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Beaver effigy pot (side view). Illinois State Museum image.
Mississippian Birdmen (a, b, c, f Eagle Being from Etowah and Spiro, a and c are holding human heads; d, e, h, i other representations from Spiro: g is a chunkey player). Waring, A.J., Jr., and P. Holder 1968. A Prehistoric Ceremonial Complex in the Southeastern United States. In The Waring Papers, The Collected Works of Antonio J. Waring, Jr., edited by Stephen Williams, p. 9-29. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, Cambridge MA.
Mississippian Birdmen (a, b, c, f Eagle Being from Etowah and Spiro, a and c are holding human heads; d, e, h, i other representations from Spiro: g is a chunkey player). Waring, A.J., Jr., and P. Holder 1968. A Prehistoric Ceremonial Complex in the Southeastern United States. In The Waring Papers, The Collected Works of Antonio J. Waring, Jr., edited by Stephen Williams, p. 9-29. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, Cambridge MA.
Back view of Birger figurine showing serpent tail, squash vine, and hoe. Illinois State Museum-AR-997.
Side view of Birger figurine showing woman hoeing the serpent's back. Illinois State Museum image.
Mississippian Birdmen (Spotted Eagle and costumed human engraved coppers from Spiro and various Missouri sites). Waring, A.J., Jr. 1940-1945. The Southern Cult and Muskogean Ceremonial. In The Waring Papers, The Collected Works of Antonio J. Waring, Jr., edited by Stephen Williams, p. 30-69. Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography, Cambridge MA.
Ceramic vessels from Cahokia site. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Beaker with engraved spiral (water motif?) design, associated with skeleton No. 12, Mound 20, Cahokia. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Duck effigy bowl- Dickson Mounds collection. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-395.
Engraved beaker with a spiral motif (symbolizing water?) excavated from East Stockade at Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-29.
Falcon Dancer with severed human head and ceremonial club. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-673.
Important Mississippian icons & symbols (spider, cross in a circle, forked-eye, feline-serpent, sun on litter, and eye on palm). Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-216.
Clay and stone discoidals, crinoid bead, ceramic beads, and ear spool from the Julien site. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. IDOT University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Engraving on shell from Spiro Mounds,Oklahoma showing winged rattlesnake-panther beings around across-and-circle symbol. Hamilton, H.W. 1952. The Spiro Mound with aPreface by J.A. Brown, and including An Interpretation of the Place ofSpiro Mound by Charles C. Willoughby. Missouri Archaeologist Vol. 14. SEEALSO Howard, J.H. 1968. The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex and itsInterpretation. Memoir of the Missouri Archaeological Society No. 6.
Human effigy pipe from theSchild site. Green County IL. Perino, G. H. 1971. The MississippianComponents at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. InMississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St.Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No.8.
Frog pipe with frog depicted holding a (shaman's?) rattle. Illinois State Museum-AR-1209, Illinois State Museum accession number 800/519.
West figurine, side view. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
West figurine, back view. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
West figurine, back & side views. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Falcon showing the forked-eye pattern on the head and barred wing feathers. Grossman, M.L. and J. Hamlet, photos by S. Grossman 1964. Birds of Prey of the World. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. New York.
Falcon with a blue-jay in its talons. Grossman, M.L. and J. Hamlet, photos by S. Grossman 1964. Birds of Prey of the World. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. New York.
Kestrel. Grossman, M.L. and J. Hamlet, photos by S. Grossman 1964. Birds of Prey of the World. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. New York.
Falcon with a blue-jay in its talons. Grossman, M.L. and J. Hamlet, photos by S. Grossman 1964. Birds of Prey of the World. Clarkson N. Potter, Inc. New York.
Painting of Falcon Dancer with falcon feather cape. Dancer is holding human head or effigy of head and a ceremonial or war club. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-673.
Modified swan bones (probably refuse from bone bead manufacture) from Cahokia. Top: humerii proximal, proximal, distal. Bottom: distal femur, two proximal ulnae. Illinois State Museum-AC-41.
Keller figurine: kneeling woman on (?) ears of corn. Illinois State Museum-AR-999.
Keller figurine: kneeling woman on (?) ears of corn. Illinois State Museum-AR-999.
Willoughby figurine: woman holding trays (for green corn ceremony?). Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A human effigy pot. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-397.
Line drawing of Etowah copper plate of birdman (Falcon?) dancer with barred feather cape. The figure is holding a club in one hand and a human head in the other. Note the forked-eye motif on the (sacrificed?) human head. Moorehead, W.K. 1932. Etowah Papers. Published for the Department of Archaeology, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, by Yale University Press, New Haven.
Line drawing of Etowah copper plate of birdman (Falcon?) dancer with barred feather cape. The figure is holding a club in one hand and a human head in the other. Note the forked-eye motif on the (sacrificed?) human head. Moorehead, W.K. 1932. Etowah Papers. Published for the Department of Archaeology, Phillips Academy, Andover, MA, by Yale University Press, New Haven.
Bird man tablet from Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-38.
Bird man tablet from Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-38.
Bird man tablet from Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-38.
Line drawing of engraved beaker with cross-and-circle motif recovered from near winter solstice pole of Circle 2, Cahokia Tract 15A. Wittry W.L. 1996. Discovering and Interpreting the Cahokia woodhenges. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):26-35.
Line drawing of engraved beaker with cross-and-circle motif recovered from near winter solstice pole of Circle 2, Cahokia Tract 15A. Wittry W.L. 1996. Discovering and Interpreting the Cahokia woodhenges. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):26-35.
An engraved beaker with cross-and-circle motif Cahokia Tract 15A, Feature 309. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Close up of marine shell gorget from Perry County, Missouri showing forked-eye motif. MacCurdy, G.C. 1913. Shell Gorgets from Missouri. American Anthropologist XV, 3:395-414. SEE ALSO Brown, J.A. 1985. The Mississippian Period. In Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians, edited by D.S. Brose, J.A. Brown, and D.W. Penney, photographs by D. Bakker, pp. 93-145. Harry N. Abrams, NY.
