Continued from Part 1

Elizabeth Agnes Cassley discusses the symbolism of these [Birdman] tablets as well as the similarity between Cahokian culture and development, and the culture and development of other ancient civilizations that experienced the same rapid growth in nearly the same timeframe as Cahokia, while suggesting a possible Mayan connection.

“Raptors were powerful symbols of the sky world. In the upper world, they controlled the sun . . . life! They were the ones that decided whether or not you existed. (…) In North America, many differences existed among the Indians of the Southeast and the Southwest, but there were also ways in which they were similar. It appears that all of the southeastern Indians as well as some outside the Southeast shared basic assumptions and thought patterns. This includes notions of how the ‘cosmos’ was put together, as well as very general theories about why things happened. They also shared a fundamental social transformation that began occurring among them at about A.D. 900-1100. Perhaps they were descendants of the great Mayan culture?” (8)

Elizabeth goes on to discuss just how the Birdman tablet was found.

“Testing was done on a few of these mounds in the state park during the 1970s under the di­rection of Melvin Fowler of the University of Wisconsin. While digging a large test trench, near the two eastern lobes at the base of the largest mound (Monk’s mound), a small sandstone fig­ural tablet was discovered by one of the workers. Ken Williams picked up the stone … his heart pounded, as he observed the many rows of two crosshatched lines overlapped on the rect­angular shaped stone. As he turned it over . . . he saw the engraving of a Birdman . . . half man, half bird, the only representation to be found in good con­text at Cahokia.” (8)

It is also suggested that the carvings on these tablets could have been used to represent elite status.

“Could this Birdman stone have been a cult symbol owned by one of the leaders of the People? Perhaps a stone passed down through generations for the purpose of tattoo and/or identification. Maybe to secure immortality or even prestige. The crosshatching on the back of the stone may represent serpent markings or feathers. Similar crosshatched markings are found on depictions of snakes carved on shell cups (associated with human burials) found at Spiro Mounds in Oklahoma.” (more…)