ted in Fig. 411, is of the
same class as the above but of a much higher grade, both in execution
and conception. The engraved design is one of the most remarkable
ever obtained from the mounds. It consists of two winged and crested
rattlesnakes, which encircle the most expanded part of the vessel, and
of two sunflower-like figures, alternating with them. These designs
are very carefully engraved with a needle-like point, and are adjusted
to the form of the vase in a way that suggests forethought and an
appreciation of the decorative value of the figures. By dint of
rubbings, photographs and sketches, I have obtained the complete
drawing of the various figures which are given in Fig. 412 on a scale
of one-half the original.

[Illustration: FIG. 412.--Engraved design.--1/2.]

The serpent, especially the rattlesnake, has always taken a leading
place in the mythology and the art of the more cultured American
races, and crest-plumes, and wings have often been considered its
proper attributes. The conventional method of representation is also
characteristically aboriginal. The plumes, the figure connected with
the eye, the bands upon the neck, the stepped figures of the body, and
the semi-circular patches on the wings are all characters that appear
again and again in the ancient art of the United States. The peculiar
emblematic treatment of the heart is almost universal in temperate
North America. And just here I may be permitted to suggest that the
remarkable feature of the great earth-work serpent of Adams county,
Ohio, which has been regarded as the "symbolic egg," and which in
its latest phase has become the issue of a frog and the prey of
the serpent, is possibly intended for the heart of the serpent, the
so-called frog being the head. The rosette figures are not often
duplicated in Indian art. There can be little doubt that the figures
of this design are derived from mythology.

_Eccentric forms._--A form of vessel of which civilized men make
peculiar use is depicted in Fig. 413. There is a marked resemblance
to a common tea-pot. A very few examples have been found, two of which
are illustrated in the Third Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology.
The specimen here given is well made and carefully finished. The neck
is low and wide, and the body is a compressed sphere. The spout is
placed upon one side and a low knob upon the other. The absence of
a handle for grasping indicates that the vessel was probably not
int