the jar is practically double; in other
cases the constriction is so shallow that it is hardly perceptible
(plate CXXVI, _a, b_). The size varies from a simple globular vessel
not larger than a walnut to a jar of considerable size. Many show
marks of previous use; others are as fresh as if made but yesterday.

[Illustration: BUREAU OF AMERICAN ETHNOLOGY

SEVENTEENTH ANNUAL REPORT PL. CXX

SAUCERS AND SLIPPER BOWLS FROM SIKYATKI]

One of the most fragile of all the globular vessels is a specimen of
very thin black-and-white ware, perforated near the rim for suspension
(plate CXXXII). This form, although rare at Sikyatki, is represented
by several specimens, and in mode of decoration is very similar to the
cliff-house pottery. From its scarcity in Tusayan I am inclined to
believe that this and related specimens were not made of clay found in
the immediate vicinity of Sikyatki, but that the vessels were brought
to the ancient pueblo from distant places. As at least some of the
cliff houses were doubtless inhabited contemporaneously with and long
after the destruction of Sikyatki, I do not hesitate to say that the
potters of that pueblo were familiar with the cliff-dweller type of
pottery and acquainted with the technic which gave the black-and-white
ware its distinctive colors.

By far the largest number of specimens of smooth decorated pottery
from Sikyatki graves are food bowls or basins, evidently the dishes in
which food was placed on the floor before the members of a family at
their meals. As the mortuary offerings were intended as food for the
deceased it is quite natural that this form of pottery should far
outnumber any and all the others. In no instance do the food bowls
exhibit marks of smoke blackening, an indication that they had not
been used in the cooking of food, but merely as receptacles of the
same.

The beautiful decoration of these vessels speaks highly for the
artistic taste of the Sikyatki women, and a feast in which they were
used must have been a delight to the native eye so far as dishes were
concerned. When filled with food, however, much of the decoration of
the bowls must have been concealed, a condition avoided in the mode of
ornamentation adopted by modern Tusayan potters; but there is no doubt
that when not in use the decoration of the vessels was effectually
exhibited in their arrangement on the floor or convenient shelves.

The forms of these food bowls are hemispherical, gracefull