Serpent Mound

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Serpent Mound
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
U.S. National Historic Landmark
Serpent Mound - an ancient Native American ceremonial structure
Nearest city:	Peebles, Ohio
Coordinates:	39°1′33.09″N 83°25′49.60″W / 39.0258583°N 83.4304444°W / 39.0258583; -83.4304444
Governing body:	State
Added to NRHP:	October 15, 1966
NRHP Reference#:	66000602[1]

Coordinates: 39°01′33″N 83°25′49″W / 39.025778°N 83.430305°W / 39.025778; -83.430305

The Great Serpent Mound is a 1,330-foot-long, three-foot-high prehistoric effigy mound located on a plateau of the Serpent Mound crater along Ohio Brush Creek in Adams County, Ohio. The serpent is the largest effigy earthwork in the world.^{[citation needed]} Scholars believe it was built by the Fort Ancient culture about 1070 CE for ceremonial and calendrical purposes. Maintained within a park by the Ohio Historical Society, it has been designated a National Historic Landmark (NHL) by the Department of Interior.

Contents 1 Description 2 Origin of the Serpent Mound 2.1 The Adena culture 2.2 The Fort Ancient culture 3 Purpose of the Serpent Mound 3.1 Astronomical significance 3.2 Placement 4 Recent History of the Serpent Mound 4.1 Preservation of the Serpent Mound 4.2 Excavation of the Serpent Mound 4.3 Serpent Mound Museum 5 Media 6 See also 7 References 8 Further reading 9 External links

[edit] Description

Including all three parts, the Serpent Mound extends about 1,370 feet (420 m), and varies in height from less than a foot to more than three feet. Conforming to the curve of the property on which it rests, with its head approaching a cliff, the serpent winds back and forth for more than seven hundred feet and ends in a triple-coiled tail. The neck is stretched out off a gentle curve from the seventh coil from the tail, ending with open mouth around the east end of a 120-foot-long hollow oval feature. This is thought variously to be an egg, the sun, the body of a frog, or merely the remnant of a platform. The effigy's extreme western feature is a triangular mound approximately 31.6 feet (9.6 m) at its base and long axis.

[edit] Origin of the Serpent Mound

The dating of the design, the actual original construction, as well as the identity of the builders of the serpent effigy are three questions still debated in the disciplines of social science including ethnology, archeology, and anthropology, with some special interest conveyed today from concerned Native People. Several attributions born of educated opinions have been entered by academic, philosophic, and Native American concerns regarding all three of these unknown factors of when designed, when built, and by whom. These traditionally include the Adena culture, the Hopewell culture and the Fort Ancient culture. The possibility of another culture or group was mentioned originally by missionary John Heckewelder. His 18th-century theory was based on accounts told to him by the Lenni Lenape (later Delaware). A Lenape and Iroquois legend memorializes the Allegheny or Allegewi People, sometimes called Tallegewi. They were said to live in the Ohio Valley in a remotely ancient period, believed pre-Adena, i.e. Archaic or pre-Woodland period (before 1200 BCE). Because many academics did not consider Native American legend reliable as history, an Allegheny Nation role in construction of the Serpent Mound has not been included in academic accounts of its possible origins. (Hamilton, 2001}

The most current attribution is to the so-named Fort Ancient culture, an Ohio Valley-based mound-building society influenced by the contemporaneous Mississippian society based further south. The Fort Ancient society has been given their title because this later Woodland group inhabited the abandoned ramparts of the very large notched earthworks in Warren County, Ohio commonly called "Fort Ancient." Confusingly, this earthwork is actually the creation of the very early Hopewell culture who built it at least 1000 years prior to the arrival of the so-named Fort Ancient culture. This kind of confusion in terminology stems from Ohio Valley archeological interests being unable to determine, through convention, a standarized language for the academic and public forum.

The Fort Ancient society also built large effigy mounds in the upper Midwest (such as Wisconsin), in the shape of birds and other creatures. However, the fact of burials found in the immediate vicinity of the serpent effigy dating to the ancient Adena society considerably more than 1000 years prior to the Fort Ancient people has left room for much continuing debate. Determining dates of the design and construction of the mound and the identity of its builders, are all questions which are still debated. Several suggestions have been made regarding each of these questions. The most commonly considered as builders have been the Adena culture (800 BCE - 100 CE), the Hopewell culture (200 BCE - 500 CE), and the Fort Ancient culture (1000 CE -1650 CE).

Radio carbon dating of materials discovered in 1996 (see below) has indicated that the mound was built circa 1050 CE. This suggests that it was built by the Fort Ancient culture. Scholars currently attribute the Serpent Mound to the Fort Ancient culture. The mound was built close in time to the appearance in the sky of a supernova which left behind the Crab Nebula (1054 CE), and may have been built in recognition of the strange light in the sky. The indigenous people at this time were sky-oriented in their religion and folklore.^{[citation needed]}

Researchers discovered burials in the immediate vicinity of the Serpent Mound. These date to the ancient Adena culture (800 BCE - 100 CE). Thus the burials took place more than 1000 years prior to construction of the mound by the Fort Ancient culture. Debate continues about the roles of each culture related to the Serpent Mound.

