Underwater panther

An underwater panther (Ojibwe: Mishipeshu (syllabic: ᒥᔑᐯᔓ) or Mishibijiw (ᒥᔑᐱᒋᐤ) [mɪʃʃɪbɪʑɪw]), is one of the most important of several mythical water beings among many Indigenous peoples of the Northeastern Woodlands and Great Lakes region, particularly among the Anishinaabe.

[4] Some archaeologists believe that underwater panthers were major components of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex of the Mississippian culture in the prehistoric American Southeast.

[10] In mythologies of the indigenous peoples of the Great Lakes, underwater panthers are described as water monsters that live in opposition to the thunderbirds,[12] masters of the powers of the air.

[11]: 60  Some traditions believed the underwater panthers to be helpful, protective creatures, but more often they were viewed as malevolent beasts that brought death and misfortune.

[12] As late as the 1950s, the Prairie Band of Potawatomi Indians performed a traditional ceremony to placate the Underwater Panther and maintain balance with the Thunderbird.

It was even worse to take it from the Great Lynx's home, Michipicoten Island; this was considered to be stealing from Mishipeshu himself.

Historical Anishnaabe twined and quilled men's bags often feature an underwater panther on one panel and the Thunderbird on the other.

[12] In 2003, archaeologist Brad Lepper suggested that the Alligator Effigy Mound in Granville, Ohio, represents the underwater panther.

Underwater Panther, George Gustav Heye Center , National Museum of the American Indian
Pictographs of a mishibizhiw as well as two giant serpents [ 1 ] and a canoe, from Lake Superior Provincial Park , Ontario , Canada. Attributed to the Ojibwe. [ 11 ] : 71
Alligator Effigy Mound .