in pre-Columbian mounds in Guatemala, and the dis- 
tributional evidence of the Russian authors (4) (12) (15) 
may indicate a Central American origin of this species. 
This statement is strengthened, both by the suggestion 
of Bailey (8) regarding the pumpkin cultivated by the 
Seminole Indians of Florida and the age of the specimen 
in hand, in spite of the fact that the material obtained 
from the remains of the Basket Makers is much older 
(8) (10). The present pre-Columbian specimen also sug- 
gests that the Cheese Group of pumpkin, an old estab- 
lished variety in the United States, has had a long his- 
tory in Central America. 
Well preserved rinds, seeds and peduncles of Cucur- 
hita moschata from the American Southwest, seeds from 
Peru, and a peduncle from Guatemala have now been 
obtained and identified from pre-Columbian cultures. 
The evidence suggests conclusively that this species is 
of New World origin and for many centuries was known 
to the aboriginal inhabitants. 
[ 68 ] 
