CONCLUSIONS. 231 



Primitive metallurgy is well exemplified in the art of Chiriqui. It was still 

 practised with presumably similar results at the time of the Spanish conquest. 

 The first explorers were much impressed by the richness and abundance of the 

 gold plaques, figurines, etc., used by the natives as amulets and ornaments. 

 De Bry figures a group of native metal-workers in the act of casting gold images. 

 The gold ornaments seen by Columbus in the Chiriqui lagoon were evidently 

 similar to those taken from the graves during the past half century. The latter 

 vary in fineness from nearly pure gold on the one hand to pure copper on the 

 other. A small percentage of silver is present in some specimens. The alloys 

 often appear to be natural. In some instances very effective figures were produced 

 by slightly altering the natural shape of nuggets or masses of the native metal. 

 A great majority of the pieces were cast, either wholly or in part. Some appear 

 to have been constructed from a number of castings which were afterwards joined 

 together. It is probable however that in some cases, at least, this appearance 

 is alone due to the fact that the model was built up of a number of parts, the 

 casting itself being in reality a unit. Others were cast as a unit, certain parts 

 of which — as tail, wings or feet — being further flattened by hammering. 



^^^M \*/ 



Fig. 384. — Dorsal-view motives from vases of the polychrome ware. 



The secret of concentrating the gold on the surfaces in order to form a layer 

 of brighter yellow than the interior, so well illustrated in specimens from the 

 graves, seems to have been known also to the natives with whom the Europeans 

 first came in contact, for Acosta says the Indians were able to produce a gold 

 color by rubbing a low-grade alloy with the juice of a plant. Acosta probably 

 got his information from Oviedo, the first inspector of " gold foundries " 1 in the 

 New World, who refers to the same process. 



As a vehicle of mythological and artistic expression, the gold images of Chiriqui 

 are a worthy rival of the splendid series of pottery. The forms represented are 

 from the animal world, more or less faithful representations of the bird, frog, 

 jaguar, alligator, monkey and man being frequently met with. 



The majority however are composite in character, possessing attributes of various 

 animals, and are generally described by earlier writers as monsters. My endeavor 

 to unravel the apparent tangle of mixed attributes has, I believe, led to the 

 identification of a number of important Chiriquian deities. 



As might be expected, some human attribute is common to practically all such 

 divinities. One of the most important of these consists of a human body and 

 extremities surmounted by an alligator's head. In order to emphasize the reptilian 

 character, additional conventionalized alligators or alligator heads are attached to 

 various parts of the figure or of its setting. To such an image I have given the 



1 Irving. The life and voyages of Christopher Columbus, III, 359, 1892. 



