Post by L Roebuck on Aug 11, 2006 7:51:27 GMT -5
Ancient history lesson inside cave
Cave hikers can see drawings dating back to 1100 A.D.
By AMY RITCHART
The Leaf-Chronicle
Dunbar Cave State Natural Area naturalist Amy Wallace tours the cave area frequently and with a wide range of people.
When she accompanied a group of scholars into the cave one day in January 2005 she didn't expect they'd find what has become the only site in the United States where the public can view ancient artwork from the Mississippian Era
The group, which in addition to Wallace, included author and geologist Larry E. Matthews, Volunteer State Community College history professor Joe Douglas and Billyfrank Morrison, a local historian. The trip was scheduled to study cave drawings, particularly 1800s historical graffiti found in the cave, Wallace says.
Matthews was working on research for his book, "Dunbar Cave: The Showplace of the South."
"One of us said, 'Hey, what are those things? These look pretty neat,'" Wallace says, referring to the rare pictographs.
Douglas took a photo and e-mailed it to University of Tennessee anthropologist Jan Simek, an authority on Southeastern cave art, who visited a few weeks later.
The verdict: The 1847 graffiti was scratched over the ancient cave drawings. Closer examination of the cave walls yielded artwork and charcoal from river cane torches dating between 1100 and 1360 A.D., Simek says.
Caves were often used by American Indians, who had to crawl through a small passageway while holding the river cane torches to light their way. The caves were seen as a connection to the supernatural, Simek says.
"A lot of people are just fascinated that they (the pictographs) were done so long ago," he says. "You'll be amazed with what they had to do. (The cave) is a connection to the underworld."
The pre-Columbian pictographs found closest to the cave mouth show religious symbols depicting a connection between the upper world and lower world including concentric circles, stars, the sun, the moon, the cross and the swastika, which is one of the world's most ancient symbols.
One drawing also depicts an anthropomorph, a Mississippian supernatural male warrior figure with an axe rising from his head and claws.
"Religion literally drove every aspect of their life," Simek says of those who lived in the Mississippian Era. "They had organized lives. The way they expressed their religiosity was like us, through their religious symbols."
The pictographs are near where an underground river ran through the cave, which is common, Simek says.
"Our studies suggest they are not just doodles on the wall — they are compositions," Simek says. "Things are organized according to subject matter. There is the same order in all sorts of caves, commonly the story about passage into the underworld."
The cave, which dates back to the first life in this area, has been a public attraction since the late 19th century. In the 1940s and 1950s, people explored the cave searching for Native American Indian artifacts.
Today people can tour the cave to learn about what people were verifiably doing in the past.
"It's an astounding site," says Simek, who has only seen one other similar site that is more "disturbed."
"The potential of the archaeology in this cave is astounding — cave art in North America is a rare thing. This is the first one we can show to the public — the more you come back, the more you see."
Both Simek and local caver Jerry Clark believe the discovery will bring people to Clarksville.
"It's a great thing — it will have economic impact for the area," Simek says.
"All of the cave art is located in private caves," Clark says. "Because it's (Dunbar Cave), a publicly owned cave, it (the art) can be protected and people can come see it."
Article: www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060811/ENTERTAINMENT/608110301/1040
Cave hikers can see drawings dating back to 1100 A.D.
By AMY RITCHART
The Leaf-Chronicle
Dunbar Cave State Natural Area naturalist Amy Wallace tours the cave area frequently and with a wide range of people.
When she accompanied a group of scholars into the cave one day in January 2005 she didn't expect they'd find what has become the only site in the United States where the public can view ancient artwork from the Mississippian Era
The group, which in addition to Wallace, included author and geologist Larry E. Matthews, Volunteer State Community College history professor Joe Douglas and Billyfrank Morrison, a local historian. The trip was scheduled to study cave drawings, particularly 1800s historical graffiti found in the cave, Wallace says.
Matthews was working on research for his book, "Dunbar Cave: The Showplace of the South."
"One of us said, 'Hey, what are those things? These look pretty neat,'" Wallace says, referring to the rare pictographs.
Douglas took a photo and e-mailed it to University of Tennessee anthropologist Jan Simek, an authority on Southeastern cave art, who visited a few weeks later.
The verdict: The 1847 graffiti was scratched over the ancient cave drawings. Closer examination of the cave walls yielded artwork and charcoal from river cane torches dating between 1100 and 1360 A.D., Simek says.
Caves were often used by American Indians, who had to crawl through a small passageway while holding the river cane torches to light their way. The caves were seen as a connection to the supernatural, Simek says.
"A lot of people are just fascinated that they (the pictographs) were done so long ago," he says. "You'll be amazed with what they had to do. (The cave) is a connection to the underworld."
The pre-Columbian pictographs found closest to the cave mouth show religious symbols depicting a connection between the upper world and lower world including concentric circles, stars, the sun, the moon, the cross and the swastika, which is one of the world's most ancient symbols.
One drawing also depicts an anthropomorph, a Mississippian supernatural male warrior figure with an axe rising from his head and claws.
"Religion literally drove every aspect of their life," Simek says of those who lived in the Mississippian Era. "They had organized lives. The way they expressed their religiosity was like us, through their religious symbols."
The pictographs are near where an underground river ran through the cave, which is common, Simek says.
"Our studies suggest they are not just doodles on the wall — they are compositions," Simek says. "Things are organized according to subject matter. There is the same order in all sorts of caves, commonly the story about passage into the underworld."
The cave, which dates back to the first life in this area, has been a public attraction since the late 19th century. In the 1940s and 1950s, people explored the cave searching for Native American Indian artifacts.
Today people can tour the cave to learn about what people were verifiably doing in the past.
"It's an astounding site," says Simek, who has only seen one other similar site that is more "disturbed."
"The potential of the archaeology in this cave is astounding — cave art in North America is a rare thing. This is the first one we can show to the public — the more you come back, the more you see."
Both Simek and local caver Jerry Clark believe the discovery will bring people to Clarksville.
"It's a great thing — it will have economic impact for the area," Simek says.
"All of the cave art is located in private caves," Clark says. "Because it's (Dunbar Cave), a publicly owned cave, it (the art) can be protected and people can come see it."
Article: www.theleafchronicle.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060811/ENTERTAINMENT/608110301/1040