112 ON THE SANTHALS 



One would at first think it was placed under the heel, 

 coming up behind, under the ankle-ring; but, on the con- 

 trary, it is worn above the anklet, 2£ to 3 inches. It is 

 shaped something like the letter U, and is bent almost at a 

 right angle ; its two halves are precisely alike, and its up- 

 per posterior part is flattened from behind forward and 

 quite smooth, as its surfaces come in contact with the skin 

 of the posterior parts of the leg, especially when the limb 

 is swollen, as one would think it must inevitably be. The 

 anterior part consists of two branches with their usual or- 

 namentation of dots, rings, and interrupted lines, rough 

 Flo 8 _ on the outside but smooth on the in- 



side, where they touch the skin ; it 

 is kept in place by two prongs, mov- 

 able or permanent, with conical 

 points turned inward, which keep 

 the buckle, if it may be so called, in 

 place and prevent its slipping back- 

 ward from the limb; the posterior 

 ring is complete behind, the anterior 

 nearly so, but the ornament is par- 



TOK-RING. ? SIZE. , . 11 ,. , .,, ,, , , 



tially open in front ; with the movable 

 points, it maybe usually removed, but it must lie an in- 

 strument of torture which only the fashion could render 

 endurable. It will thus be seen that behind and on the 

 sides of the leg is a double series of brass rings, rough and 

 heavy, often eating into the flesh, but the shin is free in 

 front though severely pinched on the sides. The small 

 specimen, represented upon the foot in Figure 6, shows 

 that children wore the same ornament. The illustrations 

 alone can show the peculiarities and the method of wear- 

 ing these singular leg ornaments. 



FlGURK 8 is a toe ring weighing 1 oz., carrying a 

 double bell. This is used in dancing, of which the people 



