NO.    I  ARCHEOLOGY    OF    ST.    LAWRENCE    ISLAND — COLLINS  8l 
stylistic  differences  between  the  two,  even  though  certain  elements 
are  possessed  in  common.  Style  i  was  characterized  by  a  relative 
preponderance  of  straight,  radiating  lines,  short  detached  lines  and 
prominent  spurs ;  concentric  circles  were  also  used,  but  these  did 
little  to  relieve  the  general  appearance  of  diffuseness.  Style  2,  on  the 
other  hand,  makes  effective  use  of  curving  lines,  and  these,  together 
with  circles,  dotted  lines,  and  independent  design  elements  of  various 
kinds,  are  combined  to  form  graceful,  harmonious  patterns  of  rare 
beauty.  The  principal  motives  and  design  elements  of  style  2  arc 
illustrated  in  text  figure  15, 
Plate  15,  figure  3,  is  a  flat  ivory  object,  evidently  an  ornament, 
from  cut  23,  depth  72  inches.  Two  slots  on  the  under  side  show  that 
it  was  attached  to  some  flat  surface.  This  is  one  of  the  few  instances 
in  which  the  geometric  elements  of  Old  Bering  Sea  art  have  been  so 
arranged  as  to  produce  a  clearly  recognizable,  almost  realistic  animal 
form.  The  exposed  teeth,  particularly  the  long,  sharp  canines,  are  in- 
dicative of  a  carnivore,  an  appearance  which  is  further  accentuated 
by  having  the  nose  carved  in  relief  with  a  pit  at  the  end  for  the  nostril. 
The  eye  is  represented  by  a  nucleated,  concentric  circle  enclosed  be- 
tween two  pairs  of  lines  which  come  together  just  below  a  deep  round 
pit  set  in  an  elevation  representing  the  ear.  From  this  point  back, 
the  ornamentation  follows  the  usual  course  in  being  essentially  geo- 
metric, although,  as  is  so  often  the  case,  the  two  elevated  "  eyes  " 
near  the  edges  are  so  placed  in  relation  to  curving  panels  as  to  suggest 
the  idea  of  a  pair  of  animal  heads.  If  viewed  with  the  "  snout  "  in- 
clined upward,  these  are  suggestive  of  a  fish  or  mammal;  if  down- 
ward, of  a  bird.  The  impression  of  a  bird's  head  is  heightened  by 
having  the  "  beak  "  divided  and  by  having  the  "  eye  "  set  cometlike 
between  diverging  lines  which  give  it  a  decidedly  avian  appearance. 
An  unusual  detail  is  the  backward  continuation  of  the  faint  dotted 
lines  that  enclose  the  circles  and  their  appended  spurs.  These  two 
"  heads  "  are  outlined  by  two  deeply  incised  lines,  widely  separated  at 
either  end,  close  together  at  the  center.  At  the  front  they  enclose  an 
oval  panel  formed  of  concentric  lines,  spurred  along  the  outer  periph- 
ery, and  containing  in  the  center  an  elevated  nucleated  circle  with 
streaming  lines  attached.  This  filler  design  serves  as  an  effective  bal- 
ance between  the  two  curving  side  panels,  or  "  heads  ",  and  the  realistic 
mammal  head  at  the  end.  Similar  oval  panels,  it  will  be  recalled, 
were  present  on  an  elaborately  decorated  gorget  found  at  the  Hillside 
site  (pi.  13,  fig.  2).  At  the  back  the  composition  ends  with  a  panel 
of  triangular  outline  with  rounded  apex  enclosing  a  small  nucleated 
circle  and  a  V-shaped  figure  set  between  two  long  oblique  spurs.   The 
