.> •■ ■ »0 -7*. ""^T * 4 o •>sf?'*A'^'^ ■°o % .-. ^''' ^ ,0^ ">",- '^^ c°'' .':;^:.^- ''°- *P /CC' '■ .- ,- V .<> ■ ^ ' X-- ^4 o^ \C) rr, ■ o^ . ' \0 -7*. 40 -..-^ ^^. \* V -^ ^, o.v ^^ *^^- ,.,\. 't^o^ ^ G° .^^-■°^' ^ ^^ 0^ "b V"- ^--v - - ' 40 - -.^ - . aO v*. \0 V, 'Vj ° 40 ~ '■ \0 '7" ,7 ° ,4 o>. o '-1^ .0' >^°-^^, .-^ ^^.. i V \' I/O V -K •c^- ■7- .0' o V ,0' ■^ • ■■■ -- .- „ <^ .-y » •■ - ^--^^ .V <■ - . -- . <^ .'\ /,• ;.■; ■\ ,V 'X, > r. ■ ,0 xOv;^ ,> 40 <^ jp -a "^° A^^ .... '^^ .-f' -$- <^ ^0 o o ^r , s!>^ c o " = . '^^ ^' S^ v"''^^^ :^' /:VC^ 0' ,0 >„ ^rr:!^' ..^^ .0' -?>' C ' .0' ^•' .^;• ;-. -- * ;;■ ■ 'v£v •■; ■ ' vr""-''^' 5^ ^> * -s-;.-;-:/. Z^-^'*" ;->" ^ A 1 .4 q. ^ -<.. ^■-4>:;.;/.;^?'%' V , ^ ^•^ ^0' •■r"^ . "^ •'". '"^ '> S' .0' AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY The Ancient Basket Makers OF Southeastern Utah George H. Pepper Assistant, Department of Anthropology ^*5^,'408 SUPPLEMENT TO AMERICAN MUSEUM JOUR \0L. II, No. 4, APRIL, 1902 Guide Leaflet No. 6 American Museum of Natural History Seventy-seventh Street and Central Park West, New York City First Vice-President J. PiERPONT Morgan Treasurer Charles Lanier BOARD OF TRUSTEES President Henry Fairfield Osborn Ex Officio Second Vice-President Cleveland H. Dodge Secretary J. Hampden Robb The Mayor of the City of New York The Comptroller of the City of New York The President of the Department of Parks JOSEPH H. CHOATE Class of 1909 J. PIERPONT MORGAN HENRY F. OSBORN J. HAMPDEN ROBB ARTHUR CURTISS JAMES CHARLES LANIER ANSON W. HARD Class of 1910 Class of 1911 SETH LOW Class of 1912 PERCY R. PYNE JOHN B. TREVOR WILLIAM ROCKEFELLER GUSTAV E. KISSEL D. O. MILLS ARCHIBALD ROGERS ALBERT S. BICKMORE CORNELIUS C. CUYLER ADRIAN ISELIN, Jr. Class of 1913 GEORGE S. BOWDOIN A. D. JUILLIARD CLEVELAND H. DODGE ARCHER M. HUNTINGTON EXECUTIVE OFFICERS Director Hermon C. Bum pus Assistant-Secretary and Assistant-Treasurer George H. Sherwood The American Museum of Natural History was established in 1869 to promote the Natural Sciences and to diffuse a general knowledge of them among the people, and it is in cordial cooperation with all similar institutions throughout the world. The Museum authorities are dependent upon private subscriptions and the dues from rnembers for pro- curing needed additions to the collections and for carrying on explorations in America and other parts of the world. The membership fees are, Annual Members! $ 10 Life Members 100 Fellows $ 500 Patrons 1000 All money received from membership fees is used for increasing the collections and for developing the educational work of the Museum. The Museum is open free to the public on every day in the year. The Ancient Basket flakers OF Southeastern Utah A GUIDE LEAFLET DESCRIPTIVE OF AN EXHIBIT IN THE AIVIERICAN nUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY By GEORGE H. PEPPER of Ca^^,, JUL 2 1920 '^/•^B NO. 6 OF THE GUIDE LEAFLET SERIES OF THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY EDMUND OTIS HOVEY, EDITOR New York. Published by the riuseum. April, 1902 ^4k- ,....._ n.n^t- Second Edition, from stereotyped plates, May, 1909 V f r 202 I.-^ SKETCH PLAN OF SECOND, OR MAIN, FLOOR. Thi' colU'Ction illustrating- tlu' ancient basket niakei's of southeastern Utah is in the soutlnvest corner of Hall No. 202 on the Second, or Main, floor of the West wing of the INIuseuin building. THE ANCIENT BASKET xMAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH. By Geop.'^tE H. Pepper, Assistant in the Department of Anthropologv. The southwestern part of the United States is noted archa?o- logicahy for its chff dweUings and pueblos. The cHff-houses are more numerous in Colorado, Utah and Arizona, but the largest group of ruined pueblos is situated in one of the broad canons of northwestern New Alexieo. These homes of the ancient people, though differing greatly in form and situation, as well as the cave lodges and boulder houses of the old river beds, were doubtless the result of environment, and were probably, to a certain ex- tent, occupied contemporaneously. The numerous problems suggested by these ruins have been studied by careful investi- gators, and exploration work has served to verify many hypo- thetical conclusions and to disprove as many more ; but the work may continue indefinitely, for each season brings to light some new problems of iniportance, and