Marine shell gorget from Perry County, Missouri showing chunkey stone player with forked-eye motif. MacCurdy, G.C. 1913. Shell Gorgets from Missouri. American Anthropologist XV, 3:395-414. SEE ALSO Brown, J.A. 1985. The Mississippian Period. In Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians, edited by D.S. Brose, J.A. Brown, and D.W. Penney, photographs by D. Bakker, pp. 93-145. Harry N. Abrams, NY.
Drawing of a shell gorget from Illinois showing spider with cross-and-circle motif on body. Holmes, J.H. 1883. Art in Shell of the Ancient Americans. Bureau of American Ethnology, 2nd Annual Report. Washington D.C. SEE ALSO Howard, J.H. 1968. The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex and its Interpretation. Memoir of the Missouri Archaeological Society No. 6.
Natchez chief Great Sun transported on a pole litter. Le Page Du Pratz 1758, II:368 SEE ALSO Brown, J.A. 1985. The Mississippian Period. In Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians, edited by D.S. Brose, J.A. Brown, and D.W. Penney, photographs by D. Bakker, pp. 93-145. Harry N. Abrams, NY.
Engraving on shell from Spiro Mounds, Oklahoma showing winged rattlesnake-panther beings around a cross-and-circle symbol. Hamilton, H.W. 1952. The Spiro Mound with a Preface by J.A. Brown, and including An Interpretation of the Place of Spiro Mound by Charles C. Willoughby. Missouri Archaeologist Vol. 14. SEE ALSO Howard, J.H. 1968. The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex and its Interpretation. Memoir of the Missouri Archaeological Society No. 6.
Line drawing of engraved marine shell gorget from Mississippi showing the pole litter motif, and woodpecker heads surrounding the cross-and-circle motif (symbolizing the chief as brother of the sun). Howard, J.H. 1968. The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex and its Interpretation. Memoir of the Missouri Archaeological Society No. 6. after Holmes, J.H. 1883. Art in Shell of the Ancient Americans. Bureau of American Ethnology, 2nd Annual Report. Washington D.C.
Line drawing of an engraved shell gorget from Sumner County, TN showing pole litter motif, and woodpecker heads surrounding the cross-and-circle motif (symbolizing the chief as brother of the sun). Howard, J.H. 1968. The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex and its Interpretation. Memoir of the Missouri Archaeological Society No. 6. after Willey, G.R. 1966. An Introduction to American Archaeology, Vol. I. Fig. 5-59, p. 305 Englewood Cliffs, NJ.
Engraved marine shell gorget from Mississippi showing the pole litter motif, and woodpecker heads surrounding the cross-and-circle motif (symbolizing the chief as brother of the sun). Holmes, J.H. 1883. Art in Shell of the Ancient Americans. Bureau of American Ethnology, 2nd Annual Report. Washington D.C. SEE ALSO Brown, J.A. 1985. The Mississippian Period In Ancient Art of the American Woodland Indians, edited by D.S. Brose, J.A. Brown, and D.W. Penney, photographs by D. Bakker, pp. 93-145. Harry N. Abrams, NY.
Photograph and line drawing of fine engraved ceramic shell effigy cup from refuse pit north of Mound 34 Cahokia. Brown, J.A. 1989. On Style Divisions of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: A Revisionist Approach. In The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: Artifacts and Analysis, edited by P. Galloway, p. 183-204. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Front view of West figurine showing rattlesnake. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Human heads engraved on ceramic sherds from refuse pit north of Mound 34, Cahokia. Brown, J.A. 1989. On Style Divisions of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: A Revisionist Approach. In The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: Artifacts and Analysis, edited by P. Galloway, p. 183-204. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Various animal and human effigies and decorative objects from the American Bottom. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Line drawing of Ramey Incised rim with forked eye motif, Dugan Airfield Site. Kelly, J.E. 1996. Redefining Cahokia: Principles and Elements of Community Organization. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):97-119.
Line drawing of Ramey Incised with forked eye motif (?), East St. Louis. Kelly, J.E. 1996. Redefining Cahokia: Principles and Elements of Community Organization. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):97-119.
Ogee-eye glyph from the Vogt site petroglyph. Fortier, A. 1995. The Vogt Petroglyph Complex in Monroe Co., Illinois. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 82-101.
Chunkey stone with eye motif, Liz's Eye site. Fortier, A. 1995. The Vogt Petroglyph Complex in Monroe Co., Illinois. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 82-101.
Chunkey stone with eye motif, Liz's Eye site. Fortier, A. 1995. The Vogt Petroglyph Complex in Monroe Co., Illinois. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 82-101.
Discoidals and disks from the Emergent Mississippian component at the Range site. Kelly, J.E., S.J. Ozuk, and J.A. Williams, with contributions by L.S. Kelly, L. Whalley, and G.R. Milner. 1990. The Range Site 2: The Emergent Mississippian Dohack and Range Phase Occupations (11-S-47). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 20. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Engraved beaker with design interpreted as rattlesnake motif, reportedly from Cahokia site. Dick, G. C., 1955 Incised Pottery Decorations from Cahokia, A Middle Mississippi Site in Western Illinois. Missouri Archaeologist 17(4):36-48.
Ramey-Incised decorated rim sherds (curvilinear designs perhaps symbolizing water or the water world?) reportedly from the Cahokia site. Dick, G. C., 1955 Incised Pottery Decorations from Cahokia, A Middle Mississippi Site in Western Illinois. Missouri Archaeologist 17(4):36-48.
Ramey-Incised decorated rim sherds (curvilinear designs perhaps symbolizing water or the water world?) reportedly from the Cahokia site. Dick, G. C., 1955 Incised Pottery Decorations from Cahokia, A Middle Mississippi Site in Western Illinois. Missouri Archaeologist 17(4):36-48.
Copper plate of falcon warrior or priest with severed human head in one hand and a ceremonial or war club/ax in the other, Etowah Mound, Georgia. Note also the barred wing feather cape and the hooked, raptor-like nose. Williams, S., and J. M. Goggin 1956. The Long Nosed God Mask in Eastern North America. Missouri Archaeologist 18(3):3-72.
