SECOND REPORT OF THE DIRECTOR 1905 



5 7 



trusive pit and a quantity of charred straw or grass. One of the 

 pits contained a large broken pottery vessel, another a broken 

 pipe bowl and the third a rude axe. The positions of the skeletons 

 could not be determined. 



No metallic articles were discovered nor any other evidences of 

 European invasion, which is corroborative proof of the great 

 antiquity of the site. The Erie Indians were conquered about 1654 

 and their only known successors in this territory were the Senecas, 

 who came into it after the Revolutionary War. At that time the 

 Senecas had numerous articles of European manufacture and such 

 articles are found in all sites of Senecan occupancy. In view of 

 these facts it would seem that the Burning Spring site belongs to 

 a Preerian period or to some intruding race of that period. This, 

 however, is a point that can be determined only upon careful 

 comparative study of the objects obtained. 



Additions of special interest. We may note among the recent 

 acquisitions in archeology a necklace of shell and native copper 

 beads with stone gorget attached, measuring about 5 feet in 

 length. This was taken from a prehistoric stone-lined grave \ 

 mile west of the Hudson river and a,\ miles north of the village 

 of Athens. The chain consists of 300 small copper beads, 16 small 

 and 4 large shell beads with the gorget or breastplate of stone de- 

 pending from the center. In the judgment of Dr Beauchamp this 

 is the finest example of such a necklace yet found in this State. 

 It was discovered by Dr A. H. Getty of Athens and obtained 

 for the Museum from Rev. W. N. P. Dailey of Amsterdam. 



An interesting series of masks and a turtle shell rattle secured 

 by Mr Parker from the Cattaraugus Reservation are illustrated 

 here. 



VII 



PUBLICATIONS 



A list of the scientific publications issued during the year 1904-5 

 is attached hereto. These are 26 in number on a variety of topics 

 covering nearly the whole range of our scientific activity. They 

 embrace over 4000 pages of text, more than 300 plates and 32 

 colored maps. It will be evident from this statement alone that 

 the labor of handling this matter, verifying, editing and correcting, 

 is onerous and exacting. These books actually issued together 

 with the very considerable number now in press and in course 

 of preparation excellently indicate the activity and diligence of 

 the staff of the division. 