it is one of these that will' be considered in this paper. The Wetherill family of Mancos, Colorado, have been closely associated with the arch^rology of the Southwest for nearly a quarter of a century, and they have had the honor of bringing before the public the great Cliff-Dweller region of Colorado and Utah. They have been untiring in their efforts as collectors and are keen observers. Richard, the eldest son, was the leader of most of the exploring trips, and it was he who found, in the Grand Gulch region of southeastern Utah, the skeletons of an ancient people, whose skulls were markedlv different from those of the Cliff" Dwellers, and who named this new people the " Basket Makers." Two gentlemen, Messrs. McLovd and Graham, fol- lowed the pioneers and made a representative collection of the objects and utensils of the Basket people. It is from accounts of the region given by the last named explorers, supplementing the statements of the Wetherill brothers, whom I consider THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH authorities on this subject, that I shall draw many of my facts. Richard Wetherill, in writing of this region, says: "Grand Gulch drains nearly all the territory southwest of the Elk moun- tains, from the McComb Wash to the Clay Hills, about one tlious- and miles of territory. It is the most tortuous canon in the whole of the Southwest, making bends from 200 to 600 yards apart, al- buHlML ^.-*vc uF BASKET MAKERS, GRAND GULCH, UTAH most the entire length, or for fifty miles, and each bend means a The Canons cavc or Overhanging cliff ; all of those with an exposure of Utah. to the sun had been occupied either for clift'-houses or as burial places. The canon is from 300 to 700 feet deep and in many places, toward the lower end, the bends are cut through by Nature, making natural bridges. Under these bridges, in some cases, are houses, and in such places are pictographs in the greatest profusion; the painted ones of the Basket Maker, with the later ones of the Cliff Dweller cut or incised in the rock without paying any attention to previous ones. Ingress and egress are very difficult, there being not more than five or six places where even THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH footmen can ^et into or out of the canon. Water is fairly plentiful. Springs occur at \cry frc(iucnl intervals, running a short dis- tance and sinking in the sand perhaps to rise again lower down the canon. Wherever there are slopes a sjxirse growth of jjihon and cedar occurs; about the springs are cottonwoods, willows and box-elders; in the shaded side canons are mountain ash and ^rj, Bi,SK£T BURIAL, GRAND GULCH, U"^AH hackberry. The usual luish of the canon is scrul) oak. Canes or rushes cover tlie Inttom lands in the \-ic-inity of water." This. then, was the Ikmiic n\' the IJasket Maker, at any rate, so far as we know. There are e\-i(lences that a few, at least, of these people found homes in the caves as far south as the Canon de Chelle, but nine-tenths of the. caves inhabited by these people have been found in the Crand Ciulch country. The Cliff Dwellers practiced artificial flattening of the head. This flattening was confined to the posterior portion of the THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH skull, and was as pronounced in the women as in the men. The occipital deformity is so noticeable and so constant among Physical ^his people that a normal cranium among a lot of skulls Character- would attract the attention of an investigator. Mr. istics. Wetherill discovered that two forms of human skulls occurred in the canons: the broad, short, flattened cranium of the CHIT Dweller and a narrow, elongate, normal cranium. The BASKET BURIAL, GRAND GULCH UTAH latter was the only kind found buried under baskets, a fact which suggested to the discoverer the name "Basket Makers" as an appropriate appellation for the ancient people whose remains he had found. But these were not the onlv marked differences between the two people whose remains are so closelv associated. That the Basket Makers used the bow is doubtful. They had, however, a form of weapon unknown in the Southwest, either in ancient or 6 THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH modern times, save in tliis restricted area, the throwin^-stiek, whose nearest neij^hhor is found in ("hihiialuia, Mexico, in