Photograph and line drawing of fine engraved ceramic shell effigy cup from refuse pit north of Mound 34 Cahokia. Brown, J.A. 1989. On Style Divisions of the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: A Revisionist Approach. In The Southeastern Ceremonial Complex: Artifacts and Analysis, edited by P. Galloway, p. 183-204. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Engraved ceramic sherds from Cahokia. (1) Cross-and-circle motif on sherd. (2) Pottery disc with lines radiating from center and surrounded by circle, James Ramey Mound. (3) Sherd with a peculiar design (forked eye?), Stockyards Village Site. (4) Pottery disc, James Ramey Mound. (5) Perforated clay disc, Wells-Tippetts Village Site. (6) Perforated sandstone disc with concentric engraved circles (earspool?), Ramey Village Site. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Figurine fragments and other artifacts from Ramey collection. (1) Human forearm and hand in clay. (2) Animal effigy in clay. (3) Fireclay (?) ornament. (4) Stone pipe. (5) Bear or beaver effigy in clay. (6) Engraved stone tablet. (7) Stone pipe. (8) Stone celt. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Shell and clay ornaments and effigies from Cahokia. (1) Shell gorget with skeleton, Sawmill Mound. (2) Human head carved from fresh water mussel shell, Sawmill Mound. (3) Fresh water mussel shell (Elliptio dilatatus) fashioned into nose or ear ornament, James Ramey Mound. (4) Clay bird head effigy, Wells-Tippetts Village Site. (5) Clay bird head effigy, James Ramey Mound. (6) Clay bird head effigy, James Ramey Mound. (7) Clay mammal head effigy, Sawmill Mound. (8) Ornament fragment, James Ramey Mound. (9) Pot sherd rim fragment, James Ramey Mound. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Likely Middle Mississippian petroglyphs from Southern Illinois sites. Lower is back wall of rock shelter near Gorham Ill. Upper right appears to be a buffalo calf painted yellow over depressed area. Outlines were chalked for photographs. Deuel, T., 1958. American Indian Ways of Life. Illinois State Museum Story of Illinois No. 9, Springfield.
Drawings of Mississippian petroglyphs from a cave near Ste. Genevieve Mo. Includes circle in cross and other sun motifs, hands, and bird images. Bushnell, D. I., 1914. Archaeological Investigations in Ste. Genevieve County, Missouri. Washington DC. See also O'Brien, P. J. 1994. Prehistoric Politics: Petroglyphs and the Political Boundaries of Cahokia. Gateway Heritage 15(1):30-47.
Copper plate of bird-man or falcon dancer from Dunklin Missouri. Note the barred wing-feather cape. Fowke, G. 1910 Antiquities of Central and Southeastern Missouri. Bureau of American Ethnology 37, Washington DC. See also O'Brien, P. J. 1994. Prehistoric Politics: Petroglyphs and the Political Boundaries of Cahokia. Gateway Heritage 15(1):30-47.
Line drawings of ceramic effigy figurines from Cahokia Kunnumann tract: a: human; b: frog; c: bear; and d: bird. Holley, G. R., 1995. Microliths and the Kunnemann Tract: An Assessment of Craft Production at the Cahokia Site. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 1-68.
The Vogt hand petroglyph from Monroe County, Illinois, American Bottom. Fortier, A. 1995. The Vogt Petroglyph Complex in Monroe Co., Illinois. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 82-101.
Artist's depiction of Vogt southern petroglyph rock from Monroe County, Illinois, American Bottom. Note the circular, eye-like designs, and a cross-and-circle in an eye motif. Fortier, A. 1995. The Vogt Petroglyph Complex in Monroe Co., Illinois. Illinois Archaeology 7(1-2): 82-101.
Engraved beaker from Cahokia site, donated by Moorehead, ISM collection. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
An engraved beaker with cross-and-circle motif Cahokia Tract 15A, Feature 309. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Top down view of a Ramey decorated jar. Kelly, J.E. 1996. Redefining Cahokia: Principles and Elements of Community Organization. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):97-119.
Copper tortoise shell effigy rattle from the Mitchell Site. 1991. American Bottom Archaeology 1991 Calendar. Central Mississippi Valley Archaeological Research Institute and the Cahokia Mounds Museum Society. Andromedia Printing & Graphic Art Company. Courtesy of Illinois State Museum, and Peter Bostrom.
Chunkey stones from the Schild site, Greene County, Ill. Perino, G. H. 1971. The Mississippian Components at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. In Mississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St. Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No. 8.
Tooth, jaw, and shell ornaments from the Schild site. Green County IL. Perino, G. H. 1971. The Mississippian Components at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. In Mississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St. Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No. 8.
Human effigy pipe from the Schild site. Green County IL. Perino, G. H. 1971. The Mississippian Components at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. In Mississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St. Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No. 8.
Engraved shell gorget (reproduction) from ISM Peoples of the Past exhibit. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-204 (Dickson Mounds Museum)
Incisors which have been filed, presumably for decorative purposes. Perino, G. H. 1971. The Mississippian Components at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. In Mississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St. Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No. 8.

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Eight row corn. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Comparison of Emergent Mississippianfood utility indices (FUI) for deer for the Cahokia and Range sites vs. astandard deer. Among other interpretations, the over-representation ofmid-utility parts at Cahokia may reflect either transport of higher qualitydeer parts to Cahokia, or different disposal practices at differentsites. Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. InCahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R.Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press,Lincoln.
Ages of plant domestication in theMidwest, and the age of their use as important food resources. Cultivatedplants in the midwest. Data after Asch & Asch 1985; Asch pers. Comm. 1998;King 1984.
Change in animal exploitation throughtime at Cahokia. Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation atCahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World,edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of NebraskaPress, Lincoln.
Regional Mississippian tradedata. Kelly, J. E. 1991. Cahokia and its Role as a Gateway Center inInterregional Exchange. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E.Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 61-80. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Regional Mississippiantradedata. Kelly, J. E. 1991. Cahokia and its Role as a Gateway CenterinInterregional Exchange. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T.E.Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 61-80. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Major subsistence activities in the Mississippian year. J.S. Oliver, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
A stand of an important cultigen, Iva annua. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Clavical (collar bone) with lesions, probably the results of a generalized infection or dietary stress. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Table showing variation in the number of rows of seeds in maize cobs for Woodland through Late Prehistoric sites in the midwest. Hall, Robert 1991. Identity and Interaction Models of Cahokia Mississippian. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 3-34. University of Illinois Press.
