CON'ANT — ARCH.EOLCGY OF MISSOURI. 



359 



to be of the consist- 

 ence of paste. The 

 larger jugs, as well as 

 those of various and 

 fanciful forms, were 

 undoubtedly drinking 

 vessels. 



Within the enclo- 

 sure, from near the 

 edge of the swamp, upon the side of 

 the slope, in close proximity to the 

 burial mound as well and extending 

 quite a distance 

 into the cultiva- 

 ted field, are great 

 numbers of de- 

 pressions in the 

 soil from one to 

 three feet in 

 SMALL DRINKING VESSELS. depth, and from 



fifteen to thirty in diameter ; sometimes in parallel rows, and usu- 

 ally about thirty feet from centre to centre. In many of these, 

 forest trees of large size are still growing, and others equally large 

 are lying upon the ground in various stages of decay. Upon 

 digging into them, in almost every shovelful of earth were found 

 pieces of broken pottery ; many of these fragments indicated ves- 

 sels of large size which must have had a capacity of from ten to 

 fifteen gallons. Upon joining these fragments together, the mouths 

 or openings were found to vary from three to twelve inches in 

 diameter. They were doubtless stationery receptacles of food or 

 water, as they were so thin that it would hardly seem possible 

 they could be moved, when filled, without breaking. In many 

 of these depressions examined were found large rough masses of 

 burnt clav. of the color of common brick, full of irregular and 

 transverse holes, which seemed to indicate, that, before it was 

 burned, the desired form of a chimney, fire-place, or oven, had 

 been rudely made out, by intertwining sticks, twigs and grass, and 

 the whole plastered inside and out with moist clay, to the thick- 

 ness of several inches, and then burned until it became red and 



