600 PREHISTORIC VILLAGES IN TENNESSEE [ETH. ANN. 41 
as known, this is the only celt of this shape ever found in Tennessee. 
The material is a fine-grained argillaceous limestone. 
GRAVE K 
The stone-slab grave, K, in circle No. 17 measured 12 inches at 
each end and 22 inches in width at the center and was 40 inches in 
length. The sides curved, as is shown in Figure 200. The edges of 
some of the upright slabs of this coffin projected from 1 to 2 inches 
above the surface of the floor of the wigwam. The top had probably 
been removed by the plow. This grave contained the bones of a 
child about 2 years old (United States National Museum, Depart- 
ment of Physical Anthropology, No. 316092). Two large, useless 
fragments of pottery were found with the body in this grave. 
These had been placed apparently with the same care that would 
have been used with unbroken, entire vessels. One of these frag- 
ments was placed at the right of the head. Both the exterior and 
interior of this vessel were light salmon tinged with buff, somewhat 
darker than Plate 106, h. 
A large fragment of another old, broken pot had been placed at 
the southwest corner of the grave. A restoration of the domestic 
vessel to which it once belonged is also shown in Plate 135, a. Its 
exterior and interior were buff colored, somewhat between the shades 
of c and h, Plate 106. 
Does the placing of only fragments of old, broken vessels in this 
grave, in place of entire vessels, indicate a belief that a fragment 
of an old, broken or ‘‘dead”’ vessel would become whole and useful 
to the dead with whom it was buried? 
There was a well-known practice of breaking or puncturing or 
otherwise “killing” entire vessels and placing all their fragments in 
the grave. But in grave K evidently no vessel was “killed.” Only 
the fragment of some old, broken vessel was picked up and placed 
with the dead. 
Near the center of grave K was found the fragment of coral (X) 
shown in Plate 137,b. These corals can be found in the rotten lime- 
stone on the surrounding hills. Its burial with the little body had 
some significance. Indians often chose for sacred purposes stones that 
were unusual on account of their beauty or oddity or fancied resem- 
blances. These were sometimes placed in their sacred bundles. 
Sometimes they were kept in their House of Mysteries. Gravier 
relates, among other things, in regard to the Natchez temple: “All 
that I saw somewhat rare was a piece of rock crystal, which I found 
in a little basket.” 
A small whetstone of firm, close-grained, red Carboniferous sand- 
stone was also found in this grave. It is No. 56 in Plate 137, b. 
36 “Jesuit Relations’’ Ixv, pp. 138-141. 
