33 
situated in the middle of a large plain, near Orizaba, upon the 
surface of which (as shown in the plate) there are four- 
teen "cup-cuttings." The description given of this stone is as 
follows : — It is spherical in its form, very hard, and of a dark 
blue colour. It has evidently been wrought into its present 
shape, and placed in the middle of a spacious plain, by the 
ancient inhabitants of the country. It is so artfully balanced on 
its axis as to revolve at the slightest touch of the finger ; but if a 
greater force be used it will stand without the least apparent 
motion. Its surface contains some holes capable of holding a 
small quantity of water. It appears to have anciently served 
as a landmark. There is another of these stones to the east, 
about six miles distant." The "cup-cuttings" seem to be 
scattered irregularly over the surfaces of this stone. 
Rude consecrated stones {menhirs) are to be seen in the Fiji 
Islands, to which offerings of food are sometimes made. Two 
of these Fijian menhirs are figured, one with a liku tied round 
the middle, and the other ornamented with, what seem to be, 
three " cup-cuttings " surrounded with concentric circles. 
"Cup-cuttings" appear never to have been associated with 
any form, however rude and primitive, of letter-cutting or 
letter-writing. 
" Cup-cuttings" have been discovered along the whole length 
of the British Isles, from Cornwall and Dorsetshire in the 
South, to Orkney in the far north ; and across then whole breadth, 
from Yorkshire and Northumberland on the eastern coast of 
England, to Kerry on the western coast of Ireland. At these 
distant and diverse points, and in the mainland districts between 
them, they everywhere present a sameness of type and form. 
Should the American "cup-cuttings" prove to be of the same 
nature and character as those found in Europe the interest of 
the whole question will be greatly increased. 
E 6. 
The vessel No. i, and the copper bosses upon Tablets 2 and 
3, are noticed at page no. 
Upon Tablets 4 to 10, 16 and 17, and in Dishes 20 to 22, 
are fragments of pottery found in the mounds. 
In the glass dishes 11, 18, and 19 are fragments of calcined 
stone smoking-pipes. 
The smoking-pipes Nos. 12 and 13 are noticed at page 118. 
