Research Items

Abstract

PREHISTORIC CULTURE OF THE COLUMBIA RIVER, U.S.A.—In vol 73, art. 11, of the Proceedings of the U.S. National Museum, Mr. H. W. Krieger describes the results of an investigation of a prehistoric pit-dwelling village at Wahluke, Grant County, Washington, which was undertaken as part of a general survey of the Columbia River area with the view of determining the character of the culture of its early inhabitants and its relation to neighbouring cultures. The area is of considerable importance ethnologically, as the Saddle Mountains form a barrier dividing Salish from Shahaptian-speaking Indians. Geologically, the formation makes it possible to determine without question that man could not have inhabited the area in pleistocene times, and that the relics of early man attributed to pleistocene deposits or associated with pleistocene faunal remains are intrusive. The culture of the pit-house village is especially interesting, as indicating the exhaustive manner in which the inhabitants exploited the natural resources of the area, more particularly in the development of their stone culture, no less than twenty-five varieties of stone being enumerated, of which they made use in the manufacture of tools and implements. It is to be noted that all forms of the stone axe were lacking in the surface finds and among the grave offerings; the inhabitants of Wahluke depended on the hafted discoidal stone war club, the flaked hammerstone, the grooved maul, and the stone wedge in its stead. The cemetery contained both primary and secondary burials, but practically no other type than that of ceremonial burial. A few skulls were recovered from among the remains. These showed artificial deformation, and the occipital flattening due to the use of an uncovered cradle board. The frontal occipital flattening was produced by a cradle board flap similar to that used by Columbian Indians in historic times.