III. BONE AND HORN. 



Although, generally speaking, implements of bone and horn of early date 

 are not very abundant in North American collections, they are represented by 

 many characteristic specimens in the National Museum, the objects of bone 

 outnumbering those of horn. The teeth and claws of wild animals, it will be 

 seen, were chiefly made into ornaments testifying the valor of their wearers. 

 Piercers obtained from mounds, shell-heaps, etc., form the most numerous class 

 of bone tools (Fig. 236, ancient village site on one of the Aleutian Islands; 

 Figs. 237 and 238, mounds in Union County, Kentucky) . These perforators 

 bear a striking resemblance to those found among the relics of the ancient 

 lake-men of Switzerland. A beautiful bone needle of somewhat recent ap 

 pearance deserves special notice (Fig. 239, San Miguel Island, California). 

 This needle is not pierced with an eye, but exhibits in its stead two grooves 

 for fastening the thread. There are in the collection several bone harpoon- 

 heads, barbed on one side, and pierced with a hole for attachment (Fig. 240, 

 grave in Michigan; Fig. 2-41, Alaska). 1 Somewhat similar armatures of bone, 

 derived from the caves of the Dordogne, in Southern France, are described 

 by Lartct and Christy in the &quot;Reliquite Aquitanica3.&quot; Speaking of fishing 

 implements, we would mention well-wrought bone hooks from Santa Cruz 

 Island, California (Fig. 242). The shanks of the hooks are still covered with 

 a coating of asphaltum, evidently applied for securing the line. Contrary to 

 the general rule, the barbs in these hooks are placed on the outer side. 



California, further, has furnished a number of whistles apparently made 

 of bird bones and provided with a blowing-hole not in the middle, but placed 

 nearer one extremity of the hollow bone than the other (Figs. 243 and 244, 

 Mare Island). Other curious objects derived from California, more especially 

 from the Santa Barbara Islands, are cups very ingeniously hollowed out from 

 the vertebrao of cetaceans (Fig. 245, Santa Cruz Island). These cups are 

 partly filled with asphaltum, apparently prepared to serve as paint. 2 



1 Copper harpoon-heads of the same shape (barbs on one side, hole for attachment) may be seen in the 

 collection. They were obtained from Alaska, and belong to the modern fishing gear of the natives. 



Since the above was written, the collection has been enriched with many articles of bone and horn, 

 obtained from California!! graves by Mr. 1 aul Schumacher. Among them we mention large wedges of elk 

 horn and whalebone, polishing tools resembling paper-folders, rather ponderous knife-shaped articles of 

 whalebone, and, lastly, fifes with four holes. 



Numerous relics of bone and horn, collected by Mr. F. II. dishing in the State of New York, lately have 

 been added to the collection. They comprise perforators of various forms and sizes, harpoon-heads, de 

 tached prongs of deer horn, more or less polished at their points, and probably employed as smoothing 

 tools, modified beavers teeth, and various other objects. 



(68) 



