Great Water Quotes

“The ends of the canoe arc upwards towards the sky, like opposing axe blades cutting through the water. The tips are bound tightly together with spruce roots and sealed with black pine tar, casting an impressive U-shaped shadow across the water in the evening sun.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“Whenever Niigaanii dreams, new and strange desires awaken within him, compelling him to challenge their beliefs. To Makwa, it seemed as though Niigaanii had accessed a special channel to the divine. He was like a conduit through which the mystical forces of the universe could manifest themselves in the world, which was why he was so respected and revered.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“You see, Ralph Turner and Victor Irish grew up in the 1920s and 1930s, listening to radio shows and watching Westerns in the theater. Growing up, they often played Cowboys and Indians in the fields and forests surrounding their homes. Like most people at the time, they had a Hollywood notion of Native American culture, which they used to try and visualize some kind of indigenous society that would produce copper tools and jewelry. They imagined the technical skill, the mines, and the workers that come with a metalworking society, like their own. However, the portrayal of Native Americans in the Westerns made it di^icult for them to imagine that Native American societies could have achieved this level of expertise.
Having a hard time picturing a Native American using copper, Ralph half-jokingly says, "Maybe the Vikings came to Wisconsin before Columbus?" while shrugging his shoulders.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“Aki, with a sharp intake of breath, found herself stepping forward, drawn to the pit as if by some ancestral magnetism. Beside her, the others mirrored her actions, their gasps creating a symphony of awe that filled the clearing. They stood at the brink, peering down, their eyes wide, their mouths open, their faces reflecting a mixture of reverence and wonder. For a moment, the world seemed to hold its breath—the sounds of the forest stilled, the leaves of the trees pausing in their rustling whispers, even the air itself waiting in hushed anticipation. Then, as if the pause were too profound to last, the forest sounds returned, but the onlookers remained motionless, transfixed. Aki's heart raced as she reached out tentatively, her fingers hovering just above the copper, feeling the warmth that radiated from it. It was not just metal; it was a piece of history, a fragment of the earth's untold story.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“Similarly, others think that the mined copper has gone “missing,” and that this perceived absence of artifacts in North America was further evidence for trans-Atlantic trade. I learned that this misunderstanding arose because most people are totally unaware that thousands of copper artifacts made by Native Americans have been found around Lake Superior and are still regularly discovered to this day. The reality is that these so-called missing copper artifacts were simply lost over vast stretches of forests, lakes, rivers, and prairies. One can only guess how many missing artifacts are actually out there. If the size and extent of the prehistoric copper mines around Lake Superior are any indication, thousands of artifacts are still likely to be found.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“Using his copper knife, he cuts a segment of bark from a dying birch tree. Laying the birch bark on a flat rock, he scrapes the dry inner part of the bark with his knife, developing a small pile of dry fibers that resemble sawdust. The friction soon turns to heat, smoke, and flame.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“The ability to locate and trace these veins across the landscape has elicited the astonishment of all who have actually seen what was accomplished. Sometimes the excavations are connected, and in some places, it is evident that drains were cut through the bedrock to remove water.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior

“Contrary to popular belief, North America, and specifically the Great Lakes region, might be where metal technologies were first used by humans. Copper use emerged about 10,000 years ago. Sometime thereafter, people began to mine copper from the bedrock around Lake Superior, the remains of which can still be seen throughout the region today.”
― David Pompeani, Great Water: The Lost Mines of Lake Superior