OF THE BUREAU OF ETHNOLOGY. LIX 



uses and considerable variety in the originals copied. The 

 manual skill was of a fair order, and symmetry of form, com- 

 bined with grace of outline, was achieved without the use of 

 the wheel. The rank of this ware is higher in these respects 

 than that of the prehistoric pottery of Central and Northern 

 Europe, though inferior to that of Mexico, Central America, 

 and Peru. In characterizing the degree of culture repre- 

 sented by this ware, Mr Holmes decides that there is no 

 feature in it that cannot reasonably be attributed to the 

 more advanced historic tribes of the valley where it is found. 

 It indicates a culture differing in many particulars from that 

 of the Pueblo Indians, ancient or modern, but, on the whole, 

 is rather inferior to it. 



This paper is especially valuable to American archa?ologists 

 in its relation to the culture system of the people who built the 

 mounds, theories upon which have been so numerous and so 

 fanciful. 



ORIGIN AND DEVELOPMENT OF FORM AND ORNAMENT IN CE- 

 RAMIC ART, BY WILLIAM H. HOLMES. 



The two papers last mentioned were preceded by a paper 

 from the same author, " Prehistoric textile fabrics of the 

 United States, derived from impressions on pottery," published 

 in the third annual report. These three papers present the 

 results so far obtained by the author, each being' a detailed 

 study in its own field, of the objects collected and discussed. 

 While each study is complete in itself, it shows by comparison 

 its relation to other groups. The objects are presented, com- 

 pared, classified, and studied in the same manner and with the 

 same intention as those with which the naturalist uses the spec- 

 imens within his domain. 



The prominent feature of the present paper, which com- 

 bines the results of the three former papers, is that it pre- 

 sents the evolution of form and ornament in the ceramic art 

 and suggests the same evolution in all other developments of 

 art. The course of development here as elsewhere is shown 

 to proceed from the simple to the complex, and the causes and 

 processes of the developments are explained, analyzed, clas- 



