The stone age in North America, vol. 2 of 2Moorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
History
The stone age in North America, vol. 2 of 2
Moorehead, Warren K. (Warren King)
Indians of North America -- Antiquities; Stone age -- North America
A few words regarding the illustrations. An inspection of all the
figures in this chapter, marked from the Hopewell Group, give some idea
of the remarkable copper effigies, ornaments, cut designs, etc.,
comprising the Hopewell collection. This is now on exhibition in the
Field Museum of Natural History, Chicago, and can be seen by any person
who will take the pains to visit that institution. It is justly
considered the greatest prehistoric copper collection in the United
States. In the Hopewell Group altars hundreds and hundreds of copper ear
ornaments were found, all more or less affected by heat. Professor Mills
has dug up many ornaments of these same kinds and says of them:—
“Copper ear ornaments were frequently met with in the graves, and twenty
specimens were secured. They were invariably found in pairs. The
manufacture of these ornaments required skill, as well as a high degree
of advancement in ornamental art. The mode of manufacture of the ear
ornaments, although two different types were found, was similar. One
type was made of two concavo-convex plates, and were connected by a
cylindrical column; but only a few pairs of this type were found. The
other type, which was most common, was made of four plates of copper,
two of which are circular, and two concavo-convex. The concavo-convex
plates are attached to the circular pieces, which form the inside of the
ornament. The discs are connected with a small cylinder of copper. This
figure is a good illustration showing two views of the second type of
ear ornaments. Other copper ornaments were found sparingly in the burial
cists. From one grave a large copper crescent was removed, and from
another, six large copper balls.”
Sometimes the copper plates were highly ornamented and cut or trimmed.
Fig. 610 is thus described by Professor Mills:—
“The plate shown in this figure is perhaps the heaviest and smoothest of
all the plates taken from Seip Mound. The scroll pattern cut upon one
side of the plate represents the first specimen of the kind taken from
the mounds of Ohio, as far as known. The plate was wrapped in leather
when it was placed in the grave, and portions still adhere to the plate,
as shown in the cut.”
Of the interesting pendants in sheet-copper, Fig. 617, exhumed from a
mound in Moundville, Alabama, Mr. Moore has to say:—
“The upper part of the pendant has parts excised to form a six-pointed
star within a circle. On the body of the star, _repoussé_, is a symbol
to which we shall revert later. Below is an excised triangle; beneath
which is part of an arm encircled by a string of beads and an extended
hand bearing on it the open eye, all _repoussé_.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account