ntsarvj .t .r.j > < : " ; , - > - - ' - " . ; - ' si. ( i.
s1 . . . "F- . -v . . > / , , ; , , -iwTT4y'i.M.i . . . _ . , ,
Ij * .
Conservative.
ail oruanient , and if the liolo were com
pleted , wo might take that view of it ,
but , aa there is no hole through , the
above theory will not hold.
The peculiar marks on the nock
merely a shadow which were not
noticed before the photograph made
them discernable , are a matter of con
jecture among exports. They have
every appearance of hieroglyphics of
some sort and are being studied by
menus of enlarged photographs and
powerful glasses by an export ; but his
opinion is not ready for publication.
This study may assist in solving the
mystery of this curious relic and we
await with interest his valued opinion.
I need not call your attention to the
symmetry of this bust , nor to the shape
and poise of the head , to the physiog
nomy nor the facial expression , depicted.
As this half-tone made from
- was a photo
graph , wholly by chemical process , you
have before you every light and shadow
reflected by the original. The best
artists cannot improve on the original ,
oxcopjb by retouching the negative. No
retouching has been done on this picture
and you have the same chance to note
these beauties and judge the art of the
original , as well as the skill of its exe
cution , as though you were viewing the
original itself.
I naturally supposed I had discovered
a very rare specimen , but after seeing
the photograph , Mr. Brewer wrote me ,
under date of March 81 :
"Of the busts , clay and stone , I have
over fifty , all about the same size. "
A single specimen is shown in his last
volume of memoirs , "Mille Lao , " 1899.
This is a catlanite imago about the size
of this hematite bust ; but it shows ,
also , about one-half of the body or else
is a "terminal bust. " The view is a
pen drawing and one cannot tell from
it , but it shows a credible specimen of
sculpture. It was taken from a mound
in South Dakota by Hon. John Liud ,
governor of that state.
Sioux images of pipestone are des
cribed by Catlin in "North American
Indians. ' ' ( Vol. 1 , p. 284 , edition of 1843. )
Some illustrations are given and both of
these images might well belong to that
class.
Mr. E. A. Kiliaii , of Alma , Kansas , a
gentleman of scholarly attainments ,
who has taken much interest in matters
archaeologic , during his many years of
active school work in Kansas and other
states , has very kindly sent me a copy of
an article which he clipped from the
Kansas City Journal of March 3 , 1901.
It is of sufficient interest in connection
with this bust and as a matter of record
for preservation to reproduce :
"A tiny stone head in the collection of
Geo. U. S. Hovey , of. Wyandotte
County , Kansas , has given its owner a
very fruitful subject of thought andjias
also , interested , the wise men at 'the
Smithsonian Institution , Washington ,
and the Peabody Museum , Boston.
"This interesting relic is about the
size of this hematite bust. It was
carved from stone and in color , of a light
yellowish cast. Mr. Hovey picked it up
near the great stone house of antiquity
around the mounds of Wyandotte
County , Kansas. It was found under
an accumulation of soil of some little
distance , and must have been there for
years , perhaps for centuries , before
Europeans came to this country. That
it is a very well-executed piece of work
is shown by an examination. It was
the workmanship of one of the best
artisans of the time * * * The big
nose which Napoleon liked in his gen
erals , and width between the eyes , seem
to favor the sterner sex. Markings for
the hair are not shown. * * * The
back of the head is flat ; at the base are
two projections with notches. This Mr.
Hovey thinks indicates that the stone
was to bo fastened to a piece of wropd.
Other stones with projections which
might have been made to represent a
nose , have been found in the neighbor
hood. These may have been used as
dolls.
"But this particular head must have
been much too important for a play
thing. It seems to me it belonged to
some high priest or chief. It was fas
tened to a wand from it radiated
circles of feathers and fringes of beauti
fully colored hair and bits of the finest
furl Brought to view at times of
feasts , victory or worship ; its office was
of great ceremonial importance.
