NO. I HONDURAS STRONG, KIDDER, AND PAUL 95 



in thickness. Below this was mixed brown earth containing flecks of 

 yellow clay and innumerable large volcanic boulders. At an average 

 depth of 80 centimeters sterile yellow clay was encountered with still 

 more volcanic boulders, many of such great size that they could not 

 be moved even with crowbars. Aside from various sherds and broken 

 artifacts throughout the brown earth there were no definite floors 

 or other evidences of artificial structure except for five groups of 

 complete pots evidently marking graves. It proved impossible to 

 penetrate far into the sterile clay owing to the innumerable great 

 boulders which apparently formed part of the natural volcanic dyke. 

 Pottery deposit, or grave, i occurred just north of our cross trench 

 on the edge of the mound. Here, at a depth of from i to 1.25 meters 

 in the mixed soil just above the yellow clay and under a large number 

 of great volcanic slabs, we found four pottery vessels (see Strong. 

 I937> figs. 75, 'JJ^. Three were very close together (Strong, 1937, 

 fig. yj^, and the fourth, an incense burner (not shown in the illus- 

 tration), was 80 centimeters away. Three vessels were intact, but 

 the fourth and finest (pi. i) was broken by another bowl which had 

 been forcibly nested in it. The broken vase, when restored, (pi. i) 

 was unusually interesting, since it depicted a processional group of 

 priests calling to mind the description of Palacio (see p. 12). The first 

 figure (pi. i) is the high priest with the ceremonial staff ; behind him is 

 an assistant. The latter either holds a copal container or has removed 

 the high priests' bustle with one hand and is reaching back with the 

 other for one of the two objects carried by the third priest. These are 

 probably incensarios, but they could possibly be obsidian mirrors or 

 some other ceremonial objects. The three priests are followed by two 

 musicians playing on wind instruments of an unusual type. From the 

 attitudes of the figures, it would seem that the procession had just come 

 to a halt prior to the performance of some rite. Further description of 

 this vase is made unnecessary by the illustrations. The three other 

 vessels are comparatively simple. The bowl nested in the broken vase 

 (Strong, 1937, fig. y'] and 75, lower center) has a simple but striking 

 black design on a cream-white background. Red and black designs 

 occur on the lip, there is a black band inside the rim, and the under 

 and inner slip is a dull orange. The small two-handled bowl (Strong, 

 1937, fig. 75, lower left) is unusually interesting since it is of the 

 Bold Animalistic type with geometric designs around the neck, a 

 cursive and conventionalized, twice repeated animal and circle de- 

 sign on the body, two handles with definite nodes on the bend, and 

 a deep dimpled bottom. It has a bright orange slip with designs in 

 black, dark red, and white. Thus, although the processional vase is 



