The Legends of Kokopelli

The Legends of Kokopelli
"He of the singing reed, He of the sacred seed, comes to assure the fertility and good fortune of our people." -- Linda Lay Shuler

Animated Legend of Kokopelli

Definition of Kokopelli

Ko-ko-pel-li (kô kô pel´ lê) n. {der. Hopi "kokopilau" (koko = wood, pilau = hump)} the humpbacked Flute Player, mythical Hopi symbol of fertility, replenishment, music, dance, and mischief.

Wraping it Up!

Scenario:

A forest ranger in Canyons of the Ancients National Monument in Southwestern Colorado is responsible for patrolling approximately 640,000 acres of a canyon strewn, river, desert wilderness area. This wilderness area is protected by the Bureau or Land Management and is home to thousands of Native American ruins and remnants. The ranger was speaking about the magnificence of this desert canyon region and he spoke about how some individuals just cannot help but to pick up artifacts. They know it is not legal, but are compelled to take artifacts from these sacred spaces anyways. He spoke about how these actions (taking pieces of the past from their place) completely ruins the evidence that archaeologists need to better understand the people and cultures who left these artifacts behind. He also explained how people, by picking up pottery shards and disturbing ruins, destroy important clues to the past. It is as though people continue to steal pieces of a jigsaw puzzle until there are so few pieces left, discovering the puzzle images is merely impossible. The ranger shared an example that happened just last week. He caught a woman who had approximately 80 pottery shards in her pocket! What was intriguing is that the ranger said she had completely defaced the site by scouring the entire site and taking pieces from all over it. The ranger went on to say that if this woman had gotten out a shovel and dug up a pot it would have done far less damage to the site and be far less offensive. She took all of the clues and displaced them and completely vandalized the whole site.

Think about it:
Why would it have been less offensive to actually dig up one intact pot, verses pick up handfuls of pottery shards that were broken and scattered throughout an entire site?

Wednesday, April 14, 2010

Siprit Share!

Conclusion:
Create one statement that sums up your belief of how to treat objects left behind by ancient people. (spirit share the conclusion)

27 comments:

Anonymous said...

Yes I agree with the ranger because you woulkd be a theif (maybe not on purpose.) If this keeps happening and all of the pot shards are taaken all clues will be lost!!!

Anonymous said...

I would treat the artifact with great care because if that was the last artifact in the entire world and i broke it or lost or somthing like that the artifacts would be gone forever because there would be no more artifacts.JO

Anonymous said...

My beleif is that you should treat artifacts with respect one because ancaint people created and handled theise things with care amd two other people would want to see those things. KB

Anonymous said...

I think that we should care for other people's stuff i think about it is like people takeing your stuff

Anonymous said...

I believe you should take great care of something left behind by the Native Americans and never steal their belongings-DZ

Anonymous said...

Just look with your eyes and you can draw them on a piece of paper then go home and try to put the clues together.LM

Anonymous said...

I believe that you should use gentle hands and softly touch it.Also, i think that once you are done looking and studying it put it back where you found it.
-CG

Anonymous said...

You should treat them as if they were one of your objects that you did not want to be disturbed. J.L.L

Anonymous said...

I think that we should respect the artifacts that we find becuase we cant just treat it like trash we have to respect it take care of it and not sell it to make money.IP

Anonymous said...

I would tell my pairents and let them take care of it so I don't do any harem to the objects.

Anonymous said...

I think that if you find a piece of pottery or anichent artafacts you should look with your eyes not your hans. ld

Anonymous said...

I would let my pairents take care of it so I don't do any harem to the objects and only look at them not touch.

Anonymous said...

You should just leave them were they were and NOT step on them treat them like a old person.WR

Anonymous said...

That they should preserve the artifacts as well as possible.A.P

Anonymous said...

I would not touch or pick up I would just thouch and feel it with my eyes only. -CM

Anonymous said...

You should leave the objects alone as if you never saw them because you don't want to have all the stress Tep had when he stole the flute.KP

Anonymous said...

I think that you should leave them alone,so other people can see and study them.E.S.

Anonymous said...

I think you should leave them.mm

Anonymous said...

To take is to break.HD

Anonymous said...

To leave no trace is a valuable.RB

Anonymous said...

Treat pottery shards like a treasure map, instead of a treasure at the X there is a treasure in the evidence of the mysteriously disappeared Anasazi.

Anonymous said...

Treat pottery shards how you would treat your life because the Anasazi gauraded them with their life. WM

Anonymous said...

Leave all artifacts where you find them or the spirits will be mad. MS

Anonymous said...

I think the Native Americans would be very upset about pot hunting, collecting shards, and taking the flute because they were put there for a reason, to stay there. They believe that the people who made the pottery, that their souls are still living in the pots. You cannot steal someones soul. If I saw an arrowhead or a pottery shard in my backyard, I would leave it there because I learned that the Anasazi believe there are souls in the pots. I think that taking artifacts is wrong. Both nature and pottery have spirits so the idea of leave no trace and leaving pottery where you find it is similar because your supposed to leave them alone. I agree with the ranger because taking 80 shards is taking evidence that isn't yours and it would be stealing. EA

Anonymous said...

Don't take pottery shards because the Anasazi gaurded them with their lives.

Anonymous said...

Don't tuch the pottery, the Anasazi gaurded it with their lives.

Anonymous said...

Don't even touch the pottery because the Anasazi believe that the person who made the pot is still inside it.