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Panther Cave |
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The reproduction rights for this image belong to Jim Zintgraff.
It may not be reproduced without written permission.
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| This nine-foot long mountain lion, the most powerful animal in the Lower Pecos bestiary, bounds across the wall of Panther Cave, a large rock shelter on the Rio Grande that holds at least eight other cats as well as several shamans in their feline incarnation. A winged human, the most obvious metaphor for the symbolic flight of the shaman to the spirit world, rises from a circular motif that represents the passage between the three tiers of the shamanic universe. The juxtaposition of the two figures incorporates the two most common themes of the Pecos River style -- the magical ability to shift between animal and human forms, and the bird-like flight of the soul. These marvelous feats are achieved while in the trance state, emphasizing the special status of the shaman who undertook these perilous journeys on behalf of his earthbound people. In this case, the bird shaman was superimposed on the mountain lion, perhaps suggesting his political as well as spiritual ascendancy. |
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