SECRETARY'S REPORT 39 



sciences in England, Denmark, Sweden, Holland, France, Monaco, 

 and Italy. He obtained information which has been useful m the 

 planning of the Smithsonian Oceanographic Sorting Center. The 

 establishment and functioning of this Center constitute perhaps the 

 most important single accomplishment of the first year of the ocean- 

 ography progi-am. At the close of the year Dr. Wallen was in East 

 Pakistan on a temporary assigimaent as visiting professor of zoology 

 for the Asia Foundation. 



During September and October Dr. T. D. Stewart, then head 

 curator of anthropology (now director of the Museum of Natural 

 History), was in Baghdad, Iraq, reconstructmg and studying the 

 remains of Neanderthal skeletons IV and VI recovered in Shanidar 

 Cave in 1960. The results of this year's work, embodied in a manu- 

 script scheduled to be published in Burner^ the Journal of Archaeology 

 and History in Iraq, led Dr. Stewart to the conclusion that the 

 Shanidar Neanderthal population remained fairly homogeneous 

 throughout the estimated 15,000 years during which their skeletons 

 accumulated in the cave. 



The investigation of the late Pleistocene bone bed near Littleton, 

 Colo., was underway again at the beginning of the year. Dr. Waldo 

 K. Wedel, then curator of archeology (now head curator of anthro- 

 pology), museum specialist George Metcalf, and exhibits specialist 

 Peter W. Bowman continued to work until late in August, by which 

 time some 2,400 square feet of deposits aromid an ancient spring had 

 been excavated to depths up to 11 feet and extensive additional collec- 

 tions made of mammoth, bison, and other mammal bones. Although 

 conclusive evidence of man's association with the mammoth was not 

 obtained, a stratified section of the deposit and recovery of several key 

 artifact types in situ established man's presence here at least as far 

 back as 7,000 years ago. 



From January to March Dr. Saul H. Riesenberg, curator of eth- 

 nology; Dr. Clifford Evans, curator of archeology; and Dr. Betty 

 J. Meggers, honorary research associate, were on the island of Ponape 

 in the Caroline Islands of the Trust Territory in the Pacific studying 

 ancient megalithic structures and the traditions relating thereto. 

 Just off the eastern end of Ponape is a complex of artificial islets, 

 known as Nan Madol, on which are structures made of columnar basalt. 

 By using 25 workmen to clear the areas to be investigated, Drs. Evans 

 and Meggers were able to excavate and map eight distinct parts of the 

 complex. In the process they collected typical artifacts and a se- 

 quence of carbon samples which may yield reliable dates. The team 

 spent 6 weeks at the site. Dr. Riesenberg collecting the traditions 

 related to the structures and Drs. Evans and Meggers investigating 

 the archeological clues and interpretations provided by these traditions 



