80 GOLGOTHAS— MANDANS. 



George Catlin* describes what he calls the "Grolgothas" of the Mandans: 



" There are several of these golgofhas, or circles of twenty or thirty 

 feet in diameter, and in the center of each ring or circle is a little mound of 

 three feet high, on which uniformly rest two buffalo skulls (a male and 

 female), and in the center of the little mound is erected 'a medicine pole,' of 

 about twenty feet high, supporting many curious articles of mystery and 

 superstition, which they suppose have the power of guarding and protect- 

 ing this sacred arrangement. 



" Here, then, to this strange place do these people again resort to 

 evince their further affections for the dead, not in groans and lamentations, 

 however, for several years have cured the anguish, but fond affection and 

 endearments are here renewed, and conversations are here held and cher- 

 ished with the dead. Each one of these skulls is placed upon a bunch of 

 wild sage, which has been pulled and placed under it. The wife knows, by 

 some mark or resemblance, the skull of her husband or her child which lies 

 in this group, and there seldom passes a day that she does not visit it with 

 a dish of the best-cooked food that her wigwam affords, which she sets 

 before the skull at night, and returns for the dish in the morning. As soon 

 as it is discovered that the sage on which the skull rests is beginning to 

 decay, the woman cuts a fresh bunch and places the skull carefully upon 

 it, removing that which was under it. 



" Independent of the above-named duties, which draw the women to 

 this spot, they visit it from inclination, and linger upon it to hold converse 

 and company with the dead. There is scarcely an hour in a pleasant day 

 but more or less of these women may be seen sitting or lying by the skull 

 of their child or husband, talking to it in the most pleasant and endearing 

 language that they can use (as they were wont to do in former days), and 

 seemingly getting an answer back." 



From these accounts it may be seen that the peculiar customs which 

 have been described by the authors cited were not confined to any special 

 tribe or area of country, although they do not appear to have prevailed 

 among the Indians of the northwest coast, so far as known. 



* Hist. N. A. Indians, 1844, 1, p. 90. 



