ARCHEOLOGICAL OBJECTS 95 America. In the author's collection of celts, numbering more than

ARCHEOLOGICAL

OBJECTS 95

96 THE ABORIGINES OF PORTO

RICO [etii. ax.n.23 castof afinespecimenofthis

form from

anoriginal intheTrocadero

Museum

^{of Paris,}having a head carved on the end of the handle.

Professor

Mason

has figured anotheroneloaned to

him

for thepur- poseby

Mr George

J. Gibbs,ofwhichhe writesasfollows:

Theusetowhichthese polished celtswasput,ormorecorrectlyspeaking,the manner^ofhafting them,isgraphicallyillustrated intheaccompanyingsketchofa celt inserted ina mortiseinahandleofhard redwood andfoundinacavein Caicos, or Turk's,island,by

Mr

GeorgeJ.Gibbs,andkindlylentbyhimtobecastand engraved. Astillmoreinterestingandpreciousrelic,from thesame^localityand foundbythesamegentleman,isthatgivenin figure11,whichrepresentsa^celtand handle carved outofasingle piece of jadeite.

... A

Ijeautifula.x,similarly carved fromasingle piece,isfiguredand^described inJones'sAboriginal Remains ofTennessee (SmithsonianContributions,no. 259).

Plate XIV.c.showsthehaftinglietter than it is figuredinaand^//, both of which, however,

must

be regarded as finished implements.

Tho.sethree specimens are the onlyonesof theirtype

from

the

West

Indies in the Smithsonian collection.

One

of the

most

remarkable specimens,jjlate xv,n,purchased

from

Archbishop Merino,ofSanto

Domingo,

isa petaloidcelt

made

ofgreenstone,on onesideofwhichis cutⁱⁿlowreliefa

human

face,and

arms

foldedtothebi-east. There can hardlybeadoubtthatthis celtwas neverhafted, asnosigns ofits

attachmentto a handle aretobeseen,andasthepresence of a handle wouldconcealpart of the figure cut

upon

it. Itiscalleda ceremonial celt andwas probablycarried in the hand.

The

rever.sesideisper- fectly plain,very smooth, and withtheexception of a smallnick,the cuttingedgeof thespecimenisperfect.

The

stone

from

which ^{it is}

made

is notfound in the Antilles,a fact seeming to indicate South Americanorigin.

The

specimenpicturedⁱⁿplate

xv

^(I/),atpresentin the

museum

of Santiago de Cuba,

may

alsoberegardedasaceremo- nialcelt, but theheadiscut on one endinstead of onthe sideof the celtasintheformerspecimen. Itisrough,unpolished,and

made

of .soft stone.

The arms

of the figure cutonit are represented folded onthebreast, as intheSanto

Domingo

specimen.

The

use of the stone implement

from

Porto Rico

shown

in plate

XM

{(/) is enigmatical,but it

may

have been a pounding implement,

the curvedportion servingasa handle. Ithas a globularform, with anarrow,sickle-shaped" extension that

was

formerly pointed atone end.

A

grinding stonewithaslightlycurvedhandleis

shown

in the last-named plate{r). Specimenb,likewise supposedtobe agrinding instrument, recalls other specimens in the collection in which the handleisrelatively longeranditsbifurcation

more

pronounced.

The

object figuredasf/(plate xvi) is thus described

by

Professor Mason:

"A

l)oot-shaped .specimen, the topbent forward andpointed, andthe toe coiledupward. ^Itis

somewhat

smooth onthe.sole." This

"CarlChrislianRafn,inCabinet d'Antiquitfe AmOrioaines a Copenliague (Copenliagen,^1868), figuresa stonecollar,amammiformidol,and twocurved stoneobjects.

i-EWKEs] ARC'HEOLOGICAL OBJECTS

97

objectwas probablyusedin iiiucli the

same way

astheothers figured

illplateXVI,the ditferencebeing- in form rather thanin use. Itisa iine specimen of aboriginal stoiieworking-,the curved tip especially showingdifficulttechnic.

PlatesXVIItoXXIrepresenta series of Carib implements from St Vincent,

some

ofwhichwerepresented

by Mr

^,racobson.ofTrinidad, andothersbytheauthorinthe

same

island. Nearlyallthesespecimens havepracticallythesamegeneral

form

andare characterizedbyinden- tationsfor hafting. Theseobjects are duplicated in the Grue.sde col- lectionand specimensare figuredbyProfessoVMason.

