/w^r 



MEMOIRS 



OF THE 



AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY. 



The Jesup North Pacific Expedition. 



I. THE DECORATIVE ART OF THE AMUR TRIBES. 



BY BERTIIOI.D LAUFEK. 

 PLATES I-XXXIII. 



THE material published and described in the following pages was obtained 

 under the auspices of the Jesup North Pacific Expedition during my two years 

 researches among the various tribes of Saghalin Island and the Amur region. 



There is not much literature as yet bearing on the decorative art of these 

 tribes. Schrenck, in his fundamental work &quot; Reisen und F&quot;orschungen im Amur- 

 Lande&quot; (Vol. Ill, pp. 399-401), makes a few remarks on the subject, emphasizing 

 the peculiarity of the Gilyak ornaments, which are totally different from those of 

 all other Siberian peoples. He sees in them an evident Chinese influence. No 

 explanations of the ornamental figures are unfolded in his book. Further, H. 

 Schurtz, in his paper &quot; Zur Ornamentik der Aino &quot; (Internationales Archiv fur 

 Ethnographic, Vol. IX, pp. 233-251), has considered to some extent the orna 

 mentation of the Amur tribes so far as known to him. It would carry us too far 

 to enter into a minute discussion of the leading problems there treated, the 

 alleged solution and disentanglement of which fall to the ground when compared 

 with the results of investigations in the field. I must confess, I adhere to the 

 principle that ornaments should not be regarded as enigmas which can be easily 

 puzzled out by the homely fireside. Neither are ornaments of primitive tribes 

 like inscriptions, that may be deciphered : they are rather productions of their art, 

 which can receive proper explanation only from the lips of their creators. They 

 are comparable to modern symphonic compositions, that are incomprehensible 

 without the printed synopsis in the hands of the auditors. The writing of such 

 guides can only be accomplished by consulting the native artist as to his own 

 fancy concerning the significance of the ornaments evolved from it. The hu 

 man and bear heads which Schurtz claims to have ferreted out exist not in the 



[i] 



M856323 



