sue. ‘The outer layer or epidermis consists of long, slender, 
parallel cells. These cells are easily damaged and only 
a few scattered broken cells of this layer may be found. 
The cells that constitute the second portion of the testa 
form a soft, spongy layer. The ones that comprise the 
inner part are more compact and furnish a hard, firm 
protective layer for the embryo. 
Among the external characteristics that Lagenaria 
seeds may possess are longitudinal ridges, and paired 
winged protuberances at either side of the end of the seed 
opposite the hilum. These are surface outgrowths of the 
testa and are formed of the cell tissue of the outer layers 
of the seed coat. Because of the spongy nature of this 
tissue these structures may disappear in time through 
erosion, as may part of the outer layer itself, leaving 
merely a narrow strip of spongy tissue or possibly only 
the hard inner layer of the testa. 
The archaeological sites from which the Lagenaria 
seeds were obtained are Aspero, Huaca de la Cruez, 
Pachacamac and Castillo de Tomaval. Two of these 
sites, Aspero and Pachacamac, are located on the central 
coast of Peru. The other two, Huaca de la Cruez and 
Castillo de Tomaval, are located in the Viru Valley on 
the north coast of Peru south of the site of Huaca Prieta. 
The Aspero site is located near Puerto de Supe. It 
was excavated by Strong and Willey in 1941-42 (Strong, 
1943). Among the plant remains recovered is a whole 
oblong gourd (747/414), with the wall crushed at one 
point. This presumably occurred after it was placed in 
the burial in which it was found. The gourd contained 
288 seeds some of which were still attached to the shell 
wall when examined. All of these seeds show evidence 
of erosion, although in varying degrees. Samples of 
groups of these seeds based upon the degree of erosion 
are shown in Plate LVIL. 
