A later culture known as Cupisnique appeared in the 
upper levels of the smaller midden. An early type of 
pottery and small cobs of maize were among the cultural 
innovations found in these levels. This evidence suggests 
that a group of people had migrated into the area from 
another region. 
One of the plants most frequently found in both the 
Preceramic and Cupisnique levels was the common 
gourd, Lagenaria siceraria. Its occurrence was more 
marked in the older period, the recovered specimens con- 
sisting of gourd artifacts, shell fragments, peduncles and 
seeds. These categories were also represented in the later 
period, but the specimens, though still abundant, were 
fewer in number. Selected samples of the cucurbit ma- 
terials recovered by Bird were submitted to Whitaker 
for study. These samples consisted of specimens of both 
Lagenaria and Cucurbita and are described in his report. 
From the specimens found in the lower or Preceramic 
levels, Whitaker isolated two types of Lagenaria seeds. 
One type was disassociated from the fruits: the other 
was still contained in a bottle gourd that had been used 
as a net float. The first group of seeds is characterized 
by large size, parallel longitudinal lines and the presence 
of a winged protuberance at either side of the broad end of 
the seed. The measurements of these large seeds are not 
given, but a fair approximation may be obtained by com- 
parison with the mm. scale at the bottom of the photo- 
graph in which the seeds are pictured (Whitaker & Bird, 
1949, fig. 3 D). The average maximum length of the 
six specimens shown is 17 mm.; the average maximum 
width 9 mm. Whitaker states that these large, broad 
seeds with their paired winged protuberances are similar 
to modern Lagenaria seeds from the Old World. Further- 
more, he notes that they are in marked contrast to the 
typical gourd seeds found in other archaeological collec- 
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