prof. Marcus E. Jones.
Vessels with similar finish have recently been obtained from graves at
Fillmore, Utah, by Dr. H. C. Yarrow, and, singularly enough, identical
work is seen in some very fine pieces obtained by Mr. Nelson from ruined
pueblos in middle eastern Arizona.
[Illustration: FIG. 246.--Cup from central Utah.--1/3.]
An interesting little cup, said to have been found in central Utah,
illustrates some of the peculiar characters of the more northern
examples of this ware. The vessel has apparently been built with coils,
as usual, but the surface is worked over in such a way as to obscure the
spiral ridges. The rim is upright and plain. The high, wide neck has a
series of narrow, vertical flutings, made with a round-pointed
implement, or possibly with the finger tip. A band of four channels
encircles the middle of the body, the lower part of which is covered
with oblique markings.
The handle is large and round, and is attached above to the top of the
rim, and below to the middle of the body. This cup is now in the museum
at Salt Lake. The photograph from which the engraving is made was
obtained through Professor Jones.
DISTRICT OF THE LITTLE COLORADO.
The region now inhabited by the Pueblo tribes seems to have been a
favorite residence of the ancient peoples. Ruins and remains of ceramic
art may be found at every turn, and it is a common thing to find
ancient vessels in possession of the Pueblo Indians. This is especially
true of the Zuñis and Mokis, from whom considerable collections have
been obtained. These vessels have apparently been culled from the sites
of ancient ruins, from cave and cliff-houses, and possibly in some cases
from burial places. Recently, since they have become valuable in trade,
the country about Moki has been ransacked by both Indians and whites,
and many valuable specimens have been acquired.
Within recent years a number of expeditions have been sent into this
region. To these the cañons and cliffs have yielded many specimens. Both
Mr. Stevenson and Mr. Victor Mindeleff have brought in excellent
examples, a few of which have already been illustrated in the
publications of the Bureau of Ethnology. I must not fail to mention the
very extensive collection of Mr. T. V. Keam and his associate, Mr. John
Stephen, examples from which I am permitted to illustrate in this paper.
Most of the pieces described by Mr. Stevenson are small and not at all
pleasing in appearance. They comprise ollas and handled mugs of an
elongated scrotoid or sack shape, the widest part of the body being, as
a rule, near the base, while the upper part is elongated into a heavy
neck, to which a recurved rim has been added.
A number of examples, illustrated in the Second Annual Report of the
Bureau of Ethnology, were obtained from the Zuñi Indians, and are
thought by Mr. Stevenson to have come from the Cañon de Chelly.
[Illustration: FIG. 247.--Vessel from Zuñi.--1/4.]
A large, very badly constructed specimen is given in Fig. 247. The rim
is roughly finished, the body unsymmetrical, and the bottom slightly
flattened. The coils differ greatly in width, and are carelessly joined
and unevenly indented. The rudeness of workmanship noticed in this case
is characteristic of many of the specimens from Zuñi.
[Illustration: FIG. 248.--Vessel from Zuñi.--1/2.]
[Illustration: FIG. 249.--Handled mug from Tusayan.--1/2.]
A rudely constructed cylindrical cup, of the wide-mouthed, narrow-bodied
variety, is illustrated in Fig. 248. The bottom was flattened by contact
with some hard, scarred surface before the clay hardened. Two round,
tapering, serpent-like fillets of clay have been fixed in a vertical
position upon opposite sides of the vessel.
There are a number of handled vessels of this class. They are mostly
rather rudely made and unsymmetrical. They are small in size and were
probably devoted to ordinary domestic uses. A good specimen from the
Keam collection is shown in Fig. 249. The handle in this case is a large
loop made of three ropes of clay placed side by side. In one case there
are three strands set side by side, and joined near the ends. In another
case the strands have been twisted, giving a rope-like effect. These
forms closely resemble wicker handles in appearance and manner of
attachment, and are probably to some extent derived from them, although
there is no reason why the ropes of clay, in constant use by potters,
should not be joined in pairs, or even twisted, if greater strength or
variety were desired.
