HOLMES) POTTERY OF THE NORTHWEST 187 



on one site. The correlations of eitlier variety of ceramic products 

 with groups of otlier classes of remains found in tli(> sinne districts are 

 not yet well made out. 



In the West the conti'asts between the ware of the North and that of 

 South appear to be quite as pronounced as they are in the East. That 

 of the South is hig-hly differentiated and specialized; that of the North 

 is pronouncedl}- archaic. That of the South exhibits variously tinted 

 pastes, tempered principally with pulverized shells. The vases, as a 

 rule, have full bodies, rounded bases, and, in very many cases, nar- 

 row and high necks. Animal forms are imitated with remarkable 

 frequency and with nuicli skill. The noithern pottery shows a gen- 

 erally dark paste, tempered largely with coarse angular sand derived 

 from pulverized rocks. The shapes are those of sinii)le pots. The 

 mouths are wide, the rims plain, and the necks but slightly con- 

 stricted. Animal forms are rarely seen. The ornament of the South 

 emploj's flowing as well as angular lines, varied colors, and a wide 

 range of motives; that of the North is almost exclusively archaic, 

 consisting of incised and indented geometric patterns. A comparison 

 between the specimens brought together in the accompanying plates 

 and those in the numerous plates of the Middle Mississippi section 

 will prove instructive. 



The pottery of the northern province is abundant. Init is recovered 

 for the most part in a fragmentary state. However, a sufficient num- 

 ber of well-preser\ed pieces have been collected to indicate pretty 

 clearl}- the i-ange of form and decoration. 



This northwestern province includes the upper Mississippi vallej', 

 the Missouri valley, the region of the western Great lakes, and the 

 valley of Red river of the North. The varieties of pottery are not 

 confined to particular regions as decidedly as they are in the East. 

 They may be classified for purposes of description under two heads, 

 the rouletted and stamped ware and the cord-decorated ware, the latter 

 including the work of the Maiidans, the only tribe of the whole region 

 known to have practiced tlu^ art in recent years. 



This pottery occurs over large areas occupied in historic times 

 mainly by the Algoiuiuian and Siouan stocks. Much of it affiliates 

 closely with the ware of the more eastern branches of the Algonquian, 

 and, in some cases, in nearly all features of detail. One varietj^, 

 however, shows decided affinities with the work of the South Appa- 

 lachian potters. The Siouan peoples were probably potters in a limited 

 way, especially where they were measuraldy sedentary in habits, and 

 the same may be surmised of the C'addoan and other stocks. Mr A. J. 

 Comfort, writing on this subject (Smithsonian Report for ISTl, page 

 iOl), says that the Dakotas certainly practiced the art during the child- 

 hood of men still living. Dr J. Owen Dorsey. the well-known student 

 of the Siouan tribes, informs me that Half-a-dav. historian of the 



