284 CERTAIN ABORIGINAL REMAINS OF THE NW. FLORIDA COAST. 



Practically no artifacts lay with burials. It would seem as though friends of 

 the departed, in placing the general tribute of earthenware, which we shall speak of 

 later, considered themselves released from farther duties in the matter. 



Near Burial No. 1, a small bunch with a few oyster-shells, were two "celts." 



Burial No. 2, a few bones, had a small number of shell beads and beads were 

 with Burial No. 12, a bunch. 



Burial No. 3 had two earthenware vessels nearby but, as a general deposit of 

 earthenware was in that part of the mound where the burial lay, the proximity may 

 have been accidental. 



A feature in the mound was the comparative absence of material ordinarily met 

 with. The usual hones, masses of chert and the like were absent. There w^ere 

 found : one "celt" in caved sand; two small masses of lead sulphide; two pebble- 

 hammers ; one smoothing stone ; one hammer-stone ; one bit of plumbago ; one 

 perforated shell drinking cup. In a quantity of sand dyed with hematite, the only 

 occurrence in the mound of the red oxide of iron noted by us, was a sheet of mica, 

 shaped to resemble a lancehead. 



Beginning at the very edge of the mound, almost due E., and extending slightly 

 toward the N. and toward the S. as the digging advanced, was a deposit of earthen- 

 ware unassociated with burials, on or near the base, in masses of dark sand some- 

 times almost of inky blackness. The result of the analysis of this sand is given else- 

 where in this report. 



This earthenware, as usual, was made up of vessels badly broken of which all 

 parts were present; of single portions of vessels ; and of fragments which, when put 

 together, formed only part of a vessel. Here and there with these were specimens 

 of unbroken ware. 



Sixty-eight vessels or large parts of A^essels, whole and broken, were noted by 

 us in the mound and in the causeway. Had the average of excellence of ware and 

 of workmanship of all vessels in the mound equalled that of the first twenty found 

 by us and of the sherds among which they lay, the record of the mound would have 

 been unique, since many pieces fully held their own with the best w^are of the Gulf. 

 As it is, the Hall mound may be considered to hold its own with any opened b}- us. 



The occurrence of tJiis excellent ware was during the digging of the first few 

 feet and the entire deposit of earthenware, which had degenerated into ordinary 

 types, undecorated or with the complicated stamp, practically ended at a point about 

 22 feet in from the margin, though a few vessels were met with later. All this 

 deposit, so far as noted, had the basal perforation made before or after baking of the 

 clay. There were present, however, here and there in various parts of the mound 

 and of the causeway vessels near the surface or at all events much higher than the 

 general deposit which, as we have stated, lay along the base. A few of these scat- 

 tered vessels had the basal perforation, but the majority had not, ten having been 

 found without it. 



Among the sherds, near the margin of the mound, were many birdhead handles, 

 and fragments of ceremonial vases through the bases and bodies of which perfora- 

 tions had been made before baking. 