Vessels from the province of Tusayan may often be identified by their
color, which, like that of the transition and modern wares of the same
region, is often a rich yellow, sometimes approaching an orange. This
color is probably a result of changes in the natural constituents of the
clay employed.
[Illustration: FIG. 250.--Yellow vase from Tusayan.--1/3.]
An excellent example of the yellow coiled vases is illustrated in Fig.
250. It has a new look, and probably belongs to a later period than the
light gray ware of the district. It is symmetrical, and the coil is
neatly laid and indented. Portions of the sides and base were blackened
in firing.
There are a number of fine specimens of this class in the Keam
collection, all obtained from the ancient province of Tusayan. A small,
wide-necked pot is shown in Fig. 251. The surface is smooth, with the
exception of a narrow band or collar about the neck, formed of a few
indented coils. Other vessels closely resembling this in style are much
larger and heavier.
[Illustration: FIG. 251.--Yellow vase from Tusayan.--1/3.]
[Illustration: FIG. 252.--Vessel from Tusayan.--1/3.]
A vessel of very archaic appearance is illustrated in Fig. 252. In form,
color, and finish it differs from the preceding example. The mouth is
almost as wide as the body at its greatest circumference, the color is
gray, and the coils are narrow and regularly indented. A minute coiled
fillet is attached to the rim for ornament.
The vessel illustrated in Fig. 253 is one of the most noteworthy of its
class. In form and construction it does not differ essentially from
specimens already described, but the decoration is superior. The coils
are indented in such a way as to produce a pattern of triangular
figures, which is carried over the entire surface of the vessel. It
belongs to the Keam collection, and comes from the province of Tusayan.
[Illustration: FIG. 253.--Large vase from Tusayan.--1/4.]
[Illustration: FIG. 254.--Bowl from Cibola.--1/2.]
From Cibola we have a bowl, the exterior of which is coiled and the
interior polished and painted. It is undoubtedly of the most archaic
variety of ware, and is almost a duplicate of the example from the Saint
George tumulus, shown in Fig. 244. The interior is encircled by a
series of five triangular volutes in black lines, and the exterior exhibits
a very neatly laid and indented coil. Fig. 254.
PECOS AND THE RIO GRANDE.
In New Mexico, upwards of four hundred miles east of Saint George, in
the handsome upland valley of the Rio Pecos, we have the most easterly
of the ancient Pueblo remains. The site was occupied at the time of the
conquest, but is now wholly deserted, a small remnant of the people
having gone to dwell with their kindred at Jémez.
The site of this village has been thoroughly examined by that learned
gentleman, Mr. A. F. Bandelier. It is his opinion that the remains show
at least two distinct periods of occupation, the first being marked
chiefly by a stratum of ashes, pottery, etc., of great horizontal
extent. This underlies more recent deposits which belong to the people
found in possession, and whose arts are nearly identical with those of
the existing Pueblos.
The underlying stratum is characterized by great quantities of
fragmentary coiled ware uniform with that of more western localities. At
the same time there is almost a total absence of painted pottery.
The conclusion reached by Mr. Bandelier is that probably the coiled
pottery wherever found marks the occupancy of a people antecedent to
those who made painted ware. It is my impression, as already stated,
that the coiled form may be the most archaic of the ancient Pueblo
pottery, yet I think it best to notice two things in regard to the
conditions at Pecos.
In the first place, it should be remembered that the painted pottery
found by Mr. Bandelier is said to resemble that of Nambe of to-day,
nothing being said of the painted ware characteristic of the ancient
ruins of the west, and which is always found associated with the coiled
fragments, as at Saint George, in the same graves and even in the same
vessel, Fig. 244. We would not expect in Pecos, or in any other place,
to find modern Pueblo ware like the more recent pottery from Pecos
intimately associated with the ancient ware either painted or
corrugated. The only strange feature at Pecos is that the coiled
fragments are not associated with ancient painted ware as in other
places.