The

reason for introducing

them

hereisthat the majority of the Caribcelts figured

by Mason

were

made from

drawingsandare not representedbyspeci-

mens

intheSmithsoniancollection. Moreover,

by

comparisonof the forms, the striking differences between the celts of Porto Kico and those of theLesser Antilles canbestbeshown." Thereisnotasingh;

Cai'ib celt in the collections from Porto liico, although tin; island, especially alongthe shore,

was

frequently raided bythe Carib,

who

obtained a footholdinthe eastern end.

The

methodsofhafting stone implementsare not distinctive

enough

to indicate different cultures, butthe.se implements

show

important technological differences char- acteristicoftworaces.

One

of the finest specimens of Carib ini]>l('nicnts(platexxi, t)was purchasedbythe authorinBarbados

from

a

man who

olitaineditin Cxrenada. This almost perfect specimen has a broad groove forat- tachmenttoa handle, notches on thesides and ears on one end. It is finelypolished and

made

of a hard basaltic rock. Althoughthe Guesdecollectionhasnospecimensofexactlythesameform, the out- linesof.severalare

much more

complicatedandthey

may

beregarded asbetterimplements

from

the technological point of view. Several specimensofpetaloidceltsfromeastern(Juliaare

shown

inplate xxii.

Emgmatu'al

Stones

The

^severalstone objects figuredin plate xxiii are enigmatical so far as theiruses are concerned. Platexxiii.^<i,isan ovoid stone,flat

on one side and slightly convex on the other

—

^{that turned to the}

observer.

The

flatsidehasinthemiddlearoundshallowpit,butthe convexsideof thestoneisincised with grooves, ari'angedinlinesand concentric triangles.

A

groove, not visible in the accompanying figure,alsoextendsaroundthenuu'gin of the .stone.

One

istempted toregard thisobjectas apart of agrinding apparatus,similir tothe lowerstone of themillstillusedbythenatives.

oE.F.imThurn. Notes on West Indian Stonn Implements,i.257;ii,253:in,103. Seealsoliis nrtiele.OntheRacesoftheWestInrlies,inJciinmlofllii:AiitlinqMlutjiailIiiftilulr.j..190-lyB,London,

98 THE

ABORIGINES OF

POETO

RICO [eth.axx.25 Plate XXIII,h. iiii

unknowu

implement of semicirculiir form, has extensions or projections,two onthemiddlelineand oneateach point ofthe crescenticinurg-in. Incisfiguredamelon-shapedstone,crossed bymeridionalgrooveswhich donotclearlyappearintlieillustration.

Itsuse is

unknown,

and, so far asthe collectionshere considered are concerned,its

form

is unicjue.

The

specimenrepresented

by d

isa Hat circularstone,plainon one sideanddecorated withmeandering grooves ontheother. Thisobject has an extension on ^the rim,through which there is a hole,with a beveled periphery,by whichit

may

have beensiispeiKled tobeusedas agong.

The

stonesfiguredinplatexxiii are ofdifferenttypes,buttwospeci-

mens

are so nearlyalikethat

we may

supposethatthey hadalike use.

A

^flatdiskwitharoundtapering stone handle,

from

Santo

Domingo,

collectedby

Mr

Gabb,isrepresentedbyf.

Both

handleanddisk are decoratedwith minutepits or indentations.

The

spatulate stone,/", isdestituteofsuperficialdecorationsbuthas approximatelythe

same form

as that just mentioned. This specimen

was

presented to the SmithsonianInstitution

by Mr

Latimer and is described and figured byProfessor^Nlason asa '"paddle-shaped^celt.''

The

termceltimplies its iisefor purposesquite different

from

those forwhich specimena isadapted,but itspurpose isnotdefinitelyknown.

The

objectillus- tratedby</

was

evidentlyused for rubbing,liutthat

shown

infigureh onthe

same

plateisenigmatical.

Platexxiii,i,represents a singular cylindrical stone,fiaton oneside and rounded onthatturnedto the observer.

An

enlargementatone end suggests a headand the taperingtailgives a serpentine appear- ancetothewholeobject. Thisspecimen

may

beregardedprovision- allyas a serpentfetisi).although the resemblancetoaserpentisbut superficial.

The

specimendesignated^/'isanartificiallyformedstone of

unknowu

meaning, resemblinga largeunperforated))ead. This

may

have been used bythe aboriginesas a rollingpin tocrush paint or herbs,or, as t)oth ends are

somewhat

worn,as a pestle for bruising hard grains ornuts.

It is to be regretted that the cuived stone (plate xxiii. /)

from

St Vincent is broken, for it belongs to a type

new

to students of Caribantiquities.

The

specimen figured in plate xxiii, /, is one of the enigmas with which the student of the aborigines of the island has to deal.

AVhenseen

from

one side it has a triangular profile, its base being surroundedhya shallowgroove.

