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ENGRAVED
MISSISSIPPIAN SANDSTONE TABLETS
A very few Mississippian sandstone engraved tablets have been found on and
near the Cahokia Mounds State Historic site in southern Illinois and
within the American Bottoms flood plain. Most of these have been engraved
with only diamond cross-hatching (two sets of several parallel lines
bisecting each other forming diamonds squares & rectangles). But
others such as the Ramey Tablet, the Birdman Tablet and this new example
the Kassly Tablet have important engraved images on one or both sides. In
the study of ancient Stone Age cultures engraved or sculpted images are
some of the most important artifacts that can be found. They can help to
define cultural complexes by connecting other sites with similar images
and a they give a rare visual picture of the people and their most
important ritual figures.
The most famous of these, and maybe the only complete
example, is the Cahokia "Birdman" Tablet. The image of the
birdman is used as a logo for the Cahokia Mounds State Historic site and
it's image can also be seen on some interstate highway bridges in the
area. |
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THE
KASSLY TABLET
MONROE
COUNTY, ILLINOIS
This new Mississippian sandstone tablet, known as the Kassly Tablet, was
recently discovered by Elizabeth Kassly while surface collecting in a
cultivated field near Valmeyer, Illinois on November 15, 2000. This was a
heavily occupied Mississippian site that has produced many artifacts
assignable to this culture. It's location is approximately two or three
miles from the Mississippi River.
The most important side of the Kassly Tablet shows engravings
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, almost all of these fragile tablets are
broken and with this example 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. This groove or engrave line could 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 must
be looking to the right because there doesn't seem to be enough room to be
facing to the left. 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.
The other
side of the Kassly Tablet is typical of almost all the known engraved
sandstone tablets from the Cahokia area except for the Ramey Tablet which
is engraved with birds heads on one side and human heads on the other. The
most common design consists of two sets of parallel lines or grooves that
bisect each other to form in most cases, diamond designs. This example
has more rectangular shapes than diamonds though. All of the known
engraved tablets from the Cahokia area are made of the same stone that
abraders are made from which were used for sharpening and shaping bone
awls, pins, etc. This abrasive material was also used to make many of
their pipes which also have sharpening grooves cut into the sides and
bottom to the extent that a large majority of them were destroyed from
sharpening wear. This has led to some speculation that the grooves on the
sandstone tablets were in some way used for sharpening. Maybe these stones
played a part in some type of ceremonial process such as scarification.
The Kassly Tablet is deeply grooved.
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.
CLICK
ON PICTURES FOR LARGE IMAGES
 
"KASSLY
TABLET"
MISSISSIPPIAN
CULTURE
MONROE COUNTY,
ILLINOIS |
