The Guardian Lions on Route 66
Near Amboy California
Part lion and part dog, legendary foo dogs have a reputation for protecting the land and the people where they reside. Two enormous white marble specimens, weighing thousands of pounds, can be found positioned enigmatically along Route 66, just east of Amboy, California. Look for them between Amboy Road and Kelbaker, 400 to 500 feet off the eastbound highway side. No one’s sure when or why they were placed here. A logbook inside the stone legs of one of the lions lies waiting for your comments, and reveals the thoughts of others who’ve stopped here to wonder at the presence of the seven foot tall foo dogs in the middle of the desert. Older entries have been saved and typed up covered in a laminated plastic.
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Foo dogs always found in pairs, male and female, and that’s the case here too. One has an open mouth and one closed. The one with the open mouth is the male — it scares evil spirits away while the female with her closed mouth keeps luck inside her. People have placed coins in their mouths in some kind of plea for protection or maybe for luck.
The male has a textured ball under one paw, perhaps to represent the land under his guardianship, while the female nurtures a cub under hers. Does she do so to indicate protection of the vulnerable? Together they are yang and yin, standing silently in the middle of the Mojave.
Here are some comments from the log book:
Finally stopped for the Amboy Lions. BME
Here is my favorite quote: "Someone once asked me, "Why do you always insist on taking the hard road?" I replied: "Why do you assume I see two roads?" (Author unknown) KMP
Lion, Lion, Lion of beauty, Save the way for us to see, Light the darkness, fill the Sky send the wind up high, Still the night till dawn arrives. Peace to all of us in flight. J. L.
Foo Dog - May you bless all who stop and gaze upon you: There is always beauty somewhere in this world and usually in the most unlikely places. Thank you I SM
Have passed this for years and finally stopped. Love and blessings to all w h o stop. D & J
Unexpected sparks commonly kindles our brightest blazes of gladness. Fortune Cooke
May the magic of wonder course through your veins from this day until your last? Good vibes only. Give silence to negativity. Understand that those who wish t o harm you in any way and or disrupt your peace don't deserve the energy it takes to respond to their actions. You are valuable! Stop engaging with those that can' t afford you. AZ
Living the Air Stream dream cresting inspired design n.
Love lifts us where we belong.
Prayers from my beloved boy Malcom. Love, Mom
We met in London at a pub when he was 19 and I was 20. We agreed to travel and see Iceland together as strangers. We've both been all over t he world. He' s visiting me in America and we're traveling west but passing through here. We've got the world everywhere to see. l' m very in love. Love & Adventures B & T
Location
Route 66 between Amboy Road and Kelbaker Road, 500 feet back from the eastbound highway roadside. Google map location is 34.559197, -115.667952
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