Fig. 220.—Coiled and plain surface. Section.
The fragment shown in Fig. 220 is from the neck of a pot-shaped vase. The surface has been plain below and the fillets of the upper part have been pressed down evenly with the thumb, leaving the extreme edge of the overlapping band in sharp relief, as shown more clearly in the section.
The whole coil is sometimes left plain, as in Figs. 221 and 222, in which cases the edges have been carefully pressed down and smoothed with the fingers.
Fig. 221.—Rib like coil. Section.
Fig. 222.—Rib like coil. Section.
A great variety of devices were resorted to to diversify and decorate the ribbed spirals, and in this the innate good taste of the Indian exhibits itself to much advantage. The coil is often indented or crimped throughout, from the center of the bottom to the rim of the vessel. At times a few turns at the beginning are left plain, as shown in Fig. 217, while again alternate bands, consisting of several turns each, are not crimped, as clearly brought out by an example from Southern Utah, illustrated in the Art Review for July, 1874, by F. W. Putnam, and also by two fine specimens recently collected by E. W. Nelson near Springerville, Arizona.
The decided taste of this ancient people for ornament is still further indicated by attempts to elaborate more intricate patterns by means of thumb-nail indentations. The idea may have been borrowed from basketry. The fragment given in Fig. 223 illustrates the method of procedure. We have some very fine vessels of this class from Springerville, and others from the province of Tusayan in which the entire surface is covered with checkered or meandered patterns. An excellent example is shown in Fig. 253. We shall appreciate the cleverness of this work more fully when we remember that the separate thumb indentations forming the figures of the pattern are made in each coil as it is laid and pressed into place and before the succeeding turn is made.