Tuesday, October 25, 2016

"Well Formed Openings"

    I've really been paying attention to those "well constructed wall openings" mentioned here ever since finding the snake head-like boulder shown above, with that well defined white quartz eye feature, at the land trust property around former home of the first Puritan minister in Bethlehem CT. The boulder on the opposite side of the gateway also could be said to resemble another snake head-like stone and both are at slight angles as if giving the impression that the snakes are looking at whom-ever is entering this gateway, bringing to mind that the word Uktena literally means "Strong Looker." The next "well formed opening" to the north of the one shown above at first glance doesn't appear to be anything remarkable as you approach it:
 Standing in the center of the opening, looking to the left, one could interpret this as a variation of the serpent theme, using flatter stones obviously (stacked on what may be an older serpent below the uppermost):
Turning to the right, an almost identical stone, possibly disturbed a little, but still conveying the impression (the Indigenous builder's purposeful intention) of an Uktena seeming to look at the person entering the gateway: 
     Peter's post about Sawyer Hill featured this photo:
Side by side, my photo and Peter's, cropped just a little and resized for effect:
  I don't know what sort of "space" these serpents shown above protect (thinking of Denison Peet and serpents that guard agricultural fields http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/02/effigies-as-source-of-protection-to.html), but these in this post show a repeat of that sort of pattern as "well formed entrances" into a cranberry "swamp" in Litchfield CT, about 10 miles north of the Preacher's Preserve: http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2016/04/cranberry-garden-edge.html

4 comments :

Tim MacSweeney said...

More "gateways:" http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2015/01/another-possible-ophiomorphic-petroform.html

pwax said...

"snake-like" is a very broad category. Is there any boulder shape that is not in the category but still functions as a wall ending?

Tim MacSweeney said...

Great Serpents show up in other media in many different forms. The "single horn" type comes to mind: http://wakinguponturtleisland.blogspot.com/2016/02/adding-single-or-one-horned-horned.html

Tim MacSweeney said...

There's that blocky sort of shape with the suggestion of bison-like horns too: http://rockpiles.blogspot.com/2015/07/uktenagreat-horned-serpents.html