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Nearly twenty mammoth ivory figurines have been found in Aurignacian layers, accurately dated to between 30,000 and 34,000 years ago of four small caves in southwest Germany. This extraordinary figurine, known as a Löwenmensch (lion-man), has slanting marks on its arm suggesting scarring or tattoos. This reinforces the great importance of felines to Paleolithic people, but also highlights the fluid nature of their belief system, in which the borders separating humans and animals were easy to cross.
Picture and text above (paraphrased) from Cave Art, by Jean Clottes, Phaidon Press, 2010.
I have not included this page within the body or citations of the glossary because it is not Incan or even South American. It is included because (a) it blew me away when I found it in the above cited book and I wanted to share it, and (b) it shows clearly that the affinity with large cats as powerful shamanic totems is worldwide within humanity, as is the belief in shapeshifting shamans. It looks so much like artwork found in the habitat range of the jaguar of the runauturuncu, the jaguar/human. (See, for pictures)
Our ancestors were amazing artists, weren't they? -- Patt