416 ANCIENT POTTERY OF THE MISSISSIPPI VALLEY. 



the sloping upper surface of the body, viewed from above, has a cruci- 

 form arrangement of stepped figures engraved in the plastic clay. 



One of the most striking of the bottle-shaped vases is shown in 

 Fig. 435. It is symmetrical in shape, well proportioned and well fin- 

 ished. The color is now quite dark and the surface is roughened by a 

 multitude of pits which have resulted from the decay of shell particles. 

 The paste crumbles iuto a brownish dust when struck or pressed for- 

 cibly. 



,* "*" 



: -O n i , 



Fig. 435. — Engraved imtile: Arkansas.— J. 



[National Museum.] 



By far the. most remarkable feature of the piece is the broad, convex 

 hood like collar that encircles the neck and spreads out over the body 

 like an inverted saucer. This collar is curiously wrought in incised 

 lines and low ridges by means of which two grotesque faces are pro- 

 duced. The eyes are readily detected, being indicated by low knobs 

 with central pits surrounded each by three concentric circles. They 

 are arranged in pairs on opposite sides. Between the ej'es of each pair 

 an incipient nose and mouth may be made out. The face is outlined 

 below by the lower edge of the collar and above, by a low indented 

 ridge crossing the collar tangent to the base of the neck. 



The most expanded part of the body is encircled by an incised pat- 

 tern consisting of five sets of partially interlocked scrolls — an ornament 

 characteristic of the pottery of Arkansas. 



