Fig. 1.—Concretion.
The amulets proper may be roughly divided into three classes:
1. Concretions and other strange rock formations, which, on account of their forms, are thought to have been portions of the gods, of their weapons, implements, and ornaments, their té-ap-ku-na-we (the wherewithals of Being).
2. The sacred relics of the gods, which are supposed to have been given to man directly by their possessors, in the "days of the new," and include the "Gifts of the Gods" (yél-le-te-li-we).
3. The magic "medicines" which are used as protective, curative, and productive agencies, and are known as the é tâ-we and á-kwa-we (the "contained" and the "medicines").
Fig. 2.—Mineral fetich.
One object, a mere concretion, will have something about it suggesting an organ of the human body. (See, for example, Fig. 1.) It will then be regarded as the genital organ of some ancient being, and will be highly prized, not only as a means of approaching the spirit of the god to whom it is supposed to have once belonged, but also as a valuable aid to the young man in his conquests with the women, to the young woman in her hope to bear male children.