PRIMITIVE ART 23 
of the people appear frequently in their interpretations of their 
designs. Purely animal forms are, comparatively speaking, rare; 
while geographical features,—such as mountains, valleys and 
rivers,—tents, parts of the body and plant designs occur very 
frequently. 
CaSE ¥7 ¢, 
Interpretation of Blackfoot Designs —Among the Blackfoot we 
find the same type of decorative designs as among the Arapaho, 
triangles and diamonds being the 
most important elements, but they 
are purely decorative, without sym- 
bolic significance. These geometric 
forms, however, have pattern- 
names as constituent elements of 
the complex designs, for example: 
the diamond -shaped figures are 
known as “‘spavin”’ patterns. The 
idea is, not that the design repre- 
sents a “spavin,’’ but that it resembles this affection as it 
appears upon a horse’s foot. 
CASES 24, 25. 
Interpretation of Stoux Designs.—The decorative art of the 
Siouan tribes comprises geometrical designs in bead-work, and 
pictographic designs in paintings. The geometric designs are both 
symbolic and decorative. The pictographic designs are usually 
symbolic. Most of the geometric designs are made by the women ; 
the pictographic, by the men. The art of the women is especially 
interesting, because we find them using simple geometrical forms 
as design elements, for example: all triangular designs of a certain 
size are known as “tent’’ patterns; all rectangular designs are 
known as “ bag”’ patterns; all small triangular designs are known 
as “point” patterns, or “‘leaf’’ patterns; diamond-shaped de- 
signs are known as “arrow-point”’ patterns. Complex geometri- 
cal designs are built up from these simple elements, and the 
names given above are the technical names for these designs. 
The complex designs are best represented in the decoration of 
tobacco-pouches, as illustrated in Case 25 a. 
