`` The art sites , predominantly found in caves , feature otherworldly characters , supernatural serpents and dogs that accompanied dead humans on the path of souls , '' they wrote . Paintings and carvings stretch across Tennessee 's Cumberland Plateau . One of them dates back 500 years , University of Tennessee professor says . The images could be a work of ` ` enormous scale , '' he says . They reflect a three - tiered view of the world by the Native Americans of the region .
Paintings and carvings stretch across Tennessee 's Cumberland Plateau . One of them dates back 500 years , University of Tennessee professor says . The images could be a work of ` ` enormous scale , '' he says . They reflect a three - tiered view of the world by the Native Americans of the region .