Magnificent.
When people think about ancient civilizations, they think of Egypt, Mesoamerica, Greece.
But there was a magnificent, sophisticated civilization right here in North America. Most of it is preserved in state parks in the Midwest.
Well worth digging into.
Around 700 years ago at Moundville, in Alabama someone carved an eye into the palm of a human hand and wrapped it with two rattlesnakes.
The sandstone Rattlesnake Disk was probably used as a ceremonial palette. At Moundville, the hand-and-eye motif is tied to the path of souls into the upper world.