Threads 97 - Split-Twig Figurines

These split willow deer have always interested me since I could sit by the lake and make them with just a knife as a tool. Here is another idea of what you can make when sitting by the lake.

Reprinted from The Guide to the Grand Canyon National Park, 1990

 "After climbing the steep talus slope the Indians entered the dark recess in the cliff face. Sorting through the willow twigs they had brought from the creek bed below, they split the most supple to within several inches of the cut end using a stone blade hafted in a wooden handle.

"As they twisted and wrapped, the images of animals began to take shape. One had horns much like the desert bighorn sheep; in the body cavity of another at pellet of deer feces was placed as if to give some credence to the tiny deer effigy. The body of the third was pierced by a small willow twig in imitation of a spear.

“A juniper torch was lit when the effigies were finished, and they were cached deep within the cave and covered with rocks.”*

Anthropologists suspect this scene was repeated over 1000 years as Desert Culture hunters sought to ensure a successful hunt. The figurines left behind some 4000 years ago are the oldest record of human life in the Grand Canyon. In recent years, park employees have removed them from the isolated caves in the Redwall Limestone because of increased vandalism of archaeological sites.

*Taken from a Sketch of Grand Canyon Pre-history by A. Trinkle-Jones and Robert C. Euler. Published by the Grand Canyon Natural History Association 1979

Split-twig figurines vary in size from 1 to 8 inches, but all are of similar construction.

 They are made from one twig (1 in diagram above) which was split to within several inches of its cut end (2). The unsplit portion formed the back leg and the backbone (3).One split end, when wrapped around the legs (4), formed the body (5).The other end was then brought up to construct the head and neck (6 to 8).