[edit] The Adena culture

Historically, researchers first attributed the mound to the Adena culture (800 BCE - 100 CE). William Webb, noted Adena exponent, found evidence through carbon dating for Kentucky Adena as early as 1200 BCE. As there are Adena graves near the Serpent Mound, it was thought to have been constructed by the same people.

Some nearby mounds can be assuredly attributed to the Adena culture, and the Adena were renowned for their elaborate earthworks. Unfortunately, an unrecorded number of their gravesites were destroyed before any organized archeological supervision performed correct analysis of their contents.

Carbon-dating studies in 1996 of material from the mound appeared to place the Serpent Mound outside the span of the Adenas.^[2] In addition, although a trait of most Adena mounds has been the existence of artifacts, to date, no cultural artifacts have been found within the Serpent Mound.

[edit] The Fort Ancient culture

In 1996 the team of Robert V. Fletcher and Terry L. Cameron (under the supervision of the Ohio Historical Society's Bradley T. Lepper) reopened a trench created by Frederic Ward Putnam of Harvard over 100 years before. They found a few pieces of wood charcoal in what was believed to be an undisturbed portion of the Serpent Mound. However, bioturbation, including burrowing animals, frost cracks, etc., can actually reverse the structural timeline of an earthen mound such as Serpent Mound. It can shift carbon left by a later culture on the surface deep into the structure, making the earthwork appear younger.

When carbon dating experiments were undertaken on the charcoal pieces, two yielded a date of ca. 1070 CE, with the third piece dating to the Late Archaic period some two thousand years before, specifically 2920+/-65 years BP (before the present). The third date, ca 2900 BP was recovered from a core sample below cultural modification level. The first two dates place the Serpent Mound within the realm of the Fort Ancient culture, who were contemporaneous with and possibly influenced by the Mississippian cultures of the Southeast. The third dates the mound back to very early Adena culture or before. ^[3]

The Fort Ancient people could have been the builders of the Serpent Mound. Alternatively, they may have refurbished the earthwork for their own use in the same way as people today fix up old houses to be used again. The rattlesnake is significant as a symbol in the Mississippian culture, which may help explain the design of the mound.

If this mound was built by the Fort Ancient people, it was uncharacteristic for that group. Like the Adena, this culture buried many artifacts in its mounds, but the Serpent Mound does not contain any. Also, the Fort Ancient people did not usually bury their dead in the manner in which remains were found in proximity to the effigy. On the other hand, the only other effigy mound in Ohio, the Alligator Effigy Mound in Granville, was also carbon dated to the Fort Ancient period.

[edit] Purpose of the Serpent Mound

The Serpent mound is the largest effigy mound in the world. While there are several burial mounds around the Serpent mound site, the Serpent itself does not contain any human remains and was not constructed for burial purposes.

The Cherokee relate the legend of the Uktena, a large serpent with supernatural appearance and power. The existence of the legend attests to the importance of the figure. Researchers have speculated that perhaps ancient native people created large totemic shrines that were built on platforms made of earth and stone. Such an effigy could have been destroyed by war or changes among inheriting cultures, with the result that only the platform (the mound) was left.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Astronomical significance

In 1987 Clark and Marjorie Hardman published their finding that the oval-to-head area of the serpent is aligned to the summer solstice sunset.^[4] William F. Romain has suggested an array of lunar alignments using the curves in the effigy's body. As these sightlines are over a much shorter distance than the head and oval summer solstice sightline, their legitimacy is less plausible.

The carbon-dating attribution of 1070 CE coincides with two significant astronomical events: the appearance of Halley's Comet in 1066 and the light from the supernova that created the Crab Nebula in 1054. This light was visible for two weeks after it first reached earth, even during the day. Some researchers have speculated that the Serpent Mound was created to emulate a comet, slithering across the night sky like a snake. However, it must be noted that Halley's Comet's tail has always appeared as a long, straight line, and in no way resembles the convolutions of a serpent. Also, Halley's comet appears every 76 years. There are an untold number of other supernovae that may have occurred over the centuries than span the possible construction dates of the effigy.

