USA > Ohio > Hamilton County > Madisonville > Indian Village Site and Cemetery Near Madisonville, Ohio > Part 8
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A few beads made of European sheet brass and of the same type as those of copper were obtained from different cache-pits. Two of these are shown in j.
In 1882, Professor Putnam opened a grave in which were the skeletons of a woman and child. Accompanying them were twenty- two copper beads, varying from one to two and one-quarter inches in length, and about one-quarter of an inch in diameter. On the first phalanges of the first and second fingers of each hand of the woman, were rings made of bands of sheet brass, about three-fourths of an inch wide and two and one-half inches long, each bent into a circle with the ends of the strip overlapping. One of these is illustrated in i. A number of fragments of both sheet brass and sheet copper were found in the general refuse of the site.
Iron Objects. On plate 18, p, is shown what is apparently a badly corroded iron adze blade. It was found four feet beneath the surface in a cache-pit. A second blade is illustrated in r, from three feet one inch below the surface in another pit. Both of these were recovered by Mr. Swanton. Two more of the same general form are figured in o and q. These blades were obtained by the Indians either directly or indirectly from white traders.
In the leaf mould, and in one instance twenty inches beneath the surface of a cache-pit, fragments of iron objects were found which were probably lost by the early white settlers of the region.
The only iron objects obtained from graves are the bead illus- trated in s, already referred to on page 70, and the sword guard
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 19
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MADISONVILLE SITE Tobacco pipes. (About }.)
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shown in t. The latter was found over the chest of the skeleton of an adult female. There were also three bone beads at the neck. and six copper beads near the hands of the skeleton. I have been unable to ascertain with any degree of certainty the probable origin of the European sword guard or the approximate date of its manu- facture.
Glass Beads. A few globular blue glass beads, about three- sixteenths of an inch in diameter, were found near the skull of a skeleton of a child, by Mr. Swanton. These were of the same kind as those obtained during the exploration by the Museum of the proto-historic Iroquoian cemetery in Erie County, New York.
Mr. Swanton also found fragments of blue beads in three cache- pits, and Mr. B. W. Merwin reports the finding of one such bead in a fourth pit. The recovery of iron objects or brass or glass beads, from at least nine cache-pits and five graves, seems to indi- cate beyond question that this site was not abandoned by the Indians till after their contact with Europeans either directly or through their Indian neighbors; but the scarcity of such objects, as well as their nature, also indicates that the site was deserted long before the arrival of English settlers.
Tobacco Pipes. A large number of tobacco pipes were found, the majority being obtained from cache-pits or by general digging. A few occurred with skeletons. Most of them were made from the limestone of the region. Some were of sandstone, while a small number were of other varieties, including serpentine and red pipe- stone. Two or three rude pipe bowls were found made from sections of deer antler, also fragments of four or five pottery pipes, fash- ioned of fine clay of a kind very different from that used by the inhabitants in making pottery. Judging by the fragments, these clay pipes resembled those of the Iroquoian and Algonquian tribes of the East, and were probably imported from that section. A considerable number of stone pipes in the process of making were recovered, which indicates that most of the finished specimens secured were made by the inhabitants and were not obtained from the neighboring tribes.
The majority of the specimens were of the simple designs and forms figured in plate 19, a-i. They were usually without orna- mentation. A few were ornamented with notches or with designs in incised lines, as shown in a, b, e, and f. A very good figure of
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the thunderbird is engraved upon both sides of b; while the peculiar eye designs, also occurring on certain shell gorgets, bone beads, and pebbles (plates 16, g, 17, g, 20, a, b), are engraved upon either side of e and f. A small animal figure, probably the totem mark of the owner, is shown on the narrow side of e.
FIG. 5. MADISONVILLE SITE
Tobacco pipe of clay-stone, representing an owl. Found with a skeleton in Trench I in 1911. (About }.)
Lightning symbols appear upon either side of the specimens figured in i and 1. The pipe shown in j, has two horn-like append- ages projecting backward from either side of the opening forming the bowl.
