Mound Builders
The Mound Builders were Archaic and Woodland Pre-Columbian cultures, who created various styles of earthen mounds for both burial and ceremonial purposes.
right Poverty Point in what is now Louisiana is a prominent example of early archaic Mound Builder construction from about 2500 BC. This Archaic civilization was followed by the Woodlands era Adena culture, and the Hopewell culture. Around 900 AD the Mississipian culture moved from the west into the Southeast United States including the Mississippi and Ohio River valleys and included a subculture known as the Cahokians.
Their namesake cultural trait was the building of earthworks; burial and ceremonial structures were flat-topped pyramids, cones, or spirals. Some mounds took on unusual shapes. These are considered to be distinct and are known as effigy mounds. Examples of the various types include Monk's Mound, a 100-foot tall structure similar to Mesoamerican pyramids. A good example of an effigy mound is the Serpent Mound, which is 5 feet tall, 20 wide, and over 1330 feet long in the shape of a serpent.
With religion, cities, and government the mound builders represent the earliest known civilizations in the Western Hemisphere. It is possible that Mesoamerican civilizations like the Aztecs and Maya, as well as Eastern American Woodland cultures interacted with them.
External links
- LostWorlds.org | An Interactive Museum of the American Indian
- LenaweeHistory.com | Section on the Mound Builders in a reprint of a 1909 history book by The Western Historical Society
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The Mound Builders is a name given by the European settlers of the North American continent to refer to the 'lost race' of people who were supposedly somebody other than the Native Americans who actually did build the mounds.