NO. I HONDURAS STRONG, KIDDER, AND PAUL 53 



Numerous small polychrome jars and vases are represented in 

 excavation i. Certain of these are Mayoid, others Bold Geometric, 

 and still others suggest blends between the two (compare figs, ii, 

 12, 15). Any attempt to clearly delineate these two major Ulua 

 polychrome styles, or to demonstrate the exact nature of their blend- 

 ing, would necessitate a far more extensive analysis of design motifs 

 than is possible here. Considered very generally, however, there 

 are certain top-to-bottom variations which seem to be significant. In 

 A, small red bowls with black geometric designs and conventionalized 

 animal or anthropomorphic designs, either outside or inside, occur. 

 Some of these are definitely Mayoid in feeling, having circle, diamond, 

 or feather designs and dimpled bottoms. The majority, however, 

 seem more closely allied to the Bold Geometric type. In C, an orange 

 tone is particularly prevalent and numerous pieces show a rather 

 unique blending of Mayoid and Bold Geometric styles (compare 

 figs. II, 12, 15). Conventionalized birds, animals, and reptiles occur 

 both outside and inside open bowls (compare the similar bat designs 

 on two vessels from approximately the same levels in excavation 2, 

 where one (fig. 15) has a Mayoid, the other (fig. 10) a Bold Geometric 

 feeling). Both flat and dimpled bottoms occur in C. In D there are 

 numerous small flat-bottomed jars of Mayoid type with processional 

 figures and other elaborate anthropomorphic designs, and open bowls 

 with Bold Geometric designs on the inside. These less clearly pro- 

 nounced vessel forms, therefore, seem to recapitulate the tendency 

 to change from realistic to geometric decoration observed elsewhere. 



A few fragments of polished gray ware came from Levels A, B, 

 and C. The fragments were from small, slightly pear-shaped bowls 

 without legs or handles. One fragmentary vessel had a narrow band 

 of red paint around the inside of the neck. Another interesting feature 

 in levels C is represented by two very definite spouts of red and brown 

 polished ware. They are more similar to those from the deep layers 

 at Playa de los Muertos (pis. 10, 11) than to the "vestigial " spouts 

 from Las Flores (pi. 6, b). Strange to say, no Plumbate ware oc- 

 curred in any of our excavations. 



At Santa Rita there are two other distinctive polychrome vessel 

 types, both of which were lacking in excavation 2 at Las Flores. One 

 of these, a flat plate on high tripod legs (pi. 8, e, f), may be called a 

 tripod plate. The other, with somewhat higher walls, and either low 

 (fig. 8) or high (compare pi. 12, /) tripod feet, may be termed a 

 tripod dish. In excavation i, tripod dish fragments are lacking in A, 

 fairly abundant in B, still more numerous in C, but rare in D. They 

 characteristically have more or less intricate and geometric, red and 



