150 BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY [Bull. 193 



WORKED BONE AND SHELL 



Although limited in quantity, worked bone and shell at He-4 

 exhibited extremely fine carving and occurred in a variety of objects 

 including necklace pieces, ceremonial batons and tubes, and earplugs 

 or labrets. Bone tools recovered at He-4 were restricted to a gouge 

 from Mound III (pi. 19, d) and a simple point or awl (pi. 19, i) without 

 provenience within the site. 



The earplugs or labrets (pi. 19, j-l) were aU made from fish vertebrae 

 and are generally uncarved although they may be polished. Angular 

 geometric and swastika designs, similar to those on El Hatillo Poly- 

 chrome pottery, are sometimes carved into the sides. Diameters 

 range from 1.5-4 cms. Aside from one undecorated example from 

 Find 10, and another from the fom-th level of Trench 1, all of these 

 were recovered under unstratified conditions in Mound III. 



Also recovered from Mound III were three bone tubes (pi. 19, e,/, 

 m)\ two are undecorated and the third exhibits a deep groove circum- 

 venting the tube near one end. 



The most spectacular examples of excellent bone carving, the 

 manatee bone batons of Find 10 (pi. 1, a, h, c), were associated with 

 El Hatillo type, Jobo variety, pottery. Although most of these 

 examples were found broken, one measured 49 cms. when restored to 

 almost its full length. The carvings depict alligators and frogs and 

 are done with amazing precision and delicacy. For example, the 

 undamaged frog of plate 1, c, is only 2.3 cms. long. The grooves 

 across its back are about 0.5 mm. in width, and appear, under magni- 

 fication, to be entirely even and parallel. It is difficult to conceive 

 of these objects being carved with aboriginal tools, but at present 

 there is no evidence of European contact during the Herrera Phase. 



Another bone baton, shaped like a ceremonial ax and intricately 

 carved, was recovered with Find 376 (two gold disks), but unfor- 

 tunately is so encrusted with calcified mud that the carving cannot 

 be discerned. 



Mention should be made here of the human tooth necklaces found 

 with Finds 10, 14, and 347. The Find 10 necklace, which consists 

 mainly of incisors perforated at the root, contains 737 teeth and is by 

 far the largest of the group. 



A few objects of worked shell were found at He-4 including a polisher 

 or worn scraper and a number of elongated and perforated beads. 

 The former (pi. 19, g), from Mound III and made from the shell of 

 Anadara grandis, was worn smooth on one side and aU edges, and 

 had five V-shaped grooves worked into one of the upper edges. 

 Roughly circular, the object has a diameter of 5.5 cms. and is 2 cms. 

 thick. 



The beads, encountered in Finds 361 and 381, were carved from 



