The greater number of the objects were formed by casting in molds. Hammering was but little practiced, excepting, apparently, in the formation of sheet gold, which was probably an indigenous product. Repoussé work is not found, save as represented in the crimping and indenting of gold leaf. Engraving and carving were not practiced. It may be considered certain that gilding, or at least plating, was understood.
The objects are obtained from ancient graves of which no record or reliable tradition is preserved. They are all ornaments, no coin, weapon, tool, or utensil having come to my notice. The absence of
utensils and of hammered objects of any kind strikes me as being rather extraordinary, since it is popularly supposed that, in the normal succession of events, hammering should precede casting and that utensils should be made before elaborate ornaments.
The work exhibits close analogies with that of the mainland of South America, but these analogies appear to be in material, treatment, and scope of employment rather than in the subject matter of the conceptions. The personages and zoömorphic characters represented are characteristically Chiriquian, and were derived no doubt from the mythology of the locality. These works affiliate with the various works in stone and clay, the art products of the province thus constituting a fairly homogeneous whole and being entirely free from traces of European influence.
Metals do not come into use early in the history of a race, as they are not found in shapes or conditions suitable for immediate use, nor are they sufficiently showy when found to be especially desirable for ornaments. A long period must have elapsed before the use of metals was discovered, and a longer period must have passed before they were worked; and, in the light of our knowledge of the ancient tribes of the United States, it would seem that a considerable degree of culture may be achieved before the casting of metals is understood; but in the ordinary course of progress the discovery of methods of alloying rare metals would be far separated from that of the simple fusing and casting of a single metal, such as gold. The Chiriquian peoples not only had a knowledge of the methods of alloying gold with copper, and, apparently, copper with tin, but, if our data are correct, they were able to plate the baser metals and alloys with sheet gold, and, what is far more wonderful, to wash them with gold, producing an effect identical with that of our galvanic processes.
The character of the conceptions embodied in the art unite with evidences of technical skill to prove to us that American culture, as represented by the metal ornaments of Chiriqui, was not the product of a day, but of long periods of experiment and progress.
[POTTERY.]
[ Preliminary.—]
The importance of the potter’s art to archæology has often been pointed out. Baked clay is one of the most enduring materials utilized in art, and its employment by the races of men has fallen but little short of universal. The creations of that noblest of arts, architecture, and the antecedent forms of house building are necessarily left where erected, to be fed upon by the remorseless elements of nature, but the less pretentious utensil of clay accompanies its owner to the tomb, where it remains practically unchanged for ages.
Many glimpses of the early history of the American races and of