The

breadthis

somewhat

lessthan the thickness and the surfaces are rounded. This stone, so far as formisconcerned,mightbeconfounded withthefourth typerrf three-

FEWKEs]

ARCHEOLOGICAL

OBJECTS

99

pointedstonas,except that it liasthe basal grooveand noindication of theanter or inclination of oneof the points.

The

specimen here figured

was

obtainedonthe British

West

Indian island of Grenada, but there are otherandfarbetterspecimensofthis t3'pe in local col- lectionsonStKitts.

The

general

form

andthepresence of agroove suggest thatthisspecimen isone of those pendantswhichare repre- sentedinthe ear lobes of certain idols and fetishes

from

Porto Rico and Santo

Domingo.

Thereislittledoubtthatthe

wooden

idols later figuredanddescribed inthis paper formerlyhad pendantsⁱⁿthe ear lobes, but these ornaments

were

probabl}'

made

of gold or precious stones. Itispossible thatpeople of thelowerclassesma\'

have

worn

intheir earsruderj^endants,perhapsofstone ofwhichthe object figured

may

bean example.

The

use of the object

shown

infigure4«isunlinown.

Two

broken mullers, or grinding stones,

much worn

and lookingvery

much

likethebrokenaxlesofawagon, are

known

to the author.

One

of these occurs in the

Latimer collection; the other

was

obtained by

Mr Read

object imm fortheauthornearPonce, PortoRico. Since thesespeci- ^{'^'}vmcent.

mens show wear

on oneside,as if

from

the frictionofanotherbody,

it has been suggested that the aborigines were accjuaintedwith the principleofthewheel andthat thesewere axlespartialh'

worn away

bythe rotation of the wheel.

The same

person

who

originatedthis theorytoaccountforthese stonessuggestedalsothatthemassivecol- larswere wheels,the interior having been filledwith

wood

inwhich

was

inserted the hul). Thistheory haslittleto

commend

it,andthe best thatcanbesaidisthatit isas I'easonable as

some

others thathave beenbrought forwardtoexplain the use of those archeological enig- mas,the stone rings orcollars.

The

so-calledaxlesare stonemullers usedwithmetatesingrindingmaize,asfiguredbyBenzoni.

A

single specimenwasseeninPuertoPlata. Santo

Domingo.

Pesti.ks

The

collections

from

Santo

Domingo

contain

many

pestles with ornamental handles, but there are only a few similarly decorated pestlesfrom PortoRico.

The

ornamentationstake the

form

ofheads of animals or of

human

beingsontheends of the handles. In

some

instancesthe entirebody^isrepresented,inothersonl}'the heads,and

inafewthewholehandleitself iscarved torepresentananimalor a

human

being.

We

can distinguishineach of thesepestlesfourdistinct parts,(1)head, (2) handle, (3) lens or base, and (4) ferrule, the last beingsituatedatthejunction oflensandhandle.

A

considerable

amount

ofspeculationhasbeenindulgedinbyvarious writers to explain the significance of the carvings on these objects.

100 THE

ABORIGIXES OF PORTO KICO

Mr

Walton ^tirids in them repi'esentations of the lingani and _yoni of ])hallioism. and Sefior

Poey

enters into an elal)orate discussion of thistheory. It seems unnecessaryto consider theseobjectsanything

more

than decorated pestles or paint grinders, although the

more

highlycai'vedspecimens

may

have had aplaceⁱⁿhouseholdworship.

Their decorations undoubtedly represent certain mythic

human

or animalpersonages, but

we

can hardly believe that theo})jectsserved as idols.

The

archbishop'scollectionfrom Santo

Domingo

contains

many

verylinespecimensof theseobjects.

The

ela))oratelydecoratedpestle

shown

iu tiguic^.")was foundinacave atCotui.SantoDomingo.l)ySefiorTeotiloCorderu.andwasexhibited inthe Historical Expositioil of 1892, in Madrid,whereit was regarded as oneof the finest

known

specimensof Antillean stoneworking. Thisspeci-

men

is

made

of black vock and is

about 10 inches high.

On

theupper extremity of the handle there is a tigureelaborateU'carved,with

human

face, body,and limbs, suggesting an idol.

Plate XXIV ^{</.h) rei)resents oneof the best pestles of the archbishop's collection from Santo

Domingo.

It diti'ers from all others in having at tlieendof thehandle acompletefigure

Iif a

human

]>einglyingon its back, with tiie faceuppermost andthe legs retracted. This tigure has well-cut eyes, nose, and ears,and,

when

seen from ^the top of the iiandle. it will be noted that the

arms

also arc represented, the hands resting upon the kneesf.

The

handle of the pes- tle is short, the lens angular and

Fk.^")Sloiii- p.--tl.-frnmS::iiloIioTiiiiif;ii. ^,

smooth.