Water bottle in a maize field. Photograph of part of Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Cutaway drawing of a deer showing locations of high, medium, and low value food parts as determined by the Food Utility Index (FUI). Kelly, L.S. 1994. Assessing the Role of Faunal Recources at the Cahokia Site. Paper presented at the 51st Southeastern Archaeological Conference, Lexington, KY.
Examples of Mississippian paleopathologies from the East St. Louis quarry cemetery: a) left tibia with healed periostitis, b) left femur with suppurative osteomyelitis, c) right illium with a lesion, d) caries and aveolar resorption, e) caries and impacted molar. Milner, G. R. 1983. The East St. Louis Stone Quarry Site Cemetery. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A model of spheres of economic interaction illustrating the relationships between the individual, household, town/village, and local, regional, and global economies. J.S. Oliver, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Little barley growing in a disturbed area. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Little barley in a bucket. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
An example of a simple post construction house (Cahokia Tract 15B house 34 floor plan, looking east). Illinois State Museum-AR-1051.
Iva annua. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Table showing changes in bird, mammal, fish, and deer NISP frequencies through time for a faunal sample from Cahokia. Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Comparison of Emergent Mississippian food utility indices (FUI) for deer for the Cahokia and Range sites vs. a standard deer. Among other interpretations, the over-representation of mid-utility parts at Cahokia may reflect either transport of higher quality deer parts to Cahokia, or different disposal practices at different sites. Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
A cob of prehistoric maize from Kentucky. Funkhouser, W.D., and W.S. Webb. 1930. Rock Shelters of Wolfe and Powell Counties, Kentucky. The University of Kentucky, Reports in Archaeology and Anthropology, Vol. 1, No. 4. University of Kentucky, Lexington.
A lot of food - a maygrass field in a bottomland with person for scale. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Another field of maygrass in the bottomland. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Experimental archaeology in action - D. Asch harvesting maygrass. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Dental caries (cavities).
Dental caries (cavities).
American lotus in backwater lake during the fall with bluffs in background. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
American lotus in a backwater lake showing individual stalks during the fall. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Archaeological human remains exhibiting osteomyelitis (inflammation of the bone) top: metacarpals; middle: ulna; bottom: radius. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Raccoons - a ubiquitous inhabitant of bottomland forests. Mammoth Cave National Park slide series.
A creature of that dives into the underworld, the beaver (Castor canadensis). Mammoth Cave National Park slide series.
Wild turkeys in an open woodland in the winter. Shenandoah National Park slide series.
Migratory waterfowl like the Canada geese in this painting were an important seasonal food source.
An aquatic food source - the soft-shell turtle.
A forest dweller, the Gray squirrel. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Trumpeter swan. Image from Illinois State Museum exhibit
Fish that inhabit backwater lakes and sloughs: channel catfish, gar, bowfin. Photograph of part of Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Canada geese swimming. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Canada geese swimming. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Canada geese swimming. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Snapping turtle basking on a log. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Archaeological evidence of Mississippian utilization of aquatic resources - a bullhead frontal (skull) bone. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
The results of processing sediment (using flotation and screen-washing) from archaeological sites - an abundance of fish bones and scales. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Examples of archaeological deer bones, some showing the effects of food processing and cooking. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Many animal bones are often fashioned into tools - a turtle shell bowl as recovered in an archaeological feature. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Flotation, a primary method for acquiring a seed sample to establish the relative importance of various seedy plant foods, can yield thousands of seeds to identify: chenopodium (goosefoot) and polygonum (knotweed) seeds from feature flotation. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
squash and bottle gourd seeds (Phillips Spring site) Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Eight row corn. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Eight row corn. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A focus of fall wild plant food gathering - hickory nuts. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
River otter (a mammal of the underworld?). Hoffmeister, D. F., 1989. Mammals of Illinois University of Illlinois Press, Urbana.
Muskrat (a mammal of the underworld?). Hoffmeister, D. F., 1989. Mammals of Illinois University of Illlinois Press, Urbana.
Archaeological human tibia and fibula (center specimens) with diaphyseal expansion and periostosial remodeling (inflammation of the connective tissue surrounding the bone with subsequent deposition of new bone on outer surface) with uninfected examples (upper 2 specimens) for comparison. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Fish synoptic collection (ISM-RCC), the laboratory tool for identifying fish remains. Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Modern femur (upper leg) bones (left to right: beaver, groundhog, raccoon). Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Modern humerii (upper arm) bones(left to right: muskrat, mink, squirrel, eastern cottontail, skunk). Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Comparison of archaeological and modern deer bones (top: metacarpals, bottom: phalanges). Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A sample of archaeological bones separated by animal class. Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Illinois State Museum Zooarchaeology Laboratory. Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Modern turtle shells (clockwise from left: soft-shell, box, snapping turtle). Image courtesy of K. White, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Timeline indicating the earliest evidence of plant domestication in the midwest, and the time when these domestic plants became economically important in the American Bottom. Data provided by D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Timeline for majordomesticates in the Eastern Woodlands. Smith, B. D. 1992. Rivers ofChange. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Water bottle in a maize field. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Archaeological human cranium with porotic hyperostosis. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
An artist's reconstruction of the Cahokia site during the Patrick phase. Illinois State Museum-CH-86.
A priest-chief in a feathered cape. Illinois State Museum-AR-946.
Woman tending a Mississippian garden with mound-town in background. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Woman tending a Mississippian garden with mound-town in background Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Marine shell (columella) bead necklace - a socioeconomic symbol of high status in Mississippian culture (Dickson Mounds Museum). Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-4.
Marine shell bead necklace and isolated marine shell beads from Cahokia. Ladassor, G., nd. Cahokia Ornaments in Cahokia Brought to Life: An Artifactual Story of America's Great Monument. pp.32-41. Greater St. Louis Archaeological Society, Wellington Printing Co. St. Louis.
