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Raven Mocker
13" in height x 7.5" in diameter, Gouache
This piece won an honorable mention at the 2000 Five Civilized Tribe's Art Competition. This design comes from a fragmentary but magnificent shell cup found at the Spiro Mounds now in the Richard K. Meyer collection at the Smithsonian Museum. Even though this design is referred to as the "Meyer Bird-Man Cup" I was inspired to add another fabulous wing and a spider-head "lantern" to become my Raven Mocker. In Cherokee lore Ka lanu Ahyeli ski, or Raven Mocker flies through the night with the sound of a strong wind, trailing sparks behind him. While he flies he makes a cry like that of a raven and everyone who hears him knows that someone's life will soon be his. No doubt Indian children heeded their parent's warnings not to stray far from them at night lest they become victims of the Raven Mocker.