Snake Flirting With The Moon

This tapestry is a depiction of a Blackfeet legend about a snake flirting with the moon. Once there was only one Snake in whole world, a big one, pretty to look at, and proud of his clothes. But he had a wicked heart. Moon is Sun's wife. You know that Sun goes to bed early, and that Moon most always leaves before he gets to his lodge. Snake used to crawl up a high hill and watch Moon in the sky. He was in love with her, and she knew it; but she paid no attention to him. But she liked his looks, and his fine buckskin clothes decorated with beads and quills. This went on for a long time, but she didn't talked to him. Snake thought maybe the hill wasn't high enough, so he found a higher one, and watched Moon pass. Every night he climbed the high hill and waved to her. Then one day she paid attention to Snake, and that morning early, loafing at her work a little, she spoke to him. He was flattered, because he said many nice things to him, but she went on to the Sun's lodge, and left him sitting on the hilltop. Next morning early she saw Snake again, and this time she stopped a long time, so long that Sun had started out from his lodge before she reached home. He wondered what kept her so long. He became suspicious of Snake. Sun made up his mind to catch them together. So every morning Sun left the lodge a little earlier than before; and one morning, just as he crested a mountain, he saw Snake talking to Moon. He was angry because his wife was spending time loafing with a Snake. She ran to the Sun's lodge and left Snake on the hill. In no time Sun grabbed the snake. Snake begged, and promised never to speak to Moon again, but Sun smashed him into thousands of little pieces, all of different colors. The little pieces each turned into a little snake, but they were all too small for Moon to notice after that. That is how so many snakes came into the world; and that is why they are all small, nowadays.