30 CAVE RELICS OF THE ALEUTIAN ISLANDS. 



A small round bar extended from corner to corner of the mouth, inside. This 

 was held in the teeth, as the marks of biting testify, and a further security was 

 provided in the shape of a band passing behind the head. These masks exhibit 

 great ingenuity and skill in carving, especially when we consider that they were 

 made with only stone and bone implements. Various holes about the edges of 

 the mask were used for inserting stiff feathers, trimmed and painted, with little 

 flat wooden pendants, gaily painted, attached to them. Of these we obtained a 

 great number and variety, and could not determine their purpose, as they were 

 all detached, until after seeing a model of a mask made by an old man at 

 Kadiak, and presented to the National Museum by - Mr. Sheeran, (16268,) to 

 which similar pendants were attached in their proper places. They were of all 

 shapes, crescents, disks, lozenges, leaf-shaped, and formed like lance and arrow 

 points. They were painted with red, blue, green, black, and white native pig 

 ments, often nearly as bright as the day they were put on. 



Beside these things which we could determine as having appertained to the 

 masks, there were a great variety of which we were unable to determine the use, 

 unless they were parts of wooden armor or of some mimic pageant designed in 

 wood. 



We also found a piece of a bow, an article not in use among the Aleiits, who 

 throw all their lances with a hand-board. This is the only portion of a bow yet 

 discovered in our researches in the islands, though the Kaniag miits now use 

 them commonly in hunting birds. They are made of drift-wood, strengthened 

 with numerous cords of sinew. 



Among the other carvings were several effigies, mostly of small size, approxi 

 mating to the human form ; some of birds, seals, and one, nearly life size, of an 

 otter. These were mostly painted in a singular manner. There were also long 

 cylinders, painted and carved like truncheons, which had once contained small 

 stones, and been used as rattles by the Shamans. Many of the small sticks, 

 used, both in the construction of wooden armor and also for little gratings to be 

 placed under the person in the bidarka to avoid contact with the wet seal-skin, 

 were found, but always separated. A carving representing a human arm and 

 hand of life size, but nearly flat, was found, but afterward unfortunately lost. 



Many nondescript pieces of carving, which had once been attached to some 

 thing, and several pieces of wood full of holes, to which something had once 

 been pegged, were found, but our knowledge was not sufficient to refer the 

 isolated pieces to their proper connections.* 



* Since the above was written, a short article, by M. Pinart, has appeared in the Comptcs Rendus, April 19, 

 1875, No. 15, in which he speaks of this cave and its contents. He states that the bodies were lying at full length 

 on beds of moss ; that they were few in number ; and that he believes, from the fact that none of them were 

 wrapped up in the squatting posture usually adopted, that this rock-shelter was devoted to the remains of whalers 

 or fishermen, such as I have described among the Kaniagmuts. 



If M. Pinart had been able to devote as long a tirno to the examination of the cave as our party did, it is 