The pipe figured in k is made of nearly black serpentine and is highly polished. It is evidently intended to represent the turkey, for the " beard," peculiar to this bird, appears upon the breast. It was taken from a cache-pit by Dr. Metz in 1881.
A fish-shaped pipe of limestone, also found in a cache-pit, is fig- ured in m. It differs from most suecimens by having the hole for the reception of the stem at the side.
Two interesting effigy pipes are illustrated in o, p. Apparently swimming birds are represented, both of them being in the position usually taken while oiling the feathers. The first of these is shown with two heads. This was found beside the skull of a skeleton in Trench IV, by Mr. Swanton, as will be seen by referring to plate 3, a. The other is from a cache-pit.
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 20
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MADISONVILLE SITE a-c. Pebbles with incised drawings upon both sides; d, e, Pebbles with incised drawings; f, h, i, Pebbles but slightly modified by art, these are probably fetishes; g, k, Pendants of lignite, the first of these represents a buffalo; j, Effigy of a turkey cut from antler. (About }.)
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The specimen figured in q, of limestone, was taken from near the head of a skeleton by Professor Putnam in 1882.
The largest and finest pipe obtained during the explorations is illustrated in figure 5. It represents an owl, and was found with skeleton 9 in Trench I, by B. W. Merwin in 1911. It measures about five and three-fourths inches in length, including tail, which has been broken off. The material is a variety of fire-clay or clay- stone of mottled gray color. It is well modeled and carefully fin- ished. The hole for the stem is in the center of the back, while the cavity for the tobacco is in the neck.
Incised Drawings, etc. If the art of the occupants of the Mad- isonville site is indicated at all clearly by the few crude drawings and sculptures which were recovered, it seems to have reached about the same stage of development as that of the surrounding Algonquian tribes at the time of their first intercourse with Euro- peans. It was far inferior to the art of the builders of the great earthworks, who preceded them in southern Ohio.
It is highly probable that the painted designs and quillwork patterns of this people on dressed skin and other perishable objects were of a higher grade than one would be led to believe, judging from the crude efforts illustrated on plate 20.
A thin waterworn pebble of lignite, from a cache-pit, with de- signs upon either side is shown in a. The edges are ornamented by a series of short lines, and upon one side is incised the picture of a horned serpent, a small quadruped, and what appears to be a mythical monster with open mouth and prominent teeth. The characteristic triple eye design occurring on certain shell gorgets and pipes from this site is also shown in the figure, which makes it probable that the creature represented belonged to the mythology of the people. A representation of this same being is also etched upon the opposite side of the pebble.
The same figure, more crudely drawn, is scratched upon either side of the flat claystone pebble shown in b. Subsequently, prob- ably on account of the resemblance of the pebble to the outline of a bird's head, two large circles were cut on opposite sides to rep- resent the eyes of the bird, and in front of each a shallow hole was drilled to indicate the nostrils.
It is a fact well known to ethinologists that natural objects re- sembling human or animal forms, or any of their parts, were sup-
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posed to possess supernatural powers, and were often used as fetishes. A number of such objects were recovered. In most instances their forms were but slightly modified by the Indians. Usually only a mouth or eyes were added to accentuate the realistic appearance.
In addition to the one above referred to, (b), good examples are illustrated on the plate. In the head shown in h, the pebble is unmodified with the exception of a hole for the eye upon either side, the groove for the mouth, a small notch near the end opposite the head, and the beginning of a perforation for suspension.
The form of the clay concretion (f), is also wholly natural, with the exception of the groove for the mouth which has been cut upon both sides. In the fragment of another clay object, which somewhat resembles the human profile (i), the grooves which may represent the mouth, the scratches near the nose and surrounding the eye, and the etched band on the forehead, are artificial. The rest of the specimen, including the perforation, is natural. Other fetishes of this class, cut from diseased antler tips, are figured on plate 17, e.