Another indicator of high status and wealth in Mississippian society- rolled sheet copper (from gave goods associated with the southwest burials in Mound 72, Submound 1). Scale is 10 cm long. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Finely crafted Mississippian arrowheads - the work of craft specialists? Illinois State Museum-CH-87.
Model of portion of Cahokia showing mounds and gardens with ridged fields. Illinois State Museum-CH-98.
Evidence American Bottom Mississippian interactions with cultures outside the American Bottom (directed trade?) - map showing the provenance of some raw materials used by American Bottom Mississippians, and the locations of major Mississippian sites in the midwest. Kelly, John E. 1991. Cahokia and its Role as a Gateway Center in Interregional Exchange. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 61-80. University of Illinois Press.
Excavation of a ridged field. Gallagher, J.P. 1992 Prehistoric Field Systems in the Upper Midwest. In Late Prehistoric Agriculture, edited by W. I. Woods, pp. 99-135 Studies in Illinois Archaeology No. 8, IHPA.
Excavation of a ridged field. Gallagher, J.P. 1992 Prehistoric Field Systems in the Upper Midwest. In Late Prehistoric Agriculture, edited by W. I. Woods, pp. 99-135 Studies in Illinois Archaeology No. 8, IHPA.
Male white-tailed deer with antlers - a food imported to Cahokia for the elite? Image courtesy of J.R. Purdue, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Marine shell (Buscyon) from the Bobby Becker site near Cahokia - evidence of Cahokia's interaction with cultures of the Gulf and Atlantic Coast? Pauketat, T.R., M.A. Rees, and Stephanie L. Pauketat, with contributions by E.R. Hajic and B. Koldehoff. 1998. An Archaeological Survey of the Horseshoe Lake State Park, Madison County, Illinois. Illinois State Museum Reports of Investigations, No. 55. Illinois State Museum, Springfield.
Childhood learning - boy shooting bird with bow and arrow. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Plan map of Range site (range phase) Emergent Mississippian Occupation area R-1 showing arrangement of houses and pit clusters. Note the plaza-like area surrounded by house features. Kelly, J.E., S.J. Ozuk, and J.A. Williams, with contributions by L.S. Kelly, L. Whalley, and G.R. Milner. 1990. The Range Site 2: The Emergent Mississippian Dohack and Range Phase Occupations (11-S-47). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 20. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
An aquatic food - big-mouth buffalo fish. Forbes, S. A., and R. E. Richardson, 1920 The Fishes of Illinois. State of Illinois Natural History Survey. AKA Natural History Survey of Illinois Vol III. Ichthyology.
Modified Busycon shells from Monticello Seminary Museum, reportedly collected at Cahokia by W. McAdams in the late 1800s. Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
A cache of chert hoes on a Julien site house floor - storage of needed raw materials and tools or evidence of rural wealth? Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Multi-crop garden showing sunflower and maize plants. Illinois State Museum-CH-60.
An important component of the Mississippian diet, the cultigen Iva annua (marshelder or sumpweed). Smith, B. D. 1992. Rivers of Change. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Size and morphology are used to distinguish wild (small) and domesticated (large) forms of Iva annua seeds. Smith, B. D. 1992. Rivers of Change. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Chenopodium on a bank of the Mississippi River. Smith, B. D. 1992. Rivers of Change. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Surrounded by maygrass. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Maygrass field. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A maygrass bundle (archaeological specimen recovered from the Ozark Bluffs). Gilmore, Melvin R. 1931. Vegetal Remains of the Ozark Bluff-Dweller Culture. In Papers of the Michigan Academy of Science, Arts, and Letters, Vol XIV, edited by E. S. McCartney and P. Okkelberg, pp. 83-102. University of Michigan Press.
Pumpkins. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Data table of major taxa of nut, wood, and seeds from nine Mississippian components - useful for reconstructing changes in Mississippian diet through time. Rindos, D., and S. Johannsen 1991. Human-plant Interactions and Cultural Change in the American Bottom. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp. 35-45. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Graph showing increased use of fish by American Bottom Native Americans through time. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Eight row Cuzco corn. Kempton, J. H. 1937. Maize: Our Heritage from the Indians. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Indian corn. Illinois State Museum-SAE-426.
Maize cobs recovered from Stirling phase feature in Kunnemann Mound, Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Maize cobs recovered from Stirling phase feature in Kunnemann Mound, Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Prehistoric maize cobs from Kentucky. Webb, W.S., and W.D. Funkhouser. 1930. Rock Shelters of Wolfe and Powell Counties, Kentucky. The University of Kentucky, Reports in Archaeology and Anthropology, Vol. 1, No. 4. University of Kentucky, Lexington.
Profile of reconstructed refuse pit showing why garbage can be so informative (large). Illinois State Museum-DM-607.
Profile of reconstructed refuse pit showing why garbage can be so informative (small). Illinois State Museum-DM-607.
Excavation of a refuse pit showing freshwater mussel shells, bone fragments, stone flakes, and fire-cracked rocks. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Cahokia (Merrell Tract) wall-trench house excavation in progress showing refuse pits within the house. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-1.
A Mississippian hoe before hafting (Peoples of the Past exhibit, ISM). Illinois State Museum-M-206.
Bowfin. Forbes, S. A., and R. E. Richardson 1920. The Fishes of Illinois. State of Illinois Natural History Survey. Vol III. Ichthyology.
Fish ( yellow and brown bullheads) - a major source of protein in (some?) Mississippians diets. Forbes, S. A., and R. E. Richardson 1920. The Fishes of Illinois. State of Illinois Natural History Survey. Vol III. Ichthyology.
Slider turtles basking on a log (large). M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #19.
Slider turtles basking on a log (small). M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #19.
A freshwater mussel. Image courtesy of R. Warren, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A purple wartyback freshwater mussel. Image courtesy of R. Warren, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Female mallard duck and young. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #3.
Great egret. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #6.
White-tailed deer in forest habitat. Illinois State Museum Illinois Habitats exhibit.
A reconstructed Mississippian open summer shelter. Illinois State Museum-CH-64.
