Fig. 2 illustrates a spheroidal bead obtained from an ancient grave on Santa Rosa Island, Cal. The form is unusually symmetrical and the perforation neatly made, being small, doubly conical, and slightly countersunk at one end. The surface is smooth and retains a little of the original purplish hue of the shell, probably a Hennites giganteus. Others of the same shape from this locality exhibit like characteristics. A few similar specimens come from San Miguel Island.
Another large specimen from this locality is shown in Fig. 8. It is somewhat flat, and is quite wide in the middle portion, tapering rapidly towards the ends. The perforation is small and regular. The lines of foliation are distinctly marked, but are not sufficiently characteristic to indicate the part of the shell from which the bead is derived.
Pearls.—Two of the most remarkable beads in the national collection are illustrated in Figs. 3 and 13. The latter is an enormous pearl, probably derived from the Haliotis Californianus. It is somewhat pear-shaped, the base being rounded and the apex a little bent. The transverse section is subtriangular. Having been buried for an unknown period in the soil or sand, it has suffered greatly from decay, and has probably lost considerably by exfoliation. The thin, chalky lamellæ come away readily in concentric scales, exposing the iridescent nacre beneath. The perforation is about one-sixteenth of an inch in diameter, and seems to pass through a natural cavity in the interior of the pearl. The smaller specimen given in Fig. 3 is in many respects, similar to the large one. Another, of about the same size as Fig. 3 bears quite a marked resemblance to a lima bean, and is pierced laterally, giving a button like appearance.
These specimens were obtained from graves on San Miguel Island, by Stephen Bowers.
PL. XXXIV—MASSIVE BEADS AND PEARLS.
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TUBULAR BEADS.
In Plate XXXV I have arranged a number of cylindrical beads, together with a few others of unclassified form.
Figs. 1 and 2 illustrate the most common form of the ancient wampum, the white example being made from the columella of a small univalve, and the dark one from the purple portion of a Venus mercenaria. The specimens represented belong to the celebrated "Penn belt," preserved in the rooms of the Historical Society of Pennsylvania.