The small object shown in g, plate 15, is made of bone and is carefully polished. While it resembles some of the fetishes above referred to, it is probably an implement, consisting of a handle terminating in what was evidently intended to represent the head of a bird. The eyes and the opening of the beak are indicated on either side by a dot and an incised line. A beautifully finished tool, similar in form but much larger, which was obtained from a Mandan site in North Dakota, is illustrated in the third volume of the Peabody Museum Papers, page 172. One end was in the form of a " crane's head." This portion was serrated along its upper and lower edges, and the implement quite closely resembles a modeler's tool.
The lignite pendant illustrated in g, plate 20, is probably in- tended to represent a buffalo. Another, of the same material, showing a simple arrangement of incised lines is figured in k. These two were found by Mr. Swanton during general excavations. A figure cut from antler and resembling a turkey cock with its tail spread, appears in j. A part of a nearly black pebble, illus- trated in c, has an etched design upon either side. The drawing at the right seems to represent a quadruped, with the head, tail,
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 21
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MADISONVILLE SITE a-d, Charred fragments of bags made of bast; e, Charred fragment of wooden bowl; f-h, Grooved stone finishers; i-k, Stone tablets, use unknown; I, m, Discoidal stones. (About +.)
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and the greater part of the body appearing on the fragment. The Lower portion is missing. Upon the opposite side is etched what appears to be a bird.
A number of small stones, bearing designs which are to us unin- telligible, were found in the general refuse; one is shown in d.
The scene represented on the small pebble illustrated in e, shows the upper portion of three human figures with arms extended and wave-like lines below. These lines may indicate water.
The objects illustrated upon this plate are from cache-pits or were found while excavating. None of them are from graves.
Textile Fabrics and Wooden Utensils. Almost nothing remains to indicate the types of basketry, bags and other fabrics, or the various forms of wooden objects used by the inhabitants of this site. Pottery, stone and bone implements formed, of course, but a very small portion of the artifacts of the people.
The few charred remains of the more perishable objects, how- ever, indicate that their bags and wooden utensils, and probably their basketry also, were similar to those of the surrounding country.
On plate 21, d, is illustrated a charred fragment of the border of a bag made of coarse bast, which was taken from a cache-pit con- taining about three bushels of carbonized corn. Another fragment of probably the same bag, is shown in a. The latter drawing is from a sketch made by Dr. Metz, at the time the fragment was un- covered. In removing the "matting," however, it crumbled to pieces. Dr. Metz's sketch, together with the fragment of the border (d), show that the bag was technically identical with others of coarse bast, which were, until very recently, common among the Ojibwa and the people of the region south of the Great Lakes.
In the collections of the Museum is a bag of the same weave and probably of the same material, obtained from the Sauk and Fox. It is strongly made of coarse bast and is well adapted for holding and transporting shelled corn.
Fragments of the bag found in the pit by Dr. Metz were mixed with the charred corn, and at least a portion of this corn had doubtless been deposited in the bag.
A lower corner of another bag of bast is illustrated in c. This was found with charred corn in a pit by Mr. Swanton. In the Ojibwa exhibit in the Peabody Museum is a bag of the same
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technic and material, which has the border at the opening also finished as in d.
The fragments of braided cordage shown in b were found with charred material in another pit. They are probably the remains of cords for closing the mouths of bags similar to those above described.
In common with most of the tribes of the eastern section of the United States, this people undoubtedly were well supplied with wooden bowls and platters. Only one small carbonized fragment, however, was brought to light during the Museum's explorations. This was taken from a cache-pit near the southern edge of Trench K by B. W. Merwin, and is figured in e. The broken lines show the approximate form of the bowl.