Mississippian house with wattle and daub walls and a thatched roof. Illinois State Museum-CH-62.
Evidence of sugar and grit in the diet - dental caries and chipping. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Evidence of dietary stress in archaeological remains - Cribra orbitalia/ porotic hyperostosis. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Mississippian ruler greeting the rising sun and illustrating the alignments of posts and mounds with the rising sun. Illinois State Museum-CH-115.
Hunter butchering a deer in front of a sweatlodge in the Cahokia Mounds Museum reconstructed Mississippian village. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-2.
Shared culture in time and space - map showing the locations of midwestern sites yielding long-nosed god masks. Hall, R. 1991. Identity and Interaction Models of Cahokia Mississippian. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp. 3-34. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Evidence of trade and cultural interactions - a Ramey Incised vessel from a site in western Iowa. Tiffany, J. 1991. Modeling Mill Creek-Mississippian Interaction. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp.319-354. Monographs in World Archaeology No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Graph showing increased use of fish by American Bottom Native Americans through time.
Evidence of trade and cultural interactions - a Ramey Incised vessel from a site in western Iowa. Tiffany, J. 1991. Modeling Mill Creek-Mississippian Interaction. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman,pp.319-354. Monographs in World Archaeology No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison. Fig. 15.4b, p.325
The fortified Mississippian site of Aztalan, Wisconsin. Goldstein, L. E., and J. D. Richards 1991. Ancient Aztalan: The Cultural and Ecological Context of a Late Prehistoric Site in the Midwest. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp. 193-206. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Aerial photograph of Range site occupation area R-1, Emergent Mississippian. Kelly, J.E., S.J. Ozuk, and J.A. Williams, with contributions by L.S. Kelly, L. Whalley, and G.R. Milner. 1990. The Range Site 2: The Emergent Mississippian Dohack and Range Phase Occupations (11-S-47). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 20. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Aerial photograph of Range site occupation area R-2, Emergent Mississippian. Note the arrangement of structures around a community square or plaza. Kelly, J.E., S.J. Ozuk, and J.A. Williams, with contributions by L.S. Kelly, L. Whalley, and G.R. Milner. 1990. The Range Site 2: The Emergent Mississippian Dohack and Range Phase Occupations (11-S-47). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 20. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Occurrence of microdrills and modified shell at American Bottom sites. Yerkes, R.W. 1991. Specialization in Shell Artifact Production at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 49-64. Monographs in World Archaeology No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
Occurrence of microdrills in American Bottom households. Yerkes, R.W. 1991. Specialization in Shell Artifact Production at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 49-64. Monographs in World Archaeology No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
Ridged fields - an agricultural practice to insulate crops from the cold (in Wisconsin covered by snow)? Gallagher, J.P. 1992 Prehistoric Field Systems in the Upper Midwest. In Late Prehistoric Agriculture, edited by W. I. Woods, pp. 99-135 Studies in Illinois Archaeology No. 8, IHPA.
One result of grit in the diet, extremely worn teeth. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.

Environment

Top |Art | Economy | Environment | Society | Technology | Maps | References

Braided stream on broad outwash plain near glacier terminus, Toklat River, Alaska. https://tvl1.geo.uc.edu/ice/Image/propro/propro.html
Glacial dust (loess), Matanuska Valley Alaska. https://tvl1.geo.uc.edu/ice/Image/propro/propro.html
Eskers, kettles, andkames at glacierterminus. https://www.glacier.rice.edu/land/5_glaciallandforms.html(Photograph by B. Washburn, courtesy of Eugene Domack, Hamilton College).
A prairie pothole. M.Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #1.
Late prehistoric sites in the American Bottom with mounds, and the location of the ca. 1800 Mississippi River and pre-settlement wetlands (GLO data). J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.), . SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Schematic diagram of river valley with braided stream showing older abandoned terrace and evidence of an earlier meandering river pattern. Figure modified after Mathews, R.K. 1974. Dynamic Stratigraphy, Fig. 10.6, p.142. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
Wetlands estimates for the Cahokia Mounds area of the American Bottom based on GLO documents and historical data on flooding in the 1850's and in 1844. J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Percentage of aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial vertebrates from Emergent Mississippian (Lloyd, Merrell, and Edelhardt) and Mississippian (Lohmann, Stirling, and Moorehead) Phases at Cahokia. Figure modified after Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln. Fig. 4.3b, p.77
Computer generated 3-D image of Cahokia Mounds. E.K. Schroeder, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory. SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Major mounds in the Cahokia-East St. Louis-St. Louis area. Note the tendency for many mounds to be located near the stream's or slough's edge (where slightly elevated ground representing old levees is located). J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Schematic diagram showing the spatial distribution of sediments in a stream channel and associated channel bars. Figure modified after Mathews, R.K. 1974. Dynamic Stratigraphy, Fig. 10.5 p.140. Prentice-Hall Inc., Englewood Cliffs, N.J.
Eskers, kettles, and kames at glacier terminus. https://www.glacier.rice.edu/land/5_glaciallandforms.html (Photograph by B. Washburn, courtesy of Eugene Domack, Hamilton College).
Schematic diagram of alluvial fans built by streams spilling out of the uplands onto terraces and the river valley floor. Figure modified after Freidman G.M. and J.E. Sanders. 1978. Principles of Sedimentology, Fig. 8.14 p.206. John Wiley & Sons, NY.
Mississippi River channel locations for ca. 1800, ca. 1880, ca. 1908, and today in the American Bottom. J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Mississippi River channel locations for ca. 1800, ca. 1880, ca. 1908, and today in the Kaskaskia Island area of the central Mississippi River valley (south of the American Bottom). J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
SPOT image of 1993 flooding of Mississippi and Missouri Rivers. SPOT satellite image ca. 1993 CNES; ERS -1 satellite image ca. 1993 ESA. Radar imagery provided by RADARSAT International. Imagery processed and merged by ITD Space Remote Sensing Center. Subsection & conversion to jpg & GIF by National Operational Hydrologic Remote Sensing Center.
