Piasa
Encyclopedia
The Piasa or Piasa Bird is a Native American dragon
depicted in one of two murals painted by Native Americans
on bluffs (cliffsides) above the Mississippi River
. Its original location was at the end of a chain of limestone bluffs in Madison County, Illinois at present-day Alton, Illinois
. The original Piasa illustration no longer exists; a newer 20th Century version, based partly on 19th-century sketches and lithographs, has been placed on a bluff in Alton, Illinois
, several hundred yards upstream from its origin. The limestone
rock quality on the new site is unsuited for holding an image, and the painting must be regularly restored. The original site of the painting was a high-quality (6–8 foot thick) layer of lithographic limestone, which was predominantly quarried away in the late 1870s by the Mississippi Lime Company.
The ancient mural was created prior to the arrival of any European
explorers in the region, and possibly before 1200 CE. It may have been an older iconograph
from the large Mississippian culture
city of Cahokia
, which began developing about 900 CE. The location of the image was at a river-bluff terminus of the American Bottoms floodplain, the site of the Cahokians, the largest prehistoric city north of Mexico and a major chiefdom
. Cahokia was at its peak about 1200 CE, with 20,000 to 30,000 residents. Icons and animal pictographs, such as falcon
s, thunder-birds, bird men, and monstrous snakes were common motifs of the Cahokia culture. The Piasa creature may have been painted as a graphic symbol to warn strangers traveling down the Mississippi River that they were entering Cahokian territory.
An Alton Evening Telegraph newspaper article of May 27, 1921 stated that seven smaller painted images, believed to be of archaic American Indian origin, were found in the early 20th Century approx. 1.5 miles upriver from the ancient "Piasa" creature's location. These pictures were carved and painted in rocks located in the "Levis Bluffs" area by George Dickson and William Turk in 1905. Four of the these paintings were of "an owl, a sun circle, a squirrel, and a piece showing two birds or some kind of animals in a contest", the other 3 paintings were of "a great animal, perhaps a lion, and another an animal about as large as a dog". These paintings were photographed by Prof. William McAdams and were to be placed in his book "Records of Ancient Races in the Mississippi Valley: being an account of some of the pictographs, sculptured hieroglyphs, symbolic devices, emblems and traditions of the prehistoric races of America, with some suggestions as to their origin" William McAdams, C. R. Barns Publishing Co., 1887. {available on Google Books} . These seven archaic American Indian paintings have been lost in recorded annals as they were to have been in transit to the Missouri Historical Society circa 1922. Other Native American carved petroglyphs of a similar time period and region as the Piasa monster are carved into the rocks at Washington State Park, De Soto, Missouri (approx. 60 miles southwest of the current Piasa image). {location: N 38° 04.682 W 090° 41.033 15S E 703146 N 4217006}
The 1797-1798 map of French explorer Nicolas De Finiels' shows the cliffs above the Piasa labeled as Hauteurs De Paillisa (source archives Versailles, France" "Carte d'une Partie Du Cours Du Mississippi"). (Partial source:See Costa 2005: 297)
An earlier 1778 Map titled "A new map of the western parts of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and North Carolina; comprehending the river Ohio, and all the rivers, which fall into it; part of the river Mississippi, the whole of the Illinois River, ... Author Hutchins, Thomas, 1730-1789" clearly shows the place name "PIASAS" where the present day City of Alton is located and bounded by the Wood River to the east. (this map is one of the earliest documented references for the word "Piasa").
The name Piasa, pronounced in English ˈpaɪ.əsɔː , may also have been derived from the Native American Miami-Illinois word páyiihsa (cf. Anishinaabe: apa'iins(ag), "little people(s)"). This was their name for small, supernatural
dwarves said to attack travelers. Local claims that the word "Piasa" meant "the bird that devours men" or "bird of the evil spirit" are not accurate nor based in the Illinois language.
saw the painting on a limestone bluff overlooking the Mississippi River
while exploring the area. He recorded the following description:
Later French explorers, like St. Cosme, reported that by 1699 the series of images were badly worn due to the habits of the local Indians to "discharge their weapons" at the images as they passed. Author A.D. Jones, in his book " Illinois and the West" c.1838, also describes the ravages of weapons (firearms) upon the images, and further refers to the paintings as being named "Piasua".
