National Institute of Informatics - Digital Silk Road Project
Digital Archive of Toyo Bunko Rare Books

132   THE ARCHEOLOGICAL EXCAVATIONS IN ANAU.

Form.—The rather small collection of fragments exhibits only one forma deep cup with a lip gently drawn in and not profiled, and a concave bottom (figs. 104 and 105).

Ornamentation.—The patterns on the dull slip were mostly in a thin mat-black or mat-brown color. The system of ornament has, in certain details, it is true, points of resemblance to the ornamentation of groups a and b. As a whole, however, group c differs so materially from groups a and b that it stands as a special group by itself. This group is shown in figs. Io6-113 and in colors on plate 22, figs. 1-6.

As the reader will see at the first glance, the characteristic motif of the decoration is a zigzag band filled with the trellis pattern, save in exceptional cases, as shown in fig. 111. The lip pattern is very fine and effective—a band of simple or oppositely placed triangles, between which triangular or respectively rhombic areas remain in the ground-color. While the zigzag band does not occur in the pattern scheme of groups a and b, the marginal pattern is related to it. The trellis-triangle as a filling pattern (fig. 106 and plate 22, fig. I) has also a resemblance to it; but its composition is original. The trellis-triangles can also be oppositely placed, and combine to form rhombic patterns (fig. 1Io and plate 22, fig. 3). In this way they alternate pleasantly with the zigzag bands. Zigzag

104   105   bands are themselves, at times, arranged

to form rhomb patterns (fig. 109). An explanation is needed of the horizontal lines which are drawn through these patterns (figs. 106, 109, and i 1o, and plate 22, figs. I and 3). They are doubtless aids for the regular execution of the composition and

are a sign of the limitations of the technical ability of the decorators. They have without doubt, however, a significance in the evolutional history. One needs only to compare the examples from groups a and b in figs. 81 and 82. A special part is played in the decorations by broad lines filled with vertical zigzag lines (figs. 112 and 113, and plate 22, figs. 5 and 6) . They are distinguished from the band-pattern (Bandmuster), of groups a and b by their vertical position, and they have consequently a different significance.

In any event, the technical and decorative peculiarity of group c points to another workshop than that of groups a and b, the latter two certainly belonging to one and the same center of production. It can not, however, have been very far distant, for there are sufficient points of resemblance between group c and groups a and b to prove their relationship.

POTTERY OF THE UPPER STRATA, CULTURE II.

While painting predominates in the pottery of the middle and lower strata, in the more delicate forms as well as in the coarser service vessels, it is much less present in the pottery of the upper strata. Here the common ware is to a much greater extent monochrome and the red and gray ware (entered above

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