82 ABORIGINAL POTTEBY OF EASTERN UNITED STATES [eth.akn,20 



face and figure tu learn soinethiiiu' of the physiognomv of the pot- 

 tery-making peoples, but ha\e sought without success. It is evident 

 that portraiture was rarely, if ever, attempted, and, contrary to what 

 might ])e expected, few of the greatly varied representations of faces 

 suggest strongly the Indian type <>f countenance. 



ClIROXOLOGY 



The f)ottery of this great province is wonderfully homogeneous in its 

 most essential characteristics, and we are not able to say by its appear- 

 ance or character th;it any specimen is older or more primitive than 

 another. Exploration has Ijeen too unsystematic to enable ns to reach 

 any safe conclusions r(\specting the comparative' age of specimens 

 based on the manner of occurrence or relations to artificial or natural 

 deposits. There can be no reasonable doulit, however, that the manu- 

 facture of this ware began many centuries before thi' ad\-ent of the 

 white race; it is equally certain that the art was extensively jjracticed 

 until ([uite recent times. The early explorers of the valley witnessed 

 the manufacture, and the pi-ocesses and the manner of use of the ware 

 are, as we have seen in a preceding section, described by several writers. 



Notwithstanding the early introduction of metal vessels and other 

 utensils that naturally superseded those of clay, some of the triltes of 

 the province seem to have practiced the art continuoush' nearly to the 

 present day, and some of the pieces recovered from mounds and graves 

 ai-e thouglit to suggest European models. It is certain, however, that 

 the art had reached its highest stage without the aid of civilized hands, 

 and in the study of its many interesting features we may feel assured 

 that we are dealing with essentially aboriginal ideas. 



Preservation 



It is generally admitted that there is no vital ethnic or other dis- 

 tinction between the potterj- found in mounds, that found on village 

 sites, and that obtained from ordinary graves or stone cists. The con- 

 dition of the mortuary ware varies with the quality of the terra cotta, 

 and with the conditiou.s of its inhumation. Considering the porous 

 character of the paste and the great degree of moisture in the soil of 

 the ^lississippi valley, the state of preservation of many of the vases 

 is remarkable. In some other sections of the countrj' the pieces of 

 pottery were perforated or broken before their inhumation took place, 

 but such was not the practice in this province. The ware of village 

 sites and middens ntiturally is largely in fragments, and the plowing 

 of cemetery sites has broken up vast numbers of the mortuary vessels. 



State of Cultuhe of Makers 



The simjile life of these people is indicated by the al)sence of such 

 ceramic forms as lamps, whistles, liricks, and tiles, and by the rare 



