About 7,700 years ago, Mount Mazama in Oregon erupted so violently that it collapsed, leaving the bowl that now holds Crater Lake. The Klamath people tell of a battle between Llao, spirit of the underworld, and Skell, spirit of the sky, that destroyed the mountain. Many see the story as a memory of the real eruption, though that link is hard to prove.
Truth label: Debated. Serious people disagree. You get both sides.
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The legend
In the story, Skell defeats Llao and seals his underworld with the top of the mountain, then fills the pit with water. Llao's head is said to be Wizard Island, which rises from the lake today.
The real blast
The climactic eruption lasted only a few days and was more than forty times as powerful as Mount St. Helens in 1980.
Why it's debated
A story about fire and a fallen mountain fits the geology well. But oral traditions change over time, so it is hard to be sure how much of the tale goes back to people who saw it.
Learn
- Deepest lake in the US. Crater Lake is 1,943 feet deep, the deepest freshwater lake in the United States.
- Geomythology. This is a field that asks whether myths preserve memories of real natural events, like eruptions, floods and earthquakes.
Test yourself
In the Klamath story, who is Llao?
The underworld spirit. Llao rules the underworld and fights Skell, the sky spirit.
Sources
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