"Mr. Hovey does not attempt to iden
tify the race of people by whom this
relic was made. We think that every
thing the former inhabitants of this
land made , was for a purpose , and we
try to think , too , that what they could
do they did , but scientists tell us that
this little head was hardly made here.
A scholar who has spent some time
delving in the past , said that it was
undoubtedly a southern manufacture ;
that he had seen similar heads on
Aztec vases in the museum in the city
of Mexico.
"Such being the case , Mr. Hovey
thinks we have an explanation for many
things that are sometimes puzzling to
the antiquarians. In other words , he
thinks there was more intercourse be
tween the different tribes and peoples
that inhabited this country than many
persons suppose. Our curio being , then ,
of foreign make , leads us to believe that
in the long time ago the tribes were not
at war. There were periods of peace in
which the domestic pleasures of life
were cultivated , and when art and even
luxury were not unknown. * * * * * *
"Professor Otis Mason , of the Smith
sonian Institution has been in corres
pondence about the relic ; perhaps he
will have a different and more interest
ing theory about it. We are en
titled to our views and if any one can
throw light on the matter I am sure thai
we shall be very thankful. "
From the accompanying pen sketch
which Mr. Kiliau sent with the article
one is led to believe it is a "terminal
bust ; " that is , one where the head only
is carved from a solid block and the rest
of the block is left hi rectangular or
natural form. Eminent authorities tel
us that the ancients used terminal busts
as representatives of deities and thai
they were placed at the bounds of villa
ges , provinces or estates to propitiate
, < & ' „ * (
; he various duties and bring good in
fluences to ward off evil.
This , however , may have no bearing
upon the use of these terminal miniature
busts.
Mr. Kilian also sent me a pen sketch
of a flat , lime-stone idol ( t ) cut in rude
representation of a human head. It is
in the collection of Miss Kate B. Sawrs ,
of Trescott , Kansas. It was found in
1887 is six inches and
, high three-quar
ters of an inch thick. This is of an
entirely different school of sculpture ,
however.
The Hovoy bust seems to belong to
the same class as the catebauite Dakota
bust mentioned above , and this hema
tite bust found at Roca may well be
classified in the same category , although
it is not a''terminal bust , " as the others
seem to be , but is "in the round. " The
size would place them in the same class
at least. The flat side of the Hovey
bust fits very nicely with a future refer
ence made of the use of these tiny stone
images by the Tusayau Indians of Now
Mexico.
From all the accounts at hand , those
three busts stand alone in their class ,
all three are miniature and all three
were , doubtless , used for the same pur
pose.
Were They all Three Made and Used
by the Same Race of People ?
I am inclined to call your attention to
the fact that the Wiohitas , who wan
dered south , and the Pawnees , who
wandered north , once belonged to the
same tribe , and I believe the finding of
these three busts , in their respective
localities ( South Dakota , Lincoln , Neb. ,
Kansas City , Kansas. ) is one more link
in the chain of evidence pointing out
this whole area as once the home of
a very interesting people. As to the
finding of the "fifty specimens in clay
and stone" of which Mr. Brewer speaks ,
I know nothing , and as he is now in the
far northern Hudson bay country,1 can
not give you the history. It may come
later , however.
In my search through the nineteen
volumes of Reports of the Bureau "of
American Ethnology , Smithsonian In
stitution , I find not a single counter
part. The busts and images mentioned
there are all large and but few ore
enumerated.
In the sixth annual report , page 28 ,
W. H. Holmes mentions the figure of a
woman carved in stone ; it is 23 inches
high and was found on the Isthmus of
Panama. It is in the McNiel collection.
Tin's image is carved from basaltic rock
and the features are quite symmetrical.
It resembles the miniature Dakota bust
in features near enough to be a relation.
Another specimen , three feet in height ,
from the island of Cana is in the
National museum. This belongs to the
Central American , School of Sculpture.
Dr. Everett , of Lincoln , has a clay bust
from Central America , that I have seen.