. John Russell was an imaginative professor of Greek and Latin at Shurtleff College, Upper Alton, Illinois. The article was entitled "The Tradition of The Piasa" and Russell claimed the origin of the word to be from a nearby stream : "This stream is the Piasa. Its name is Indian, and signifies, in the Illini, "The Bird That Devours Men" ". [note: The original "Piasa Creek" ran thru the main ravine in downtown Alton, and was completely covered by huge drainage pipes circa 1912.] According to the story published by Russell, the creature depicted by the painting was a huge bird that lived in the cliffs. Russell claimed that this creature attacked and devoured people in nearby Indian villages shortly after the corpses of a war gave it a taste for human flesh. The legend claims that a local Indian chief, named Chief Ouatoga, managed to slay the monster using a plan given to him in a dream from the Great Spirit
. The Chief ordered his bravest warriors to hide near the entrance of the Piasa Bird's cave, which Russell also claimed to have explored. Outoga then acted as bait to lure the creature out into the open. As the monster flew down toward the Indian Chief, his warriors slew it with a volley of poisoned arrows. Russell claimed that the mural was painted by the Indians as a commemoration of this heroic event.
Some sources report that this account was simply a story created by John Russell. In the book "Records of Ancient Races in the Mississippi Valley..." Chapter 2, 1887 by W. McAdams, the author says he contacted John Russell and Russell admitted the story was "somewhat illustrated".
The bird imagery is not reported in Father Marquette's description, which makes no mention of wings. It is also possible that Marquette's description and Russell's account were both accurate for their respective times. The image may have been repainted at some point between 1673 and 1836 to revise its appearance and iconography
.
When contemporary historian
s, folklorists, and tourism promoters are looking for a narrative description of the story behind the Piasa "Bird", they often rely on Russell's account. This colorful version of the tale can be adapted to allow a wide range of interpretation and allow other cities and counties to claim promotional rights to the legend.
Dragon
A dragon is a legendary creature, typically with serpentine or reptilian traits, that feature in the myths of many cultures. There are two distinct cultural traditions of dragons: the European dragon, derived from European folk traditions and ultimately related to Greek and Middle Eastern...
depicted in one of two murals painted by Native Americans
Native Americans in the United States
Native Americans in the United States are the indigenous peoples in North America within the boundaries of the present-day continental United States, parts of Alaska, and the island state of Hawaii. They are composed of numerous, distinct tribes, states, and ethnic groups, many of which survive as...
on bluffs (cliffsides) above the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
. Its original location was at the end of a chain of limestone bluffs in Madison County, Illinois at present-day Alton, Illinois
Alton, Illinois
Alton is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 27,865 at the 2010 census. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in Southern Illinois...
. The original Piasa illustration no longer exists; a newer 20th Century version, based partly on 19th-century sketches and lithographs, has been placed on a bluff in Alton, Illinois
Alton, Illinois
Alton is a city on the Mississippi River in Madison County, Illinois, United States, about north of St. Louis, Missouri. The population was 27,865 at the 2010 census. It is a part of the Metro-East region of the Greater St. Louis metropolitan area in Southern Illinois...
, several hundred yards upstream from its origin. The limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
rock quality on the new site is unsuited for holding an image, and the painting must be regularly restored. The original site of the painting was a high-quality (6–8 foot thick) layer of lithographic limestone, which was predominantly quarried away in the late 1870s by the Mississippi Lime Company.
The ancient mural was created prior to the arrival of any European
European ethnic groups
The ethnic groups in Europe are the various ethnic groups that reside in the nations of Europe. European ethnology is the field of anthropology focusing on Europe....
explorers in the region, and possibly before 1200 CE. It may have been an older iconograph
Iconograph
An iconograph is a picture formed by a word or words. It can take the form of irregularly shaped letters or irregularly aligned text....
from the large Mississippian culture
Mississippian culture
The Mississippian culture was a mound-building Native American culture that flourished in what is now the Midwestern, Eastern, and Southeastern United States from approximately 800 CE to 1500 CE, varying regionally....
city of Cahokia
Cahokia
Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site is the area of an ancient indigenous city located in the American Bottom floodplain, between East Saint Louis and Collinsville in south-western Illinois, across the Mississippi River from St. Louis, Missouri. The site included 120 human-built earthwork mounds...
