The Great Divide by Peter Watson

Author:Peter Watson [Watson, Peter]
Language: eng
Format: epub, mobi
Tags: cookie429, Kat, Extratorrents
Publisher: HarperCollins US
Published: 0101-01-01T00:00:00+00:00

Fig. 12 Head of a mythical priest almost fully transformed into a feline state; the strands of mucus running down from the nostrils signal the involvement of hallucinogenic snuff in this process. Compare with figure 3.

A second group of tenoned heads, Burger says, ‘portray strongly contorted anthropomorphic faces’, gaping round eyes, with mucus dripping from their nostrils, ‘either slightly or in long flowing streams’ – their features and hairstyles suggest that the same group of individuals is being shown (see figure 12 above). As he wryly adds, ‘The depiction of nasal discharges in prominent public contexts is alien to Western religious traditions.’ Yes, it is, but its significance was known to the early Spanish chroniclers of the New World, more than one of whom observed the Muisca of Colombia putting (hallucinogenic snuff ) powders into their noses, which made the mucus run ‘until it hangs down to the mouth, which they observe in the mirror, and when it runs straight down it is a good sign’.36 The flow of mucus caused by the irritation of the nasal membrane by psychotropic substances ‘is the most conspicuous external index of an altered mental state’.37 Gary Urton, Dumbarton Oaks professor of pre-Columbian studies in the Department of Anthropology at Harvard University, says the nose was regarded as a major orifice of the body on Chavín iconography.38

A third group of tenoned heads combines human features, such as eye and ear shapes, together with large fangs and other non-human features, while in a fourth group the face is totally transformed into a feline, a raptorial bird, or a hybrid of the two. In some of the sculptures, these phases are linked. Thus in one the face has one bulging eye and one almond-shaped eye; another shows the head of a jaguar with mucus hanging from its nose.

The prominent role of hallucinogenic snuff in this process is further supported by the discovery of small stone mortars at Chavín, and at a number of other sites, such as Matibamba. These mortars are too small, and their depressions too smooth, for them to have been used for grinding grain, on top of which they are carved into the form of jaguars or raptorial birds. Bone trays, spatulas, spoons and tubes have also been found in similar contexts, items often represented in Chavínart,allof which supports an hallucinogenic snuff ritual complex.

A final element in all this is the stone frieze that is such a feature of the Circular Plaza at Chavín. This shows, among other things, an anthropomorphic figure holding the stalk of the San Pedro cactus, a figure that has prominent fangs and feline paws.39 In the same row, says Burger, there is a pair of carved anthropomorphic figures with almond-shaped eyes and bulbous noses, ‘reminiscent of the first group of tenoned heads’, and with jaguar tails hanging from their headdresses ‘likewise suggestive of shamanistic transformation’. Below these figures are still more representations of jaguars with the taloned feet of the eagle.40 Burger suggests that these two rows or

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