Sixteen feet from the entrance, 13 feet from the east wall, 4½ feet down, 18 inches above bottom, were part of a large femur and a few fragments of other bones too small and crushed to identify.
Seven feet southwest of this femur, 14 inches lower, was a closely folded skeleton, the skull nearly north, the other bones toward the east wall. Some mussel shells, fragments of deer bones, and two flint knives were near the head. The body had been placed in a shallow hole dug in the talus as it existed at that time, some earth thrown over it, and small rocks piled on. The covering rocks were under 3 feet of detritus, washed in since they were placed there. Near the knees was a piece of antler, neatly perforated, with rounded ends, giving it the shape of a reniform bannerstone (fig. 8). This may have been an ornament, an arrow-shaft straightener, or the holder for a drill or a fire-stick. Near it was a polishing stone deeply worn on both sides (fig. 9).
Fig. 8.—Perforated object of antler from Sell Cave.[ToList]
Twenty-two feet within the reentrant curve at the front, 20 feet from the west wall, at the bottom of the talus, was a skeleton, the skull in small fragments, which, however, were held in place by the tough clay. The teeth were worn below the enamel in places; two well-worked flint knives and one rough one (fig. 10) were near it. The bones looked as if they had been thrown in, occupying only a small space; but probably a folded body had been laid in on the left side.
At 24 feet from the entrance, 17 feet from the west wall, in a hole dug to 20 inches below the present surface of the talus, were broken and spongy bones of an adult. Pelvis, feet, and leg bones were in confusion; the tibiæ were reversed in position, but it may be that the body was laid on the back with the knees flexed and that the bones had fallen as they were found. This is probable, as each patella was where it belonged, and the body lay extended toward the southeast, as shown by the position of the skull. The humerus was about 12 inches long; all the bones were in small pieces. There were many mussel shells among and above the remains, over which earth and small rocks had been piled.
Fig. 9.—Rubbing or polishing stone from Sell Cave.