The Cahokia tablet photographed on display, with the modern illustration kept as a second view.
Why these examples belong together
A lead group awaiting a collection record and a dated context.
object · Cahokia
Cahokia birdman tablet
A photograph of the object now replaces the modern illustration; the drawing is kept as a second view. Mississippian context; accession and dating records remain to be checked.
Dates, sources & image record
Date unresolvedunresolved · Mississippian context; object-level collection and dating records remain to be checked.
photograph · Paul Sableman. CC BY 2.0. Image record Cropped from the source photograph to the tablet and its mount, then reduced to 1000 px wide. No other change.
Another view of this exampleModern illustration of the Cahokia birdman tablet Herb Roe, www.chromesun.com · CC BY-SA 3.0 · Image record Existing source image; displayed uncropped. No generated reconstruction.
Rapanui traditions
Orongo · birdman and rounded form
The carved boulder in a museum record and an early photograph.
Why these examples belong together
One physical object, even when several photographs are consulted.
object · Orongo · Rapa Nui
Orongo birdman boulder
Museum number Oc1920,0506.1. A rounded form is close to the bent hand; the source reads it as an egg.
Dates, sources & image record
c. 1750–1875 CEcatalogue estimate · Approximate museum date; not direct dating of the motif. Date source
historical photograph · Katherine Routledge / Mana Expedition. Public domain. Image record Existing source image; displayed uncropped. No generated reconstruction.
Both presentations suggest avian and human elements.
Keep in the frame
What differs or remains uncertain
Both are now shown in photographs; the modern illustration of the tablet is kept as a second view, and the boulder's only image remains a 1919 photograph.
A small tablet and a relief boulder have different compositional constraints.
Transmission check
Transmission not yet assessed
The comparison is not yet identified or dated well enough to exclude ordinary transmission, later borrowing or an image-selection effect.
What would move this forward
Acquire a museum accession record and dated context for the tablet.
Compare the photograph with the illustration to see what the drawing restores or emphasises.
Follow the evidence
Sources & scope
Provisional editorial record; no independent specialist sign-off. Status describes review depth, not the probability of a historical connection.
