Illustrated Catalogue of a Portion of the Collections Made During the Field Season of 1881

An intriguing snapshot of late‑19th‑century fieldwork, this catalogue brings together the artifacts gathered during a single season of exploration across the American Southeast and into Peru. The author, a Smithsonian ethnologist, documents the work of a diligent collector who moved from Cherokee villages in North Carolina to mound sites in Tennessee, then on to Arkansas, recording each find with careful notes and detailed sketches.

The volume lists stone tools, earthen vessels, shell ornaments, and even a wooden mask, each accompanied by modest illustrations that hint at their original size and form. Readers can follow the systematic inventory of objects, from modest beads to elaborate copper fish‑hooks, and glimpse the methods used to uncover and study them. For anyone fascinated by early archaeological practice or the material culture of native peoples, the book offers a clear, organized window into a bygone era of discovery.