Wooden bowls and platters, especially among the Algonquin tribes, were of excellent design and workmanship. They were usually made of the knotty or burly portions of maple or other hard wood, and the rim was often ornamented with a representa- tion of the head of a bird or animal after the manner shown in the illustration.1
Pottery. The pottery recovered from this site shows a consider- able variety in form, as will be seen by referring to the plates. Most of the vessels are of the cooking-pot type, although a few food bowls were found, and also several erratic forms which do not seem to belong to either of these groups. The ware is as a rule well-made and fairly durable. The material is the clay of the region tempered principally with ground or pulverized unio shells. Approximately half of the vessels show the impression of cord- wrapped paddles used in their making. The texture of the ware is well brought out in the photographs, plate 22. Nearly all of the pots are furnished with ears, usually four but sometimes two only, which were used for holding in place bands or thongs to which sus- pending cords were attached. It does not seem to have been cus- tomary to fasten suspending cords directly to the ears, although this may have been done occasionally. To facilitate the carrying of the smaller pots of this type, the Mandan sometimes tied a thong around the neck of the vessel, passing it through the ears, and a single looped handle a few inches long was made by again
1 For examples of other bowls, see Willoughby, Wooden Bowls of the Algonquian Indians, American Anthropologist, vol. x, p. 423, 1908.
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 22
MADISONVILLE SITE Typical pottery vessels from graves. (About j.)
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tying the ends of the thong together. Most of the smaller un- broken pots, holding approximately a pint to a gallon, such as are illustrated on plate 23, with the exception of n, and s, are from graves. They were more commonly placed near the head, in the manner illustrated in plates 3 and 4. See also table on page 16. These pots evidently contained food, in some cases probably samp or maize porridge or a similar substance, shown by a deposit on the inner side of many of the vessels, which marked the original level of the semi-liquid contents. As the water slowly evaporated, the bran or other material near the surface was deposited on the inner side of the pot in a narrow horizontal band or line more clearly marked at the top, which, although not very conspicuous, can be easily traced. Many of the vessels contained a single valve of a unio shell which served as a spoon, and sometimes bones of food animals were also noted.
The majority of the vessels found with skeletons were of the Style shown in plate 23, h, i. They varied considerably in size and Contour, but were usually furnished with four ears; and were, as za rule, without ornamentation with the exception of slight inden- Tations around the rim and the usual cord-wrapped paddle marks on the body of the pot as shown in plate 22. Few vessels without ears were taken from graves; two are illustrated in f, g, plate 23. Cups with a single handle or ear (a) are rare. Quite a number of pots having two plain ears and two in the form of small quadrupeds with the usual passage between the body of the animal and the neck of the vessel, as shown in r, t, accompanied skeletons. In a few instances a pair of lugs curving downward replace the animals on either side (q), and in one example four pairs of lugs were sub- stituted for the usual looped ears as shown in e. These of course were intended to assist in holding the neck band in place. Bowls in the form of birds or quadrupeds were uncommon. Besides the one illustrated in d, fragments of two or three similar ones were found in the refuse, also several heads broken from bowls of the same general kind, including one which may have been intended for that of a dog. The vessel with the human face modeled upon one side, shown in j, plate 23, is the only example of this type obtained. This was found near the head of a skeleton. But one vessel modeled to represent a pot set within another (plate 24, j) was obtained during the exploration by the Museum. One or two
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others, however, were previously taken from this cemetery. On plate 24, k, and 1, are figured two curious vessels with solid bases, one of which has been broken off. These are now in the collection of the Cincinnati Museum. The unbroken specimen was found with a skeleton by Dr. Metz many years ago. The base of a third vessel of this type was obtained during explorations of the Museum. Food bowls of forms illustrated in m, n, and o, were not plentiful. Fragments were found in the cache-pits and during general exca- vations. Those illustrated are restored from large pieces. The only example of a vessel with painted decoration known to the writer from this site is in the Cincinnati Museum. It is illustrated in b. The design is in black on an unpainted ground and represents the primitive cosmic symbol, the cross within a circle, and a dot for each quarter. It is highly probable that this was a ceremonial bowl. Fragments of cooking pots of the larger sizes were found throughout the cache-pits and in the general refuse. One of the largest, measuring nineteen inches in height and about the same in diameter, restored from fragments, is shown on plate 23, s. These large pots were quite common, judging from the numerous sherds. They were not found with burials, as they were evidently not in- tended for individual food containers, but were used in preparing food for families or a considerable number of individuals. Many of these larger vessels were ornamented with incised decoration ap- plied principally to the neck. The prevailing designs are variations of the guilloche as indicated in plate 24, e, f, i, but many of the patterns consist of a herring-bone arrangement of straight lines or lines and dots as in c, d, g. In some instances the ears were quite elaborately decorated with straight or curved lines. A few miniature cups were found and a small number of little clay effigies of animals all crudely executed, probably the work of children or made by their elders for toys.
