dc Laguna] ARCHEOLOGY, YAKUTAT BAY AREA, ALASKA 41 



Smith (Birket-Smith and de Laguna, 1938, pp. 369 f.) has raised the 

 question whether the steam bath may not have been introduced by 

 the Russians, the evidence would indicate that it is preliistoric, 

 although probably not very ancient. 



The fire-cracked rocks in Mounds C and D would suggest that the 

 sweat bath with steam was already known to the oldest inhabitants 

 at Old Town, while House 8 in the lowest layers of Mound B appears 

 to have been a bathhouse. However, the concentrations of fire- 

 cracked rocks in the upper levels of Mounds A and B may indicate 

 increased popularity of the steam bath in later times. 



