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SMITHSONIAN MISCELLANEOUS COLLECTIONS VOL. 93 



with white ash, as though it had been dug out later and the surround- 

 ing ash had been filled in around the post. The inner core of this post 

 mold was filled with dark soil. The post mold slightly more than a 

 foot to the west contained brown pulpy wood fiber as well as the dark 

 soil. Moreover, at the bottom the blue clay was compacted as though 

 from pressure when the post was driven in. The filling of this " post " 

 hole was very soft and could be cleaned out by brushing, leaving a 

 firm round clay mold, and the impacted clay at the bottom could be 

 scaled ofif. From west to east the circular post molds in stratum i 

 were respectively 3, 4, and 3 inches in greatest diameter (fig. 26). 



t 



-^ >E 



Fig. 26.— Ash strata, hearth, and post molds at exposure 10, Sterns Creek 

 culture. Walker Gilmore site. 



At exposure 5 a mass of what is thought to be reed roof thatch w^as 

 observed on one of our last hurried trips to the site. As the two 

 main forks of Sterns Creek come together at this place (map, fig. 24), 

 there is considerable erosion during the rainy season and the material 

 in question was thus exposed. Lack of time, combined with the muddy 

 condition of the creek bed, prevented detailed work, but the general 

 situation was clear. The ash strata at exposure 5 run along the north 

 bank from the junction of the streams to a point about 25 feet west, 

 where they terminate. On the west two stratum lines were visible, 

 separated by blue clay, but near the junction to the east the lower 

 stratum was deeply covered by talus fallen from above. The thatch 

 layer, which was from 3 to 4 inches thick and extended for about 



