46 ANCIENT ART OF THE PKOVINCE OF CHIRIQUI. 



Grotesque Ji (jure. — Another piece eullected liy Mr. McNiel is out- 

 lined in Fig. 35. The metal is quite base and the surface has been 



* 



Fio. ai. Quadruped with prote.sque face 



coated with gold, which is now nearly all rubbed off. The shape is 

 that of a quadruped. The face has a rather grotesque, not to say 

 Satanic, expression. The details are not unlike those of other exam- 

 ples previously given. 



The fish. — The fish was a favorite subject with the ancient nations 

 of South America, and is modeled in clay, woven into fabrics, and 

 worked in metals with remarkable freedom. It was in great favor in 

 Chiriqui and must have been of importance in the mythology of the 

 country. It occurs most frequently in pottery, where it is executed 

 in color and modeled in the round. The very grotesque si^ecimen in 

 gold shown in Fig. 30 is copied from Harper's Weekly of August 6, 



From Harper's Weekly, 1859. 



185!). where it forms one of a number of illustrations of these curious 

 ornaments. The paper is, I believe, by Dr. F. M. Otis, who had just 

 returned from Panama. A very curious j)iece owned by Mrs. Philip 

 Phillips, of Washington, represents a creature having some analogies 