The large number of fragments of vessels of all sizes found in the cache-pits, refuse piles, and during general excavations, indicate the abundance of vessels in use, as well as the long occupation of the ground. Perhaps no group of artifacts from this site is more · distinctive than the pottery. A comparison with that from other village sites in the Little Miami Valley, however, notably those near Newtown, and certain others at or near Fort Ancient, as well as from such widely separated localities as the Feurt site near
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 23
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With the exception of the two largest pots (n and s) which are restored from fragments found in cache-pits, the specimens here shown are typical vessels from graves. (16.)
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VOL. VIII, PLATE 24
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MADISONVILLE SITE Pottery vessels from graves; b, Small bowl with primitive cosmic symbol in black; with incised decorations, restored from large fragmenta from cache-pita; m, n, o. stored from large fragments; b, k, I, Cincinnati Museum. (1 g.)
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Portsmouth and the Gartner site near Chillicothe in the Scioto Valley, show that it all belongs to one group. This is true also of other forms of artifacts in general. Madisonville, however, seems to have been the most important center yet known of this culture, and the pottery in general had reached a somewhat higher degree of technical excellence here than in the other localities noted.
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THE SKELETAL REMAINS
The Collection in General. In the various collections of human remains gathered from the cemetery near Madisonville by the ex- cavators of different periods, and deposited in the Peabody Museum, 86 crania were found which belonged to full-grown individuals and were in condition to be measured. Two of these were of doubtful sex, and for this reason the measurements have not been included in the tables. In the other cases sexual differentiation according to the usual criteria was not difficult. The majority of the better preserved crania are separated from their bones because of lack of proper storage facilities in the Museum, and so, in many instances, the bones and skull of the same individual were sexed independ- ently. Upon comparison of the separately sexed skulls and bones agreement as to the sex assigned by the observer in the two in- stances was found in every case except one, where there is un- questionably a mixture of the bones of two individuals of different sexes under the same catalogue number. The skeletal material was catalogued according to graves and in some instances the graves contained mixed burials.
It was not possible to examine and make a full report upon all of the skeletal material from Madisonville, and the total number of individuals represented in the material studied is 217. Of these 111 were adult males, 60 adult females, 16 adults of undetermined sex, 22 children and adolescents, and 8 infants. Many of the skulls measured were sent in from the early excavations by Metz and are unaccompanied by their bones. Most of the bones studied are from skeletons of which the skulls are fragmentary. Apart from the crania, the bones of 112 skeletons were studied, including 90 adults, but only 17 of 86 crania measured belong with these adult skeletons of which the bones were studied.
About half of the total number of crania measured, including the majority of the best preserved, are from the early excavations
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of Dr. Metz and Professor Putnam. Of the remainder about half are from J. R. Swanton's excavations and half from R. E. Mer- win's. Most of the bones studied are from the excavations of Mr. Swanton in 1897.
The measurements, with the exception of the cranial capacities, were taken by the writer with accurate instruments, and, unless otherwise stated, conform to the national agreements of Monaco and Geneva. The cranial capacities were measured by Mr. George Schwab, Associate in African Archaeology and Ethnology in the Peabody Museum, according to the method of Dr. Hrdlička, and under the supervision of the writer. Mr. Schwab also rendered valuable assistance in the preparation of this paper by recording the measurements and observations.
The observations conform to the system devised by Dr. Ales Hrdlička, and in use in the Department of Physical Anthropology in the United States National Museum.
For comparative material in the study of the crania an unpub- lished doctoral dissertation by the late R. G. Fuller, on the crania from the Tennessee Stone Graves in the Peabody Museum, has been utilized. This study of a series of 188 crania from Tennessee was prepared by Mr. Fuller under the direction of the writer and according to the methods in use in the Peabody Museum and in the National Museum.
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