HOW THE EARTH WAS FORMED
Title
HOW THE EARTH WAS FORMED
Description
According the Wendat tradition, Yäa’taenhtsihk, mother of the human race, fell from the sky and was saved by geese from drowning tin the sea. She could not survive in the water, so the Great Turtle offered her its shell on which to live.
When she fell from the sky, Yäa’taenhtsihk was pregnant. She bore a daughter, Aataentsic, who later died giving birth to twin sons, Iouske’a and Tawihskaron’. Aataentsic’s body gave to the world the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash. As adults, the Twins created the Earth we know today.
Learn more by travelling the “Huron-Wendat Trail”.
This painting depicts the fall of Yäa’taenhtsihk, whose twin grandsons had the job of preparing the Earth for the arrival of human beings. They had conflicting visions of how the Earth should be formed: Iouske’a wanted life to be easy, which Tawihskaron’ thought that humans should struggle. Each one created elements of nature according to his own ideas. Their conflict was resolved in a duel. By trickery, Iouske’a won and became master of Creation. But he could not entirely undo the obstacles already created by his brother.
HERITAGE TORONTO 2012
When she fell from the sky, Yäa’taenhtsihk was pregnant. She bore a daughter, Aataentsic, who later died giving birth to twin sons, Iouske’a and Tawihskaron’. Aataentsic’s body gave to the world the Three Sisters: corn, beans, and squash. As adults, the Twins created the Earth we know today.
Learn more by travelling the “Huron-Wendat Trail”.
This painting depicts the fall of Yäa’taenhtsihk, whose twin grandsons had the job of preparing the Earth for the arrival of human beings. They had conflicting visions of how the Earth should be formed: Iouske’a wanted life to be easy, which Tawihskaron’ thought that humans should struggle. Each one created elements of nature according to his own ideas. Their conflict was resolved in a duel. By trickery, Iouske’a won and became master of Creation. But he could not entirely undo the obstacles already created by his brother.
HERITAGE TORONTO 2012
Creator
Sarah J. McCabe
Date
July 22, 2021
Files
Collection
Citation
Sarah J. McCabe, “HOW THE EARTH WAS FORMED,” Historic Plaques of Ontario: An Omeka Demo Site, accessed May 18, 2024, https://ontarioplaques.omeka.net/items/show/327.