Easy Field Guide to Indian Art & Legends of the Southwest
The images depicted in this Easy Field Guide were painted on the insides of ceramic bowls by Mimbres Indians, a small group of the Mogollon culture who lived in the Southwest about 1000 years ago. The art on their bowls is the best evidence remaining of Southwestern Indian mythology and culture. Their paintings are virtual time capsules, windows to peak through into the legends of prehistory. Welcome to a small keyhole. To gain a larger view and explantion we recommend: Mibres Mythology Tales from the Painted Clay also written by James R. Cunkle.
The painted bowls depicted here are well preserved because they were buried with the dead. The Mimbres Indians placed bowls over the face of the deceased and carefully chipped a small hole in the bottom of the bowl. This "kill hole" is visible in several of the examples shown in our Easy Field Guide. The ritual was thought to free the spirit of the bowl to travel with the deceased to the next world.
Please note the illustrations in the guide are accurate reproductions. The interpretations are researched conjecture.