, which began developing about 900 CE. The location of the image was at a river-bluff terminus of the American Bottoms floodplain, the site of the Cahokians, the largest prehistoric city north of Mexico and a major chiefdom
Chiefdom
A chiefdom is a political economy that organizes regional populations through a hierarchy of the chief.In anthropological theory, one model of human social development rooted in ideas of cultural evolution describes a chiefdom as a form of social organization more complex than a tribe or a band...
. Cahokia was at its peak about 1200 CE, with 20,000 to 30,000 residents. Icons and animal pictographs, such as falcon
Falcon
A falcon is any species of raptor in the genus Falco. The genus contains 37 species, widely distributed throughout Europe, Asia, and North America....
s, thunder-birds, bird men, and monstrous snakes were common motifs of the Cahokia culture. The Piasa creature may have been painted as a graphic symbol to warn strangers traveling down the Mississippi River that they were entering Cahokian territory.
An Alton Evening Telegraph newspaper article of May 27, 1921 stated that seven smaller painted images, believed to be of archaic American Indian origin, were found in the early 20th Century approx. 1.5 miles upriver from the ancient "Piasa" creature's location. These pictures were carved and painted in rocks located in the "Levis Bluffs" area by George Dickson and William Turk in 1905. Four of the these paintings were of "an owl, a sun circle, a squirrel, and a piece showing two birds or some kind of animals in a contest", the other 3 paintings were of "a great animal, perhaps a lion, and another an animal about as large as a dog". These paintings were photographed by Prof. William McAdams and were to be placed in his book "Records of Ancient Races in the Mississippi Valley: being an account of some of the pictographs, sculptured hieroglyphs, symbolic devices, emblems and traditions of the prehistoric races of America, with some suggestions as to their origin" William McAdams, C. R. Barns Publishing Co., 1887. {available on Google Books} . These seven archaic American Indian paintings have been lost in recorded annals as they were to have been in transit to the Missouri Historical Society circa 1922. Other Native American carved petroglyphs of a similar time period and region as the Piasa monster are carved into the rocks at Washington State Park, De Soto, Missouri (approx. 60 miles southwest of the current Piasa image). {location: N 38° 04.682 W 090° 41.033 15S E 703146 N 4217006}
The 1797-1798 map of French explorer Nicolas De Finiels' shows the cliffs above the Piasa labeled as Hauteurs De Paillisa (source archives Versailles, France" "Carte d'une Partie Du Cours Du Mississippi"). (Partial source:See Costa 2005: 297)
An earlier 1778 Map titled "A new map of the western parts of Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland and North Carolina; comprehending the river Ohio, and all the rivers, which fall into it; part of the river Mississippi, the whole of the Illinois River, ... Author Hutchins, Thomas, 1730-1789" clearly shows the place name "PIASAS" where the present day City of Alton is located and bounded by the Wood River to the east. (this map is one of the earliest documented references for the word "Piasa").
The name Piasa, pronounced in English ˈpaɪ.əsɔː , may also have been derived from the Native American Miami-Illinois word páyiihsa (cf. Anishinaabe: apa'iins(ag), "little people(s)"). This was their name for small, supernatural
Supernatural
The supernatural or is that which is not subject to the laws of nature, or more figuratively, that which is said to exist above and beyond nature...
dwarves said to attack travelers. Local claims that the word "Piasa" meant "the bird that devours men" or "bird of the evil spirit" are not accurate nor based in the Illinois language.
