Winged antlered anthropomorph
Done in the classic pecos river polychrome river style this figure is the central portion of the "Triad or Tres Shamans". The antler tines on his head are tipped with black dots. According to the Huichols deer have he ability to fly. The sacred deer brought the first peyote to the ancestors by flying from the heavens with peote on his antlered tines as seen on this figure. In close association are colorful impaled dots bursing with color and are representative of the Huichol description of the soul of the deer escaping from the peyote after it is shot by the shaman. This analogy has recently come to understanding by the study of Dr. Carolyn Boyd, a patient and friend of mine who runs the Shumula School near by and author of "Rock art of the Lower Pecos"
© Emile Abbott
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