COLUMBIAN HISTORICAL EXPOSITION AT MADRID. 55 



inasmuch as the natives of this part of Uruguay belonged in part to 

 tlie same stock, the Tupi-Guarani, which at an early date spread itself 

 along the coast of Brazil quite up to the mouth of the Amazon and to 

 the north of it. 



On all the village sites fragments of pottery are found. It is not 

 very well baked and is usually coarse, the clay being mixed with 

 grains of sand and small gravel in order to give it consistency. On 

 the surface it is reddish, in the interior dark. Most of the vases are 

 conical or globular, and they generally have holes in the rim which 

 were intended for cords by which they could be suspended. A few of 

 these fragments show some rough decoration in points or straight lines 

 in low relief, giving simple geometrical outlines. 



The graves which were examined yielded polished stones and human 

 and animal bones. In some instances funerary urns inclosed the 

 remains, and the bones were occasionally painted, showing that they 

 had been brought from a distance after the flesh had decayed, accord 

 ing to a custom well known &amp;gt;in both North and South America. The 

 funerary urns show a higher grade of pottery than was found on the 

 village sites, and the attempt at decoration in red and white clay and 

 with various combinations of straight and grooved lines indicate a 

 more ambitious style of art. 



DEPARTMENT OF THE ARGENTINE REPUBLIC. 



The Argentine Eepublic, occupying as it.does the southern extremity 

 of South America and including an area extending from the extreme 

 southern point of the continent almost to the limits of the Tropics, is 

 rich in the remains of these ancient inhabitants. It has within the 

 last few years especially attracted the attention of geologists as well as 

 archaeologists by its claims to contain in the strata of the pampas both 

 the bones and the industrial relics of the oldest examples of the human 

 race on the American continent. Indeed, there have not been wanting 

 some daring spirits who have intimated that in this region existing 

 evidence indicates that man had his first home. It is unquestionably 

 true that his bones and the relics of his village sites have been dis 

 covered in contiguity with the remains of extinct animals which have 

 been reasonably assigned to the Quaternary formation. 



The Government of that Eepublic has, with judicious liberality, made 

 preparation for the collection of a large number of such relics in the 

 museum of La Plata, under the intelligent care of its director, Sefior 

 F. B. Moreno. In this depository, a great variety of specimens have 

 been collected, illustrating the natural history as well as the antiquities 

 of the state. It was not deemed desirable by the authorities connected 

 with it to forward to Madrid the best pieces. Instead of these, a full 

 and valuable series of water colors depicting them were exhibited, 

 serving as a means of comparison for the study of visitors. Even 



