Every culture has its own ways of warning children to stay out of the woods and away from danger. One tale from the Cherokee tribe is U’tlun’ta, or Spear-Finger. U’tlun’ta was described as a shapeshifting witch made purely of stone with razor-sharp fingers, whose main goal is to steal human livers.
The name “Spear-Finger” is translated in the Cherokee language to “she with a pointed spear.” It is said that she has fingers that are made of obsidian on her right hand. Since her being is stone, it is nearly impossible to harm her. She is safe from spears, arrows, and almost all other weapons.
Though her main form is that of an old woman, she can also shape-shift into animals or even shadows. When she is commonly described as an old woman, it is by children, and it is suspected that she does this to try to gain their trust by exploiting their innocence.
U’tlun’ta has also been described as a ghost since she can move very smoothly through the mountains. It said that the only sound of her coming and going is the occasional sound of her cackling.
Though U’tlun’ta is said to be impenetrable by different weapons, she was actually killed by a Cherokee warrior. The legend goes that a Cherokee village was aware she was in the area, hearing her light cackle coming from the woods. In preparation to try to stop her from harming their children, they dug a massive pit in an attempt to trap her in it. U’tlun’ta, once again depicted as an old woman, came into the village and fell into their trap, where many warriors tried to shoot her with arrows, but they had no effect due to her stone skin. It said that when the Warriors were about to give up, a bird landed on her hand, which, to one warrior, revealed the location of her hidden heart. This warrior was a skilled bowman and successfully shot the bird, killing U’tlun’ta where it landed.
Whether this is just a cautionary tale for the Cherokee children or a matter of fact, U’tlun’ta is an important and engraved part of the Cherokee culture.
