612 THE PAINTING OF HUMAN BONES AMONG THE INDIANS. 



tribes of the North and Northwest paint the faces of their dead. The 

 nse of other colors than red were observed, but the latter in-eilonii- 

 nates. 



As to the Southwest and Mexico information on this subject is 

 very meager, but evidence points to similar practices. 



Bone painting proper is comparatively rare, or at least nnich less 

 common than the custom of paint interment and of the painting of 

 various parts of the corpse. We meet with instances of bone paint- 

 ing iH-oper in Ohio, Florida, and South Carolina, in the East; in 

 California, and possibly in British Columbia, in the West and North- 

 west ; and in Mexico, and a few parts of Central and South America. 



In Ohio painted bones Avere found by Prof. F. W. Putnam (Tur- 

 ner group mounds) and by Mr. W. K. Moorehead. The latter 

 writes " me on the subject as follows : 



Painted bones have been found in a mound at Omega. Koss County, Ohio ; in 

 Jackson County mound. Ohio, and in two mounds within the corporate limits 

 of Chillicothe. One of the latter was discovered by Mr. Clarence Loveberry. 

 assistant curator of the above [Ohio Archeological and Historical] society. 

 The others were found by myself. Near Green Camp, Marion County, Ohio, in 

 a stone grave (> feet below the surface, Mr. Loveberry discovered a skeleton 

 entirely painted. 



All of these were coated with red jtigment or ocher, including in nearly every 

 ease all of the larger bones. There are other instances in which just the hands, 

 or the feet, or perhaps the skull were coated. These are usually from mounds, 

 either large or small. Bones on which the pigment was simply heaped were 

 clearly distinguished by the surrounding soil being also stained. 



I have never observed instances in which skeletons were coated with yellow 

 or black paints. (We have found yellow and white mineral paints ne.ir the 

 hands of skeletons several times.) 



We have never found painted bones in stone mounds. They are invariable 

 in earth mounds or stone graves. 



In South Carolina the custom is thus described by Lawson (pp. 

 21, 22) : 



As soon as the party is dead they lay the corpse upon a piece of bark in the 

 sun, seasoning or embalming it witli a small root beaten to pow'der, w'hich looks 

 as red as vermilion , ^ the same is mixed with bear's oil to beautify the hair and 

 preserve their heads from being lousy, it growing plentifully in these parts of 

 America. After the carcass has laid a day or two in the sun they remove and 

 lay it ui)ou crotches cut on purpose for the support thereof from the earth; 

 then they anoint it all ofrv with the forementioned ingredients of the powder 

 of this root and bear's oil. NX'hen it is so done they cover it very exactly over 

 with bark of the pine or cypress tree, to prevent any rain to fall upon it, sweep- 

 ing the ground very clean all about it. 



As soon as the flesh grows mellow and will cleave from the bone they get it 

 off and burn it, making all the bones vei-y clean; then anoint them witli the 

 ingredients aforesaid, wrapping up the skull (very carefully) in a cloth artifi- 

 cially woven with possum's hair. * * * ^'iig bones they carefully preserve 



a Letter dated September 21, 1897. 

 b Sanguinaria':' 