The central Mississippi River valley showing the location of the ca. 1800 Mississippi River and swamps. J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Photograph of a portion of a Government Land Office (GLO) map of part of the American Bottom. Image courtesy of G.R. Milner, Penn State University.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph of Mound 51, located approximately 500 feet southeast of Monks Mound. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph of Merrell's Mound, viewed from the south, one quarter mile west of Monks Mound. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph of Powell Mound, viewed from the northwest. Collinsville Road is to the right and Cahokia Creek to the left. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph of Mound 70. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
Caption of Goddard figure 2. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph: looking wet over American Bottom, Collinsville in foreground; Pennsylvania RR, Mississippi R. in background. Monks Mound at midpoint of straight stretch of white road at center. to right, drainage canal and Horseshoe Lake. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph: view to SW Monks Mound is below two small clouds, right of the large cloud at center left. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph: view to SW Monks Mound is left of center, drainage canal and Horseshoe Lake at right. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to west. Monks Mound right of road. Mound 51, Schmidt's, Merrrell, Jesse Ramey, Nos 57 and 60 all visible. See Goddard fig 6 caption.jpg for full caption. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
Caption of Goddard figure 6. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to west. Monks Mound right of road. Mound 51, Schmidt's, Merrrell, Jesse Ramey, Nos 57 and 60, all visible. See Goddard fig 6 caption.jpg for full caption. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to east. Monks Mound at lower left, measuring 1000 feet long, 800 feet wide, 100 feet high. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to east. Monks Mound at lower left, measuring 1000 feet long, 800 feet wide, 100 feet high. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to NE Monks Mound upper left. Mounds 57 and 60 are 1/2 mile S. Mound 51(Schmidt's) with several buildings. To north James Ramey Mound (No. 33) which was most thoroughly explored by Moorehead. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
1922 Goddard aerial photograph view to W, east face of Monks Mound. Flat low mound in No. 38; Merrell Mound (no. 42) and buildings in upper left. Illinois State Museum archives, Goddard-Ramey Flight.
Computer generated image of the Central Mississippi River valley, the Illinois River valley, and parts of the Lower Missouri and Upper Mississippi River valleys. Modified after an image of the central United States produced by Andrew D. Birrell ( https://www.research.digital.com:80/SRC/personal/Andrew_Birrell/reliefMaps/).
Percentage of aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial vertebrates from Emergent Mississippian (Lloyd, Merrell, and Edelhardt) and Mississippian (Lohmann, Stirling, and Moorehead) Phases at the Cahokia site. Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Wetlands estimates for the Lunsford-Pulcher Mound group area of the American Bottom based on GLO documents and historical data from the 1870's. J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Field of maygrass gradating into a strip of bottomland forest near a stream illustrating the role of elevation in creating habitat diversity. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Schematic cross-section of meander loop. J.S. Oliver, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Landforms common in valleys containing a meandering river. J.S. Oliver, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Floodplain prairie at stream's edge with Oak-hickory forest on elevated ridge in background. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Floodplain prairie at stream's edge with Oak-hickory forest on elevated ridge in background. Image courtesy of D. Asch, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Pointbar and meander loop. J.S. Oliver, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Goddard 1922 aerial photograph of Cahokia area looking to the southwest, Monks mound is in the left-center of image. Goddard-Ramey Flight, Illinois State Museum, Springfield.
1933 aerial photograph of Cahokia area showing old meander scars. Illinois Archaeological Survey.
Aerial photograph of Horseshoe Lake area showing old meander scars. Modified after Hajic, E.R. 1998. Appendix E: Geologic Investigations. In An Archaeological Survey of the Horseshoe Lake State Park, Madison County, Illinois, T.R. Pauketat, M.A. Rees, and Stephanie L. Pauketat, with contributions by E.R. Hajic and B. Koldehoff, pp. 137-147. Illinois State Museum Reports of Investigations, No. 55. Illinois State Museum, Springfield.
Portion of Kuchler map showing plant biomes in midwest. Kuchler, A.W. 1964. Potential Natural Vegetation of the Conterminous United States. American Geographical Society, Special Publication No. 36. NY. (map reproduced and printed in 1964 by A. Hoen and Co., Inc., Baltimore, MD.).
Portion of USGS 7.5' 1935 Monks Mound quadrangle map showing subtle relief of American Bottom. Contour lines are at 5 feet intervals. Horseshoe Lake is at upper left, Monks Mound and Cahokia Mounds site are below center. United States Geological Survey, Monks Mound 7.5' quadrangle.
A quiet floodplain stream. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #17.
Blazing star flowers in tall grass prairie with bottomland forest background. Image courtesy of Eric Grimm, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Bottomland forest with elm trees and other vegetation. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #10.
Arrowhead (duck potato) on pond margin. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #16.
A tree lined marsh. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #18.
A prairie pothole. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #1.
A backwater lake and water lilies. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #4.
A trumpeter swan on backwater lake with dense mat of pond lilies. M. Jeffords' Wetland slide series slide #20.
A prairie fire. Modified image courtesy of Vernon L. LaGesse, The Nature Conservancy.
Artists reconstruction of Cahokia Mounds and Grand Plaza. Looking Northwest to Monks Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-5.
Artists reconstruction of Cahokia Mounds and Grand Plaza. Looking Northwest to Monks Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-5.
Color drawing of a bluegill, a common fish in floodplain lakes, ponds, and sloughs. Forbes, S. A., and R. E. Richardson, 1920. The Fishes of Illinois. Natural History Survey of Illinois Vol III. Ichthyology.
Sandbagging in Alton ILL during the flood of 1993. Note the grain dryers and storage silos in the background. Associated Press 1993. The Flood of '93: America's Greatest Natural Disaster Photographed and Reported by the Associated Press. St. Martin's Press, New York.
Corn field destroyed by flooding. Associated Press 1993. The Flood of '93: America's Greatest Natural Disaster Photographed and Reported by the Associated Press. St. Martin's Press, New York.
Adult male bullfrog. Johnson, T. R. 1987. The Amphibians and Reptiles of Missouri. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City MO.