Discovery
In 1673, Father Jacques MarquetteJacques Marquette
Father Jacques Marquette S.J. , sometimes known as Père Marquette, was a French Jesuit missionary who founded Michigan's first European settlement, Sault Ste. Marie, and later founded St. Ignace, Michigan...
saw the painting on a limestone bluff overlooking the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
while exploring the area. He recorded the following description:
- "While Skirting some rocks, which by Their height and length inspired awe, We saw upon one of them two painted monsters which at first made Us afraid, and upon Which the boldest savages dare not Long rest their eyes. They are as large As a calf; they have Horns on their heads Like those of a deer, a horrible look, red eyes, a beard Like a tiger's, a face somewhat like a man's, a body Covered with scales, and so Long A tail that it winds all around the Body, passing above the head and going back between the legs, ending in a Fish's tail. Green, red, and black are the three Colors composing the Picture. Moreover, these 2 monsters are so well painted that we cannot believe that any savage is their author; for good painters in France would find it difficult to reach that place Conveniently to paint them. Here is approximately The shape of these monsters, As we have faithfully Copied It."
Later French explorers, like St. Cosme, reported that by 1699 the series of images were badly worn due to the habits of the local Indians to "discharge their weapons" at the images as they passed. Author A.D. Jones, in his book " Illinois and the West" c.1838, also describes the ravages of weapons (firearms) upon the images, and further refers to the paintings as being named "Piasua".
John Russell account
The monster depicted in the mural was first referred to as the "Piasa Bird" in an article published circa 1836 by John Russell of Bluffdale, IllinoisEldred, Illinois
Eldred is a village in Greene County, Illinois, United States. The population was 211 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Eldred is located at ....
. John Russell was an imaginative professor of Greek and Latin at Shurtleff College, Upper Alton, Illinois. The article was entitled "The Tradition of The Piasa" and Russell claimed the origin of the word to be from a nearby stream : "This stream is the Piasa. Its name is Indian, and signifies, in the Illini, "The Bird That Devours Men" ". [note: The original "Piasa Creek" ran thru the main ravine in downtown Alton, and was completely covered by huge drainage pipes circa 1912.] According to the story published by Russell, the creature depicted by the painting was a huge bird that lived in the cliffs. Russell claimed that this creature attacked and devoured people in nearby Indian villages shortly after the corpses of a war gave it a taste for human flesh. The legend claims that a local Indian chief, named Chief Ouatoga, managed to slay the monster using a plan given to him in a dream from the Great Spirit
Great Spirit
The Great Spirit, also called Wakan Tanka among the Sioux, the Creator or the Great Maker in English, and Gitchi Manitou in Algonquian, is a conception of a supreme being prevalent among some Native American and First Nations cultures...
. The Chief ordered his bravest warriors to hide near the entrance of the Piasa Bird's cave, which Russell also claimed to have explored. Outoga then acted as bait to lure the creature out into the open. As the monster flew down toward the Indian Chief, his warriors slew it with a volley of poisoned arrows. Russell claimed that the mural was painted by the Indians as a commemoration of this heroic event.
Some sources report that this account was simply a story created by John Russell. In the book "Records of Ancient Races in the Mississippi Valley..." Chapter 2, 1887 by W. McAdams, the author says he contacted John Russell and Russell admitted the story was "somewhat illustrated".
The bird imagery is not reported in Father Marquette's description, which makes no mention of wings. It is also possible that Marquette's description and Russell's account were both accurate for their respective times. The image may have been repainted at some point between 1673 and 1836 to revise its appearance and iconography
Iconography
Iconography is the branch of art history which studies the identification, description, and the interpretation of the content of images. The word iconography literally means "image writing", and comes from the Greek "image" and "to write". A secondary meaning is the painting of icons in the...
.
When contemporary historian
Historian
A historian is a person who studies and writes about the past and is regarded as an authority on it. Historians are concerned with the continuous, methodical narrative and research of past events as relating to the human race; as well as the study of all history in time. If the individual is...
s, folklorists, and tourism promoters are looking for a narrative description of the story behind the Piasa "Bird", they often rely on Russell's account. This colorful version of the tale can be adapted to allow a wide range of interpretation and allow other cities and counties to claim promotional rights to the legend.
External links
- "Piasa Bird" and picture, Alton, Illinois
- History of Piasa Bird painting
- "History of the Piasa Bird", Prairie Ghosts
- "Piasa Legend", Piasa Birds