The Serpent Mound may have been designed in accord with the pattern of stars composing the constellation Draco (dragon). The star pattern of the constellation Draco fits with fair precision to the Serpent Mound.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] Placement

The mound is located on a plateau with a unique cryptoexplosion structure that contains faulted and folded bedrock, which is usually either produced by a meteorite or a volcanic explosion. Determining exactly what formed the Serpent Mound Cryptoexplosion Structure is a problem that geologists continue to debate. Two main solutions have been offered. Some geologists think the structure is a meteorite or asteroid crater. Others suggest that the structure was caused by forces from inside the earth, probably an explosive eruption of gases derived from a deep magma source in the basement rocks.^[5] This is one of the few places in North America where such an occurrence is seen. While some scholars speculate that prehistoric Native Americans may have placed the mound with regard to this geological anomaly, others think there was nothing visible at ground level that would have captured their attention.

In 2003 geologists from Ohio state government and the University of Glasgow (Scotland) concluded that a meteorite strike was responsible for the formation. They had studied core samples collected at the site in the 1970s. Further analyses of the rock core samples indicated the meteorite impact occurred during the Permian Period, about 248 to 286 million years ago. ^[6]

[edit] Recent History of the Serpent Mound

The Serpent Mound was first mapped by Euro-Americans as early as 1815. In 1846 it was surveyed for the Smithsonian Institution by two Chillicothe men, Ephraim G. Squier and Edwin H. Davis. Their book Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley (1848), published by the Smithsonian, included a detailed description and map of the serpent mound.

[edit] Preservation of the Serpent Mound

Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley fascinated many across the country, including Frederic Ward Putnam of the Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology at Harvard University. Putnam spent much of his career lecturing and publishing on the Ohio mounds, specifically the Serpent Mound. When he visited the Midwest in 1885, he found that many of the mounds were quickly being destroyed by plowing and development. In 1886, with help from a group of women in Boston, Putnam raised funds to purchase 60 acres (240,000 m²) at the Serpent Mound site. The purchase also contained three conical mounds, a village site and a burial place.^[7]

Originally purchased on behalf of the Trustees of the Peabody Museum, in 1900 the land and its ownership were granted to the Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society (a predecessor of the present Ohio Historical Society.) It became the first State park in the United States.

[edit] Excavation of the Serpent Mound

After raising sufficient funds, Putnam returned to the site in 1886. He worked for three years excavating the contents and burial sequences of both the Serpent Mound and two nearby conical mounds. After his work was completed and his findings documented, Putnam worked on restoring the mounds to their original state.

[edit] Serpent Mound Museum

In 1901 the Ohio Historical Society hired engineer Clinton Cowan to survey their newly acquired lands. Cowan created a 56 by 72-inch (1,800 mm) map that depicted the outline of the Serpent Mound in relation to nearby landmarks, such as rivers. Cowan also made specific geographical surveys of the area, and discovered the unique crypto-volcanic structure on which the mound is based. He also found that the mound is at the convergence of three distinctly different soil types. Cowan's information, in conjunction with Putnam's archaeological discoveries, have been the basis for all modern investigations of the Serpent Mound.

In 1967, the Ohio Historical Society opened the Serpent Mound Museum, built near the mound. In addition to the museum, a pathway was constructed around the base of the mound.

The museum features various exhibits, including interpretations of the effigy's form, description of the processes of constructing the mound, the geographical history of the area, and an exhibit on the Adena culture, historically credited as the creators of the mound. The museum shop offers publications on archaeology and American Indians, as well as souvenirs and refreshments.

[edit] Media

• Issue No. 118 of Dungeon (magazine), featured "Throne of Iuz," a Dungeons & Dragons adventure inspired by the Serpent Mound.
• An episode of the internet video series "Afterworld" features the Serpent Mound.

[edit] See also

• Mound builder (people)
• Hopewell Culture National Historical Park
• Crooks mound
• Spiro Mounds
• Glades culture
• Nazca Lines

[edit] References

[edit] Further reading

• Fletcher, Robert V., Terry L. Cameron, Bradley T. Lepper, Dee Anne Wymer, and William Pickard, "Serpent Mound: A Fort Ancient Icon?", Midcontinental Journal of Archaeology, Vol 21, No. 1, Spring 1996, University of Iowa.

• Squier, Ephraim G. and Edwin H. Davis, Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington D.C., 1998. Reprint of 1848 edition with a new introduction by David J. Meltzer.

• Woodward, Susan L. and Jerry N. McDonald, Indian Mounds of the Middle Ohio Valley, Blacksburg, Virginia: The McDonald & Woodward Publishing Company, 1986

[edit] External links

• -- "Ohio's Serpent Mound", interview with Ross Hamilton, author of "The Mystery of the Serpent Mound" (4:19 minutes)
• "Serpent Mound State Memorial", Ohio State
• "Hopewell Culture National Historical Park", National Park Service
• Ohio History Teachers - Field Trips: Serpent Mound
• "Archaeological Sites: Serpent Mound", Minnesota State University Mankato
• "Serpent Mound", The Ohio Historical Society
• Ohio State Archaeological and Historical Society
• -- Ohio's Serpent Mound -- Google Maps

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