Ladd] PARITA AND SANTA MARIA ARCHEOLOGY, PANAMA 105 



the design area. Characteristic Pica-pica elements associated on 

 the same vessels with these are diamond bases, coral snake lips, and 

 claws. Yampi elements normally associated with the ray motif, 

 such as frog adornos on the rim and large rectangular and elliptical 

 elements on the rim (fig. 24,/, i), are conspicuously absent. 



Pedestal bases are generally decorated with the diamond motif 

 on a cream base (fig. 38, b), or are treated with a plain red slip. Cross- 

 hatching and the diamond in a ribbon motif (fig. 40, e, g) also occur 

 on bases. 



The design area of the globular jars, with its cream to salmon 

 colored ground shp, usually extends well down over the side of the 

 vessel stopping just short of the base area especially on the miniature 

 and smaller jars where space is limited. On the larger jars, the 

 decorated portions may be limited to the shoulder and upper body. 

 Bases are either red slipped or, more often, unshpped. Designs are 

 generally arranged in three or four panels around the entire vessel, 

 although claw scroll motifs may be laid out either in a continuous 

 interlocking pattern around the shoulder (fig. 41, h) or placed in 

 rectangular or closed arc panels. The latter are often arranged in 

 alternating postures so that an undulating band of ground color is 

 achieved between them (fig. 36, e). Regardless of interior motif, 

 distortion of the closed arc panels into lozenges, and curved triangular 

 shapes and rectangular panels into trapezoidal forms, occurs. Rec- 

 tangular panels generally enclose "rectangular claw scrolls" (fig. 

 41, c), usually nested within a series of narrow black lines. Color- 

 filled circles may be interspersed between panels. An interesting 

 motif which occurs fairly frequently is the "split-square-face" (fig. 

 37, e) or two rectangular panels, enclosing black band eyes, joined 

 horizontally by a mouth. Sometimes the eyes will have horizontal 

 lines extending from the lower portion forming an element which 

 might be called the "tearful eye" (fig. 40, a) similar to the "weeping 

 eye" motif in the Southeastern United States. Definite face motifs 

 are not common in the Azuero styles at the El Hatillo site, although 

 they do occur sparsely in both the angular and curvilinear styles. 

 The relationship of the "spHt-square-face" motif and "bull's-eye" 

 and "lyre" motifs of the Ortiga variety has already been discussed. 



The collar and rim area are also generally decorated with simple, 

 narrow, black bands or two black bands separated by red fill applied 

 over the cream sHp. As shown in figure 41, a, a black band generally 

 encircles the outer surface of the hp, the main portion of the rim 

 remains in the cream ground sHp, and the inner surface of the rim 

 is again banded. Below this, on the interior of the rim, a red slip 

 is apphed for a short distance although the deeper interior portion of 

 the neck is left unslipped with the color of the fired paste evident. 



