74 ANCIENT AKT (Jh' THE PROVINCE OF CHIRIQUI. 



which, as seen in other exuinple.s, tliis feature has a tendency to 

 graduate. 



These vessels are not numerous, but acquire importance from their 

 large size, the larger being upwards of eight inches in height. A few 

 pieces of nearly identical shape, but of small size, are found among 

 the painted wares. Additional shapes are given in Figs. 8.3, 84, and 

 85, and serve to illustrate the extent of variation exhibited in this 

 group of vases. The small shallow piece is exceptionally fine and the 

 handles are furnished with animal features of a highly conventional 

 type. An expansion of the handles somewhat similar to this is fre- 

 quently seen in vessels of other classes, especially in those of the 

 handled group. 



Single handles of like character occur in a number of cases upon 

 minute cups, an example of which is given in Fig. 86. It would 

 seem that possibly in such cases the rim had been expanded and pro- 

 longed for the purpose of giving support to the animal figures with 



Fig. 86. Fig. 87. 



Small cup with single handle ornamenteci with grotesque figure — *. 



which the shoulders were embellished. The expansion is probably 

 the outgrowth of the use of animal figures in connection with simple 



Fig. 88. Vase of eccentric form — }. 



We have a number of vessels of this group the bodies of which 

 imitate animal forms, but they are in nearly all cases furnished with 



