wbbb] ARCHAEOLOGICAL SURVEY OF NORRIS BASIN 197 



was much larger in diameter than any others in the structure and from 

 its position could hardly have been used as a wall or roof support, 

 since it was so close to the structure wall. It is believed that it was an 

 adjunct to the seat. This larger post set in the mold may have served 

 many useful purposes in connection with the ceremonies conducted 

 within this structure. 



Plate 131, b, shows an end view of this same seat and presents the 

 two systems of post molds, from the primary and secondary struc- 

 tures, almost parallel and coincident at this point. The seat was con- 

 structed against the posts of the primary structure, as shown by the 

 line of post molds immediately in its rear. 



"Altars" 



Interior structures of a second type, used in connection with fire, 

 and found on the floor of the "small-log" type of town house, have 

 been called "altars", for lack of a better term. It is not intended 

 by this term to suggest that their purpose is fully known but that 

 they were specialized fireplaces, much more elaborately constructed 

 than the ordinary fire pits or basins. Further, the fact that certain 

 characteristics seem common to a number of them would argue that 

 they were made for a common purpose. That this purpose was more 

 than merely providing a place either for cooking or a source of 

 warmth can hardly be doubted. Their form and placement would 

 suggest some ceremonial connection with the general purpose of the 

 structure with which they are associated. It would hardly convey 

 the correct impression to call them fireplaces or fire basins. 



They may be generally described as clay platforms, raised from 

 2 to 6 inches above the town-house floor. These clay platforms were 

 nearly square in shape with vertical edges slightly sloping and cor- 

 ners slightly rounded. They were placed nearly symmetrically at 

 the center of the structure floor, and were almost exactly oriented 

 along the cardinal directions. They were made of pure-grade day 

 and in some cases of a color and texture seemingly foreign to the 

 immediate vicinity of the building. They were carefully made, trow- 

 eled to form, with smooth surfaces. Where basins in them were cir- 

 cular, in every case these basins in any particular altar were exactly 

 the same size and accurately constructed in exact similarity. 



Three of these altars definitely showed battering by heavy blunt 

 instruments, in what appears to have been an intentional attempt at 

 destruction, before they were covered over by the falling of the 

 structure over them. 



For purposes of comparison there are shown in plates 132-135, 

 inclusive, five of these square altars, together with two ordinary fire 

 basins. These altars are from five town-house structures from four 



