The Piasa Bird, a giant bird-like figure in Indigenous tradition, was painted on a limestone cliff on the Illinois side of the Mississippi near Alton, north of St. Louis, and was recorded by Jacques Marquette in 1673. Limestone quarrying destroyed the painted surface in the 1860s — a reminder that rock art is fragile evidence and can be erased 🐦⛏️
Piasa Bird painting on Mississippi cliffs destroyed by limestone mining
USAArt
Key facts
- The Piasa Bird was a painted image on a limestone cliff overlooking the Mississippi near Alton, Illinois, north of St. Louis—not a petroglyph.
- French explorer Jacques Marquette recorded the image and local legend in 1673.
- Limestone quarrying cut into the cliff and destroyed the original painted surface in the 1860s.
- The video says nearby caves in the region are off-limits and used by local youth.
- Cody presented nineteenth-century reports of enormous elongated skulls found in Mississippi caves and said the illustrated specimens later disappeared into the antiquities market.
- Cody cited reports of monumental stone statuary along the Mississippi from the late 1700s and early 1800s and said it was later destroyed or missing.
- Cody compared a 1930s map extending north to the Mississippi with a 2016 map that does not.
Sources
8. THE PIASA BIRDmuseum.state.il.us
The Piasa Bird, Russell wrote, was a huge flying monster which lived on the cliffs, destroyed Indian villages, consumed its captives, and resisted efforts ...
The 'Piasa Bird' still sits on Mississippi bluffs after centuriesfox2now.com
Many people have passed by the modern-day painting of the Piasa Bird displayed in Alton, Illinois at the edge of the Mississippi River, but not ...
Piasa Bird – Hikes & How to Get Therekomoot.com
The Piasa Bird is painted on a dramatic limestone cliff face, which is a prominent geological feature of the area. These bluffs are part of ...
Piasaen.wikipedia.org
Modern reproduction of the "Piasa Bird" completed 1998/1999 on the bluffs of the Mississippi River in Alton. Piasa. Questioned drawing purported to have been ...
Legend of the Piasa Bird in Alton, Illinoissillyamerica.com
A mythical beast lives on, painted on a limestone cliff, in Alton, Illinois. This is the Legend of the Piasa Bird, who, according to myth, ...
Piasa bird | Native American Mythology & Legendsbritannica.com
The legend of the Piasa bird originated from a painting on a cliff overlooking the Mississippi River near Alton, Illinois. French explorer ...
Piasa Birdmadison.illinoisgenweb.org
Piasa: An Indian Tradition of Illinois,” c. 1836. the Piasa was a giant condor that was slain by Alpeora, a courageous Indian who killed the monster single- ...
Piasa Bird | Great Rivers & Routesriversandroutes.com
The Piasa Bird (pronounced pie-uh-saw), is a local legend with its roots in Alton. The name 'Piasa' was derived from the Algonquian Illiniwek language and ...
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