The objects from Ozette that bear carved or painted decoration include boxes, bowl rims, figurines, and various other items.

The decorative elements on these objects are consistent with the formline tradition as documented in the ethnographic record, establishing the presence of this artistic system in the pre-contact period.

This is not a trivial finding.

It establishes that the artistic tradition so prominent in the nineteenth-century ethnographic record was not a product of contact-era influences but was already well-developed before sustained European contact.

The specific conventions visible on Ozette decorated objects are recognizable forms of the formline tradition.