240 Citicinuati Society of Natural History. 



THE CLARKE TABLET. 



(See Figure xiv.) 



Another and ver\- late find is fortunate, timely, and of great 

 value, as confirming the genuineness of the Richardson and Gest 

 Tablets. It is what is to l)e known as the " Clarke " (or Waverly) 

 "Tablet," now the jroperty of Mr. Robert Clarke, of Cincinnati. 

 It is presented in Fig. ^:iv^ On the left side, as one looks at it, 

 aro to be seen the unniistake'ble /<?(-->7V///A'.f of the fcctus images of 

 the Gest Tablet, while on turning tlie plate, so as to have the top 

 on the right hand and side, the presentation exhibits \.\\q fac-siiiiiles 

 of the involved duct lal)yrinths of the trstrs in the same tablet. In 

 this, however, the shaft seems to be changed to represent the yoni. 



This tablet was discovered March 12, 1885, by Mr. L P- 

 MacLean, in the collection of Dr. W. R. Hurst, of Piketon, Ohio, 

 was obtained of him and disposed of to Mr. Clarke. The tablet 

 was broken in two pieces, which Mr. MacLean found, piece by 

 l)iece, in the collection. The history of the tablet, as given by Dr. 

 Hurst to Mr. MacLean, is as follows: "The tablet was taken 

 from a mound on the farm of Abraham Cutlip, about one mile 

 south of Waver!)' and about three and one-half miles north of 

 Piketon, about March, 1872. It was found about three feet from 

 the bottom of the mound, on the north side, by Abraham C^utlip 

 and David Allen, who were cutting away the mound. Dr. Hurst 

 obtained it from them while tliey were at work. The mound was 

 (^11 the second bottom of the river, had been fifteen to twenty feet 

 high, but had from time to time been cut away, so that it was only 

 about ten feet high at the time of this excavation. The mound 

 was composed of clay. With the tablet were found 'darts, badges, 

 and human bones.' " 



There can be no doubt of its genuineness, and for this reason 

 it is of very great value as corroborative of not only the authen- 

 ticity, but also the reading of the Crest and Richardson Tablets. 



If we now refer to the (Jest Tablet for comparison, we will 

 find that it is, in its main or essential features, the same with the 

 Palenque Cross and the Kerjc'rvary picture. In all cases we have 

 the tree of life, with a human being (Androgyne) standing upon 

 either side. In the Ferjf'rvary picture the phallus, rising out of 

 the yoni, has seven branches on each side ; the phallus at the top 

 bifurcating into two branches (for water waves), extending out on 



