Although the conventional design appearing on aboriginal American ceramics has been used successfully as a diagnostic feature in archaeological pottery classification, there has been little analytical and comparative work done on this mass of material. Much of the design, despite the simplicity and wide distribution of its elements, is complicated and richly variable. This apparent complexity has been a stumbling clock in the way of its study.

The purpose of this paper is to present a generally applicable, objective terminology for a classification of conventional design. The terminology is based on symmetry of arrangement, which we have found more useful than any other scheme in elucidating complex designs.