the form of the "atlatl," an implement of war eoncerninj^^ Weapons whieh wonderful tales were told by the early chroni- and clers of New Spain. There are other ini])lements and Utensils, utensils peculiar to this people, one of whieh is similar to the rabbit-stick used by the Ho])i Indians of to-da\'; luit the most striking features are the absence of houses in the ca\-es and the manner of bur\-ing the dead. The Basket Makers lived in caves, l)ut the investigations in this region furnish no e\4dences of their ha\'ing had stone houses. In some of the caves the houses of the Cliff Dwellers 1 1 r 1 1 • r 1 1- n 1 Dwellings, nave been found o\-er the remains oi the earlier pKisket IMakers. In relation to the rooms e.\ca\"ate(l 1)\' the Basket Makers. McLoyd and (Iraliam sa\': "Some of the skulls in this collection were obtained from underground rooms that had been excavated in the clav bottoms of the ea\es. The largest of these rooms are as much as twent\'-t\vo feet in diameter. Thev ha\-e been filled in with ashes and other refuse, and the stone cliff houses constructed over them. The lieads taken from these rooms are of natural form, never hax'ing been changed 1:)\- i)res- sure. No skulls of this shape are found in the stone cliff houses that are in the same caves, and no llattened skulls are found in the underground rooms. Articles found in the rooms beneath the cliff dwellings are, to some extent, dilferent from those ob- tained in the stone liouses abo\-e." \\'etherill makes mention of a great manv (le])ressions in the form of "pot-holes," some of which were lined with baked ela\-: their use may have been, primarily, the storing of Mode of grain or ])n)\-isions, l)ut a secondarx- and final utiliza- Burial, tion was as a grax'C. In these carefulh' ])re])ared ])laces, the bodies of the people were buried. Thev were doul)led u]^ and placed at the IxHtom of the hole, then covered with beauti- ful feather or rabbit-skin robes and finally with baskets, either several small ones or one large canying basket. No matter what the character or qualit\- of the other mortuary articles might be, the basket was almost in\-arial)h' in evidence. THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH The bodies exhibited, eommonly known as mummies, testify forcildy to the (h"vness of tlie eaves in whieh thev were found. They were not suhjecleil to an artifieial mumniifvinsj^ "Mum- process, as many j)eople imaL,nne and as the eommon mies." name would imply, but were buried in the usual manner, Nature alone being responsible for their present condition. The body instead of decaying, slowly dried. Tlie (lesh wasted away, under- going a gradual process of desiccation, until tlie skin, flattened on the bones by the pressure of the eartli aboxc it, became a parchment-like co\-ering tliat enclosed the skeleton. Tliis work of Nature was so wonderfully done tliat tlic indix'idual external features and ]^eculiarities, althougli somewhat (Hstcjrted, are per- fectly preser\-ed. The hair, eyebrows and nails are intact, and the ears, the nose, the skin of the face and other fleshy parts of the body are so perfect that they ]ia\-e l)een rendered almost life-like bv a process employed in one of our unix'crsities. Nature, in this region at least, lias been kind to the archccologist, and, through her carefully prepared store-houses, has made it possible to verify manv hypotheses, while at the same time she has pre- served for the student many in\-alual)le records of the past. The Culture of the Axciext Pj.\sKi:r M.xkers. Although most of the ancient Pueblo pco])le and C]\\( Dwellers were masters of the art of making pottery it would seem, from the data at hand, that the Basket Makers had not Pottery. developed whatever aljility they may have had ni that line. In fact, the maiority of the vessels found with the remains of these people are of a yerv crude type, in(hcatiye oi the first steps in fictile art as pointed out by specialists. McLoyd and Graham, in speaking of this ware, say: "The third kind of pottery is very valuable, less than hfty pieces lia\-ing been found up to date, and those in the underground rooms that have been mentioned as being underneath the Cliff dwellings and in the same caves. It is a \-ery crude, unglazed ware, some of the bowls showing the im]n-int of the l)askets in which they were formed." The pottery mentioned