400 



ANCIENT POTTERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. 



right neck to the squarish shoulder, and contracts below in an even 

 curve, giving a hemispherical base. There are a multitude, of varia- 

 tions from this outline, a few of which are suggested in Fig. 406. These 

 vessels are nearly all of the dark, grayish-brown, fire-mottled ware. A 

 few are yellowish, and such are often painted red or decorated with 

 designs in red and white 



Fig. 408.— Eotile: Arkansas.— J. 



Two charming vases are shown in Figs. 408 and 409. The surface 

 finish is in both cases very superior. The lines of the figures are care- 

 fully drawn, and seem to have been produced by the trailing, under 

 even pressure, of a smooth rather blunt point. It is difficult to get so 

 nicely finished and even a line by simple incision, or by excavating the 

 clay. The design in Fig. 408 consists of eight groups of curved lines 



Fig. 409.— Bottle: Arkansas.— J. 



arranged in pairs, which are separated by plain vertical bands. It might 

 be considered an interrupted or imperfectly connected form of the run- 

 ning scroll. This grouping of lines is frequently met with in the dec- 

 orative designs of the Southern States. The design upon the other 

 vase, Fig. 409, is still more characteristic of the South. It consists of 

 an encircling row of round, shallow indentations, about which series 



