Piasa

A fearsome being from the cosmology of the ancient Mississpians, the Underwater Panther ruled the watery Underworld.

I'm volunteering with a museum here in town, putting together an exhibition on Native Americans and their connection to animals. I've been writing a lot of labels, but one of my favorite cases has to do with the Underwater Panther.

Also called the Piasa and Mishipeshu, the Underwater Panther is the ruler of the Underwater realm. To back up a couple of steps, many of the Eastern Woodlands Native Americans believed in a world with four corners that rested on top of a watery realm (the underworld) which then rotated up to form the night sky. Or, in another version, the world was made on a Turtle's back, with creatures diving through the watery Underworld to bring up the dirt necessary to make the land.

The Underwater Panther was described as having the head and body of a cat, perhaps a mountain lion or lynx, the horns of a deer, and the tail of snake. One image of the Underwater Panther was described by Father Jacques Marquette, a French explorer on his travels on the Mississippi River.

Drawing based on Father Marquette's description of the Underwater Panther.

The Underwater Panther uses his tail to whip up whirlpools, and he was said to appear in places where whirlpools occurred. He could be very dangerous, often drowning those who got too close, but for those bold enough to seek him out, he could also give great rewards of power, knowledge, and strength.

The image of the Underwater Panther, particularly his tail, appears all over Eastern Native American imagery.

Piasa pot in the National Museum of the American Indian. (Wikimedia)

The red and white swirl indicate the whirlpool the Underwater Panther creates and allow the artist to distinguish the creature without having to actually depict a long tail, something a bit difficult to do in ceramics.

The tail was also said to be made of copper, a valuable material, particularly in Mississippian times. Many copper items have been found across Eastern North America in shape of spirals, echoing the whirlpool made by the creature from which they came.

Unlike many European cosmologies, the Underworld is not evil, and neither is the Underwater Panther. Powerful spirits, whether they be from the Underworld or the Aboveworld, were dangerous if approached inappropriately. The Underwater Panther is simply a powerful being, one who could use his powers to reward the bold or punish the proud.