Jaguar Moon

click here to view close-up details of the painting

Upon the translation of Mayan hieroglyphs by scholars in the early 1990's, a whole new mythos was available to us for the first time.  Verotik took the Mayan Jaguar God and, with Frazetta covers, began something that could have been great. 

I bought books on Mayan mythology and the Mayan culture and within read stories and histories without an Indo-European mythos or influence.  These could have been built on and expanded, while gaps in Mayan history could have been filled in with creative conjecture.  With a couple of exceptions, all that was done by Verotik was to turn the character into a were-jaguar. 

Again, because of Mr. Frazetta's initial involvement, I was originally interested.  As I saw what was developing with the stories in the comic (scream, shout, slash - with never a sense of "restraint" and "cool fire" which Mr. Frazetta suggested I try in my work), I felt there were whole different directions that needed pursuit.  As the covers got worse and worse (without Frazetta), I decided it was time to see if I might get involved and perhaps save an obviously dying comic.  

I did this painting (24 x 30, oil on canvas) to show what quiet and dangerous could do.  Just as it was completed and I was preparing to submit it, Jaguar God the comic saw its last publication.

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