In the late 1800s, the U.S. Bureau of Ethnology published reports by James Mooney describing the culture of the North American Indian tribe known as the Cherokee. Mooney’s works have since become the standard by which we understand the Cherokee people and their way of life. Many consider his writings to be the definitive text on Cherokee life prior to westernization.
Bright Mountain Books’ Historical Images edition of James Mooney’s History, Myths, and Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees contains the full texts of James Mooney’s reports, Myths of the Cherokee (1900) and The Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees (1891), along with a bibliography of Mooney’s writings on the Cherokee and an exclusive biographical introduction by George Ellison, James Mooney and the Eastern Cherokees, which provides the perfect historical context for Mooney’s texts.
The first text, Myths of the Cherokee, begins with a comprehensive history of the Cherokee people, ranging from early Cherokee life through such notable events as De Soto’s expedition, the Indian wars, Sequoyah’s invention of the Cherokee alphabet, the Trail of Tears, and the Civil War. The next part of this text is an exhaustive body of myths, legends, and historical traditions that remains unequaled in breadth.
The second text, The Sacred Formulas of the Cherokees, provides an unparalleled account of Cherokee shamanistic practices, including the Cherokee theory of disease, medicinal plants used by the Cherokee, their medical practices, religious ceremonies, and specific formulas used in medicine, hunting, love, and witchcraft. The text also provides a detailed account of the manuscripts that Mooney used for source material.
Complete with numerous photographs, illustrations, manuscripts, and a map of Cherokee territories, this book contains a wealth of information for both scholar and layman, whether for casual reading or professional resource material — definitely a standard for anyone interested in the Cherokee tribe or Native American history.