in this statement is on exhibition in 9 THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH the table case in front of the wall case referred to, and will be described in detail in a future publication. The lari^e jars on the u])])cr sliclf of the wall case containinjr the baskets are from the caNcs in wliich some of the remains of the Basket Makers were fount h 1)ut thev are from the „ , , " Vessels for upi^er levels and are the work of the Cdiff Dwellers. Cooking ]\Iany were used as cookin<^ vessels, but most of the and larger ones were rece|)tacles for corn and other ])rovis- Storage. ions. Some of the jars still retain tlie corn and seeds that were placed there by their original owners, wliile otliers are covered with soot that sliows tlie use made of tliem in the culinarv department. It will be noticed that most of the kirge jars have rounded bottoms, necessitating a stand or l)ase to keep them in an u])right ])()sition. The stand used was in the form of a ring made either of yucca ("Spanish bayonet") or cedar bark and one of these may be seen attached to the base of a jar. It foims part of a harness made of yucca lea\-es, wliich also ser\-ed to strengthen the jar, and facilitated the c;nTying of such a vessel. This form of jar is common throughf)ut the greater ])art of the Pueblo and Cliff Dweller countrw nnd is a good example of the ware in which the coils ha\-e not been obliterated b\' smoothing. The bottle-necked olla and a bowl are shown as examples of another form. In these the surface has been smoothed and ornamented with painted designs. In the corrugated other jars, the desigtis are generallv incised, and are either Forms lines or slight depressions forming figures. In the °^ J^^- former stvles of decoration a \-ucca lirush is used, while in the latter a bone im|)lement or stick or e\-en the finger Ucuil was enough to give the desired effect. The foot co\-cring of the ancient sedentary ]KX)]de is interest- ing enough to hll a 1)ook witli instructix'C text, but we must merely glance at that liere shown and ]^ass on to tlie Sandals: great collection of l)askets. The \-ucca ])lant furnished Material, the material from which these sandals usuall>' were made. Some were plaited from the s])lit leaves of the broad-leaved sjX'cies, while for others the entire leaf of the narrow-leaved ])lant was utilized. In making the sandals the progression was from the THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH toe to the heel. Another form, a thick pad-Hke sandal, was made from yucca fibre loosely wo\'en, while a fourth was a carefully woven product, both warp and woof being yucca cord. Other materials were employed in the manufacture of these useful articles, and specimens illustrating this fact may be seen in the table case east of the one under consideration. ^^IP" FOCD TRAY WITH BUTTERFLY DESIGN There is a marked difference in shape between the sandal of the Basket Makers and that of the Cliff Dwellers. The latter Sandals: has a pointed toe, and there is a jog or step a few Shape. inches from the toe end. The sandals of the Basket Makers have square toes, apparently without exception. From the crudest form made from broad leaves to the finest woven THE ANCIENT BASKET MAKERS OF SOUTHEASTERN UTAH product, there is no deviation. The Wetherill brothers made this a point for s]xx>ial investip;ation, and the square-toed form seemed to ]~)ersist to the exehision of the reL Chapmax. Associate Curator of Mammalogy and Ornitliology. April, 1904. Re-printed, February, 1905. Price, 10 cents. PRIMITIVE ART. July, 1904. Price., 15 cents. THE INSECT-GALLS OF THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK CITY. By William Beutenmuller, Curator of Entomology. October, 1904. Price, 15 cents. {Reprinted from The American Museum Journal.) No. 17.— THE FOSSIL CARNIVORES, MARSUPIALS AND SMALL MAM- MALS IN THE AMERICAN MUSEUM OF NATURAL HISTORY. By W. D. Matthew, Ph. D., Associate Curator of Vertebrate Palaeon- tology. January, 1905. Price, 15 cents. No. 18.— THE ]\10UNTED SKELETON OF BRONTOSAURUS. By W. D Matthew, Ph. D., Associate Curator of Vertebrate Palaeontology. April, 1905. Out of print. No. 19.— THE REPTILES OF THE VICINITY OF NEW YORK CITY. By Raymond L. Ditmars, Curator of Reptiles, New York Zoological Park. July, 1905. Price. 15 cents. 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