Cow Skulls - Ornament Of The West

Cow skulls.  Ubiquitous in the southwest.  Ornament, icon, cliche.

You see them in passing and keep going.  Then, after awhile, you see them and stop. 

I haven't read much poetry over the years, but one poet whose work has caught my attention, whose work I actually enjoy reading, is Dylan Thomas.  In particular, "And Death Shall Have No Dominion."  I love the rhythm of the words, the imagery contained in lines like:

"When their bones are picked clean and the clean bones gone." 

Cow skulls.  Their bones picked clean.

Now I stop and take a few shots of the bones picked clean, pausing to wonder.

Embudo, during my first visit to the Santa Fe...  

Galisteo, where I only stayed for a few moments.  I had an uneasy feeling, but I'm glad I stopped, as the banner and skulls are now gone...

Cerrillos, where this doorway to nowhere, unattached to any surrounding structure, stands...

Tucumcari, a small town that lies on Route 66, at an antique store...

Sedona, on the wall of the Visitor's Center...

Cow skulls, ornament of the west, adorning walls and windows, doors and posts.  Bones picked clean and hung...

All photos taken with a Nikon D7000 and Nikkor lens: 10-24 DX (first photo), 55-300 DX VR (second photo), 18-55 DX(third photo), 16-85 DX VR (final two photos)

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