154 G. F. Eaton— Prehistoric Fauna of Block Island. 



Human Remains. 



Just within the western margin of the Fort Island Shell- 

 heap and about a foot below the surface of the ground, a 

 human skull was exposed. It was found impossible to remove 

 the skull intact ; so after carefully scraping and brushing away 

 the surrounding earth, an examination was made before lifting 

 it from its bed in the ground. The greater part of the brain- 

 case was apparently uninjured, but the lower part of the parie- 

 tal region of the left side was fractured and crushed. The 

 lower jaw was complete and in place. 



The dentition of the jaws is that of a child of about seven 

 and a half years of age. Although the enamel has been much 

 worn from the crowns of the deciduous teeth, exposing large 

 tracts of dentine, there are no cavities caused by decay. The 

 crowns of the canines are ground to fiat surfaces, but it is 

 impossible to ascertain the character of the edges of the inci- 

 sors, whether worn by cutting or grinding, as the deciduous 

 incisors have been shed and none of their successors are suffi- 

 ciently advanced to show any marks of wear. The skull is 

 now in fragments that cannot be assembled ; but when first 

 examined before removal from the ground, it showed little 

 variation from the average type of skull of the New England 

 Indians. 



Excavating in the direction indicated by the position of 

 the skull, remains of vertebrae and ribs were next uncov- 

 ered, though their condition at the time of burial could 

 not be ascertained, as they were poorly preserved. Of 

 the vertebral series, only the axis and part of the atlas 

 w r ere successfully removed. A portion of the left scapula 

 was saved, while the right scapula was so decomposed 

 that removal was impossible. None of the bones of the hands 

 and arms were found. Most of the pelvis was removed, though 

 not without injury, owing to its brittle condition. The right 

 femur was in place and entire, but not the slightest trace was 

 found of the rest of the limb. The bones of the left leg were 

 in place and were complete down to a point two or three 

 inches above the lower articular ends of the tibia and fibula. 

 These articular ends were wanting, as were also the bones of 

 the foot, though it is to be noted that, at the margin of the 

 shell-heap and about seven feet from the rest of the skeleton, a 

 left astragalus was found, poorly preserved and of such size 

 that it might well have been part of this skeleton. The frac- 

 tured ends of the tibia and fibula had weathered to the same 

 hue as the natural surfaces of the bones. 



The skeleton throughout was in a poor state of preservation, 

 the bones became very light and brittle after drying slowly 

 in cotton-batting, and their peculiar feeling, when touched by 

 the tongue, gave evidence of long underground weathering. 



