NO. lO NEBRASKA ARCHEOLOGY STRONG 173 



considerable mixture was noted to a depth of 4 feet 3 inches, or a 

 little more than a foot below the floor line. Across the west end of the 

 house, just on the floor layer, was a 3-inch charred beam which ex- 

 tended about I foot 6 inches beyond the north wall. Charcoal and 

 burned clay w^ere abundant on the floor and throughout the roof 

 material above, indicating the burning of the lodge. 



No posts or post molds, entrance passage, or cache pits were found, 

 but, as already mentioned, our work was too hasty to give much value 

 to such negative evidence. The artifacts found in the excavation all 

 pertained to the Nebraska culture type. The pottery, which was fairly 

 abundant, was unmistakably the same style as that from the Rock 

 Bluffs and Gates villages. The gray-brown to brick-red coloring, 

 grit temper, and the rather rare occurrence of almost obliterated cord 

 markings are all similar. The rim sherds in most cases were identical ; 

 vertically perforated lugs, simple flaring lips with broad loop handles, 

 flaring lips without handles, and scalloped and slightly incised rims 

 were found. One thick rim with very deep scallops and the inter- 

 vening " nipples " about one-half an inch long was rather unusual. 

 This one sherd rather strongly suggests a type (pi. 9, fig. i, d) from 

 the Prairie Dog Creek ossuary and the Lost Creek region. Another 

 rim sherd with a vertically perforated lug seems to show traces of 

 flattened and partially eradicated quarter-inch coils on its inner sur- 

 face. Nebraska culture pottery generally suggests the use of a paddle 

 and anvil rather than a coiling technique. Otherwise the small series 

 of rims recovered at the Saunders site would fit in perfectly with the 

 series of rims from the Gates site. 



One sandstone shaft polisher, two small finely chipped arrowpoints 

 (one with three notches, NBa2 ; the other with 4, NBa4), with a few 

 small end scrapers and side scrapers complete the list of artifacts 

 from the house. All of the latter would fit in with either the Nebraska 

 culture or the Lost Creek types. Animal bones, mostly broken and 

 burned, were rather common. Elk and deer remains seemed most 

 abundant, a burned and crumbly elk ( ?) skull fragment amidst a mass 

 of wattle and daub material just above floor line being of interest. 

 The shells of fresh-water moUusks were fairly common in the mixed 

 layers. The presence of the above artifacts with the animal remains 

 seems good evidence that the house had served for a dwelling at one 

 time, whatever its final function may have been. 



The most unusual feature of house i, however, remains to be men- 

 tioned. This was the fact that there occurred at the floor level through- 

 out the entire excavated portion of the house a great number of burned 

 and broken human bones. These fragmentary bones were mixed with 

 12 