The same

plate (xxiv,r,<l)showsa

more

slender pestle, having a doubleferruleatthe points ofattachmentof lensandhandle,but the groove whichimparts thedoubleformto thisferruleisnot continuous, beingbrokenatoneplace,wherethereisan incisedline atrightangles tothegroove^oftheferrule.

The

handleisslightlyswollen

midway

ⁱⁿ

its length.

The

headand body^{of the tigure} on the handle are well carved, theformerIx'ingplacedverticallyon oneside,theIjodyextend- ingoverthetopand the legs hanging

down

onthesidediametrically opposite theface. Itwillthu^be seenthatthetigureliesonthe ventral

AKCHEOLOCICAL

OB.IECTS 101 regiono\erthetipof tiie luiiidle, itshead andleg.sbeing-on oppo.site sides.

A

faceviewshows two sunkene\-e socivcts,aprominentnose, an elongated

mouth

with thinlips,and prominentearpendants,one of which is broken. This specimen,

somewhat

battered but in a fair stateofpreservation,is

made

of a highly polishedsoft stone.

The

accompanyingdrawing-(figure(3jof aspecimen from ^tlic col- lectionofSenor Rodriguez,ofSanto

Domingo

city,gives agoodidea of atype ofpestle-like idolwithtwofacescutontheendof thehandle anda spherical base.

An

unvisual

form

of stone pestle, sliowii in tlie acc-oinpanving cut (figure7),^i.s

from

thesamecollection andwas found ^proliahl\-incitlier HaitiorSanto

Domingo.

Double-headedpestlefrom Santu

Domingo. PestlefromSjiutoDomingo.

The

remaining specimens in plate .\xiY, t-/', are also from Santo

Domingo

and were purchased withthearchbishop'scollection. There

i.s

shown

inea well-cut

human

faceon onesideandrepresentations of body, retractedlegs,and

arms

cut in lowreliefontheother. There

isnoferruleatthe junction of the handleandthelens,which incross sectionisangular.

The

specimendesignated /'also hasa

human

tigurcwitha well-cut head,andlegs inlowrelief atthetipofthe handle,buthas,unlike that justmentioned(e),a ferrulejustabovethelens,which appearsrounded

when

seeninsection.

102 THE

ABORIGINES OF

POKTO

EICO

from mine:

A

ruderspecimen(figure8)of.somewhatthe

same

typebut smaller.

exhibitedinthe^Madrid Exposition,wassaidtohave beenobtainedin

Santo

Domin^f

'. Itsbaseisflat,rounded,andgirt

by

abead, asinthe specimen lastdescribed.

The

head of an animal is

carvedon the handle.

While

thisobject

may

have been usedas apestle,its

form

suggestsanidol; butit belongs to the general typeofstone pestles,already mentioned.

PlateXXIV,(I,isa long-handled])estlewithrounded lens and ferrule in low relief. Its handle tapers graduallj'

from

the ferrule to theimageat the end, which repi-esents a

human

being with legsand with slightprojections for earsandarms.

Specimenhisa pestlewith abrokenlensandawell- cut figureon the end of a short handle.

The

fore limbsin thisspecimenare raised in such a

way

that thehandsap])eartobe placedIjehind thel)ack just at the neck.

Specimen/,/isapestle,thetipofthehandlebeing- decoratedwith anobscurely

made

figure. Thisspeci-

men

has asmoothsurfacewhich shows

much

pecking and

may

be an unfinishedidol.

The

accompanyingcut(figure9), representing apestle in

Mr Yung-

hannis's collection at

Bayamon,

Porto Rico, was

made from

oneof the author's sketches.

The

.:.ur-

face of the original is rough,the base oval and smooth, the eyes and ears lieing represented by pits, while pai'allel curved grooves suggest appendages.

Many

pestles of simple forms are

shown

on plate XXV, one of which («) is loug and club- shaped,having a head rudelycarved on one end of the handle. There is no lens orenlargement at the opposite extremity, where, however, the diameter is

somewhat

greater than at the head.

The

remainingfiguresonthisplateare the simplest forms of pestles, or possibly pigment grinders.

In specimenshand cnodifl'erentiation indicative of ahandleisvisible, whilein

d

theneckisa sim- ple contraction below the head, the whole face being occupied by

two

depressions or owl-like eyes.

The

specimendesignatede isabrokenpestle

with an animal

body

and/' i-epresents a vei'v simple, rough paint grinder,destituteof thecarvedhead.

The

remaining specimens{g-i) aresimple paintgi'inders.

Pfstlefrom Porto

AECHEOLOGICAL

OBJECTS 103