PAPERS RELATIXG TO ANTHROPOLOGY. 



791 



GOLD, SILVER, AND OTHER ORNAMENTS FOUND IN 



FLORIDA. 



By J. Francis Le Baron, U. S. Engineer. 



The articles described in this paper were first brought to the notice 

 of the writer by the Hon. Columbus Drew, sr., of Jacksonville, Fla., in 

 the fall of 1882, who has kindly furnished the following account of the 

 locality where they were found and their surroundings. The pieces 

 belong to his son. 



"The gold arrow-head and other pieces were found near the line divid- 

 ing Polk and Orange Counties, Florida, about the year 1875. They 

 were dug from a small mound in which they lay 3 or 4 feet deep, among 

 many stone battle-clubs and hatchets (weighing altogether, perhaps, 

 100 or 200 pounds) with clay pots or pot- ware. The clubs and hatchets 

 were given away to different parties soon after the relics were discov- 

 ered. The remaining half of what seems to have been a triangular 

 silver ornament, to be suspended by the small hole on the top, was cut 

 off by a hunter to ornament his gun with. The half of the scissors was 

 found with the other pieces. I feel quite certain as to the genuineness 

 of the relics and the facts stated about them." 



It was found to be impossible to obtain a regular assay of the pieces 

 in Jacksonville. They were, however, referred to two jewelers in the 

 city for examination. 



Tests were made by Mr. J. Gumbinger, jeweler, of specimens No. 2 

 and 3 with acid and touchstone. He reported the spearhead No. 2 to 

 be composed of 14-karat gold, having a bullion value of $19.04, and the 

 miniature ax No. 3 to be of 20-karat gold and worth $6. 



The other specimens, except the fragment of scissors No. 6, he con- 

 sidered to be silver, except possibly No. 9, which has somewhat the ap- 

 pearance of brittania-ware. 



Mr. Crosby, of Greenleaf & Co., jewelers, on the contrary, stated 



quite positively that Nos. 1, 5, and 9 were lead or pewter. No tests were 

 made of any besides the gold pieces, except with a graver, as neither 

 of the jewelers had proper appliances for testing silver. 



My own examinations and conclusions as to the metallic character of 

 the specimens I present in tabular form below : 



