ABORIGINAL MOURNING CUSTOMS. 447 



In the making or " building " of the subject of the illustrations, 

 a considerable quantity of sand has been mixed with the gypsum, 

 which has given it a sandy colour, both inside and outside, as well 

 as along the broken part at the upper end. When the specimen 

 was found it was lying in the position shown in Fig. 3, with all 

 the lower part embedded in the sandy bank of Lake Tongo, and had 

 apparently lain in that position for a long time. The upper half, 

 from a right back to the other end, was freely exposed to the 

 weather for many years, and is consequently considerably dimin- 

 ished in thickness by disintegration. It is much the thinnest part 

 of the shell, being in places less than half an inch thick. The 

 lower half of the article, as seen in the photograph, is the thickest 

 portion of the shell, from the front to the rear. 



I have stated above that the outside height of the specimen, 

 m its present damaged state, is 13| inches. We can safely assume 

 that before the breakage the height was at least 2| inches more, 

 which would make the total original height about 16 inches. The 

 depth of the internal hollow space from the front inwards, if 

 restored, would be about 14 inches or more. The present weight 

 of the article is just a little over 15 pounds. At a moderate 

 estimate, the portion broken off would weigh about three pounds, 

 making the weight of the complete article about 18 pounds. Then 

 we must take into consideration that the whole outside surface 

 has suffered by disintegration during many years' exposure to the 

 weather. The same would apply to the inside surface of the 

 cavity, though in a lesser degree. The original weight has also 

 been diminished by the drying of the material in the sun for such 

 a long period. The reduction in the weight due to the two com- 

 bined causes mentioned is difficult to estimate, but judging by 

 the worn and contracted appearance of many parts of the surface 

 I think that at least two pounds could be allowed for it. This 

 would bring the total weight of the article when it first left the 

 maker up to about 20 pounds. 



As regards the purpose of articles such as that now illustrated, 

 it is hard to obtain full particulars, because they are not used by 

 the remnants of the tribes at present living on the Darling River, 

 It is not at all likely that they have been worn on the head, like 

 the widows' caps described by me in 1908, because the opening in 

 some of them is too small to fit any adult skull, whilst others are 

 much too large and heavy. The great depth of the cup-shaped 

 cavity — 14 inches in the present specimen — would be quite needless 

 as a receptacle for the head ; and there are no impressions of a net 

 on the inner wall similar to those found on widows' caps. An old 

 blackfellow, whom the white people called " Marra Jimmy," a 

 head-man of the Ngunnhalgu tribe, who resided most of his later 

 years at Marra station, on the Darling, and who died about ten 

 years ago, said the articles with the deep cavities were not worn 

 on the head, but were laid upon the graves of old men and women 

 of tribal importance, in the same way that the kopai tablets were 

 deposited. ' 



