40 ANNUAL REPORT SMITHSONIAN INSTITUTION, 1955 



In addition, a series of offerings were found, consisting of objects 

 of pottery, jade, serpentine, hematite, quartz crystal, and other min- 

 erals, which add considerably to the stock of available knowledge of 

 Olmec art and technology. 



At the end of the fiscal year, Dr. Drucker was at the Museo Nacional 

 de Antropologia in Mexico, D. F., studying the collections made 

 during the field season. 



RIVER BASIN SURVEYS 



(Prepared by FRANK H. H. ROBERTS, Jr., Director) 



The River Basin Surveys continued investigations in cooperation 

 with the National Park Service and the Bureau of Reclamation of the 

 Department of the Interior, the Corps of Engineers of the Department 

 of the Army, and various State and local institutions. Because of a 

 further curtailment of funds the Inter- Agency Salvage Program did 

 not produce as extensive results as in former years. During the fiscal 

 year 1954-55 the work of the River Basin Surveys was financed by a 

 transfer of $52,700 from the National Park Service to the Smithsonian 

 Institution. The funds were entirely for use in the Missouri Basin. 

 An additional carrj^over of $3,691.44 made a total of $56,391.44 for 

 operations in the area. That amount was approximately 25 percent 

 less than moneys available for the preceding year, which also had 

 suffered a drastic reduction. As a consequence, there was a corre- 

 sponding progressive decrease in the program. 



Field investigations during the year consisted mainly of excavations. 

 On July 1, 1954, three parties were in the field; two were doing in- 

 tensive digging — one in the Fort Randall area in South Dakota and 

 one in the Garrison Reservoir area in North Dakota, and the third, 

 also operating in the Fort Randall basin, was engaged in test excava- 

 tions at a number of sites. In each case some reconnaissance work 

 was carried on, but that constituted only a minor activity. At the 

 end of the fiscal year no parties were in the field, but preparations 

 were under way to send out three groups for intensive digging opera- 

 tions in two reservoir areas. Because of lack of funds no paleontologi- 

 cal studies were made during the year and none were planned for 

 fiscal 1956. 



By June 30, 1955, areas where archeological surveys had been made 

 or excavations carried on since the start of actual fieldwork in the 

 summer of 1946 totaled 243 located in 27 States. In addition, one 

 lock project and four canal areas had also been investigated. As a 

 result some 4,345 sites have been located and recorded. Of that num- 

 ber 852 were recommended for excavation or limited testing. Pre- 

 liminary appraisal reports were completed for all the reservoirs 

 surveyed, and where additional reconnaissance has resulted in the 



