THE
KASSLY TABLET
MONROE
COUNTY, ILLINOIS
This side of the Kassly Tablet shows an important recently discovered
engraving with motifs similar to previously reported Mississippian
cultural imagery. This example apparently has two themes, the serpent at
the top and the birdman underneath. Unfortunately, most of these tablets
are broken and one can only guess at how the complete design may have
looked. The bird man on this tablet can be compared to the only other
known example that was found in 1975 during excavations on the east lobe
of Monks Mound at Cahokia.
Both of these images have a skirt, chest area and out stretched
wing. Unlike the Bird Man tablet from Cahokia this one shows a fringe at
the bottom of the skirt. Also, instead of an oval design on the chest this
one has five punctures or holes in the chest area with another lower down
in the skirt area. The tips of the wing are also shown in this version
unlike the Birdman Tablet that does not show the wing tips. What is most striking
about this tablet is the area where the head would be seems to be cut off
by a horizontal groove but this line could also be part of the wing and
shoulder since it does not continue to the edge of the tablet. If the head
was there it would seem that, unlike the Birdman Tablet, it would have
been looking to the right. The other important image on the Kassly Tablet
is the serpent motif at the top that may or may not have had a head or
even continued across through the damaged area. This same design can be
seen on the famous stone disc from the Moundville site in Alabama that
shows a hand and eye in the center of a serpent.
I have heard for several years about another sandstone tablet
with a birdman engraved on it. It was found near Horseshoe Lake at Cahokia
many years ago. That tablet was evidently also broken but the finder was
very sure that the image was a birdman. Unfortunately, it was sold to
someone living in the eastern United States and its present location is
unknown. Maybe someday it will surface and the image could be studied and
compared with the two known examples.
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