Abstract

Preliminary data from three cases of Iroquoian influence upon adjacent groups are examined. In all three cases, the preferred symmetries in forming decorative bands on pots change in the direction of Iroquoian norms. In the first case, among Western Basin peoples, designs having typical Iroquoian symmetries become admixed with local designs showing other symmetry processes. In the second case, Shenks Ferry people are seen to shift after AD 1300 from symmetry preferences typical of Algonquian groups to Iroquoian symmetries. In the third case, Algonquians in the Connecticut valley show varied efforts to adopt Iroquoian symmetries. Questions of ethnicity are discussed for all three cases, within a culture history framework.