14 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 193 



but lacking the stone slab covers so often accompanying graves or 

 tombs containing the "classic" Chiriqui wares. Pottery stamps of 

 the same scarified ware, some carved in the form of human figurines, 

 have also been reported from the Concepcidn graves (Sander, 1960). 

 Since scarified ware has not been found in association with "classic" 

 Chiriqui wares, and one of the latter, alligator ware, has been found 

 associated with iron tools (Stone, 1958, p. 48), it is evident that 

 scarified ware and the Concepci6n Phase are the earlier development. 

 The main "classic" Chiriqui wares consist of plain wares with 

 modeled adornos (armadillo-terra cotta ware; Osgood, 1935), a 

 modeled ware with red geometric and daub designs (fish-tripod- 

 handled ware), and two polychrome wares with shared designs but 

 different techniques, i.e., negative and positive painting (lost color 

 ware and alligator ware) . Vessels of these wares are generally found 

 together in many of the deeper oval or rectangular graves of the 

 Chiriqui area. Associated with this complex are gourd-shaped 

 rattles (identical in shape to Calabaza variety vessels at Parita), 

 spindle whorls decorated with nodes and incisions, "needle cases," 

 polychrome figurines, "stools" of clay, modified hourglass-shaped 

 vessels which may have been drums, and double-tubed whistles. 

 Also found in the cemeteries are metates of both the simple type and 

 the ornately carved type, triangular cross section arrowheads, bronze 

 bells (Holmes, 1888, p. 49) and gold or tumbaga ornaments. Although 

 all this material has been recovered from "cemeteries" or "graves," 

 very little human bone is reported. The finding of iron tools asso- 

 ciated with alligator ware fiixes the terminal date for this complex, 

 but the duration of its prior existence is unknown. Ceramic affinities 

 of the complex extend up into Costa Rica but not to any great extent 

 to the east, other than in terms of broad traditions such as use of 

 modeling and tripod supports on plain or red-slipped wares, both of 

 which are found in quantity in Veraguas. The dragon motif is also 

 found in Herrera and Code, and one very specific similarity, the 

 gourd bottle shape, does exist between the lost color ware and the 

 Calabaza variety of Parita, suggestive of a late date for the latter 

 variety. Probable trade vessels of the Late Cocl6 and Azuero design 

 styles illustrated in Holmes and MacCurdy include representatives 

 of Macaracas, Parita (Yampi and Ortiga varieties), and Calabaza 

 types, all of which are of generally late position, and suggest that 

 the "classic" Chiriqui complex was coeval with the Late Code and 

 Herrera Phases of the Code region.^ 



' The term "phase" Is used here to conform to current practice, but both the Early and Late Cocl6 Phases 

 correspond to Lothrop's Early and Late Coclfi Periods at Sitio Conte (Lothrop, 1942, pp. 183-199), 

 while the Herrera Phase was set up on the basis of the He-4 material. See charts 1 and 2 and pp. 13, 19 . 