A panther (Felis concolour). Webster, W.D., J.F. Parnell, and W.C. Biggs, Jr. 1985. Mammals of the Carolinas, Virginia, and Maryland. University of North Carolina Press, Chapel Hill.
Adult female bullfrog. Johnson, T. R. 1987. The Amphibians and Reptiles of Missouri. Missouri Department of Conservation, Jefferson City MO.
1922 Goddard aerial photo looking east over St. Louis, Missouri towards East St. Louis and Cahokia, Illinois. Goddard-Ramey Flight, Illinois State Museum, Springfield.
Percentage of aquatic, semi-aquatic, and terrestrial vertebrates from Emergent Mississippian (Lloyd, Merrell, and Edelhardt) and Mississippian (Lohmann, Stirling, and Moorehead) Phases at the Range site. Figure modified after Kelly, L.S. 1997. Patterns of Faunal Exploitation at Cahokia. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 60-88. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln. Fig. 4.3a, p.77.
Outwash dissected by braided stream at glacier terminus. https://www.glacier.rice.edu/land/5_depositionalproglacial.html#anchor988490
Small iceberg with sediment. https://www.glacier.rice.edu/land/5_depositionalproglacial.html

Society

Top |Art | Economy | Environment | Society | Technology | Maps | References

An artifact with underworld connections - the beaver effigy pot. Illinois State Museum image.
The bird man tablet from Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-38.
Burial of an important person. Interpretation and Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984. Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin.
Map of downtown Cahokia looking to the northeast showing main mounds, tracts, and plazas. Modified after Pauketat, T.R., and T.E. Emerson. 1997. Introduction. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 1-29. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln. Fig. 1.5, p. 13.
Trade and commerce during Cahokia's heyday. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-2.
Burial Procession. Interpretationand Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984.Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks andWildlife Department, Austin.
Evidence of a corporate identityand reverence of the elite - cedar burial litters from Mound 72,Cahokia. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia.In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28.Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
A reconstruction ofCahokia as it appeared during the Stirling Phase. Illinois StateMuseum-CH-85
Evidence of a corporate identity and reverence of the elite - cedar burial litters from Mound 72, Cahokia. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
Priest chief climbing Monks Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-1.
Chiefly system with 5 administrative districts with hierarchical flow of goods and services. Image modified after Steponaitis, V.P. 1978. Location Theory and Complex Chiefdoms: A Mississippian Example, Fig. 14.4, p.431. In Mississippian Settlement Patterns, edited by B. D. Smith, pp. 417-453, Academic Press, New York.
Centers with no tribute flowing from minor centers to the capital. All goods and services flow within a chiefly district. Image modified after Steponaitis, V.P. 1978. Location Theory and Complex Chiefdoms: A Mississippian Example, Fig. 14.3, p.431. In Mississippian Settlement Patterns, edited by B. D. Smith, , pp. 417-453, Academic Press, New York.
Graph showing the size distribution of circular buildings (sweatlodges) from 8 Mississippian sites. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Planview of Mound 72 showing major features and burials. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
Typical profiles of jar rims from the central Mississippi River valley showing the distinctiveness of those from the American Bottom, Common Field, and Southern Mississippian areas. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Occurrence of exotic materials in Julien site features. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Flintknappers manufacturing and repairing chert hoes and creating of a concentration of lithic debitage outside of the village. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
A finely made Ramey knife. Illinois State Museum-CH-34.
Locations of sites in midwestern North America yielding Powell plain or Ramey incised pottery. Kelly, John E. 1991. Cahokia and its Role as a Gateway Center in Interregional Exchange. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 61-80. University of Illinois Press.
Late prehistoric cultural sequence (Periods and Phases) for the American Bottom. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Construction of a temple mound. Interpretation and Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984. Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin.
Construction of a temple mound. Interpretation and Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984. Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin.
Classic model of a highly integrated Cahokia chiefdom. After Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. Fig. 1.4, p. 11.
Classic model of a highly integrated Cahokia chiefdom. Modified after Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. Fig. 1.4, p. 11.
Alternative model of a segmented Cahokia chiefdom consisting of several quasi-autonomous, competing chiefdoms. After Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. Fig. 1.5, p. 14.
Alternative model of a segmented Cahokia chiefdom consisting of several quasi-autonomous, competing chiefdoms. Modified after Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. Fig. 1.5, p. 14.
Graph showing estimated household labor contributions to construction of civic structures by phase. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Aerial view of Monks Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMC-3.
Aerial view of Monks Mound and Mound 48. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMC-2.
Map showing Late Prehistoric mound sites in central Mississippi River valley and ceramic style zones. Note the lack of Cahokia style ceramics below the Kaskaskia River area. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Deer phalanges drilled for cup and pin game or for decoration. Illinois State Museum-AC-36.
Deer phalanx drilled for cup and pin game or for decoration. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A waterfowl (goose) humerus with cutmarks. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Raccoon ulna that has been sharpened to form an awl. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Raccoon ulna that has been sharpened to form an awl. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A mammal bone from the Cahokia site cut and modified into the shape of human foot. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Cahokia Building Density Estimates. Pauketat, T.R., and N.H. Lopinot 1997. Cahokia Population Dynamics. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 103-123. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln.
Distribution of ceramic vessels by house size for Cahokia tract 15A and 15B houses. Vogel, J.O. 1975. Trends in Cahokia ceramics: Preliminary study of the collections from tracts 15A and 15B. In Perspectives in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 32-125. IAS Bulletin No. 10.
Cahokia woodhenge at sunrise of spring equinox. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMB-2.
Cahokia tract 15B prior to mechanical stripping. Illinois State Museum- CH-1137.
Mechanical stripping of Cahokia Tract 15B. Illinois State Museum-CH-1144.
Illinois State Museum, Research and Collections Center Anthropology collections range. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Cahokia tract 15B after mechanical stripping showing house and feature patterns. Illinois State Museum-CH-1141.
The results of successful mechanical stripping at the Julien site farmstead - the household feature cluster. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Distribution of features, Section 4, Julien Site. Note the central placement of the large circular feature (feature 113), presumably a sweatlodge. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Painting showing how the paramount chief's temple/house may have appeared on the fourth terrace on Monks Mound. Illinois State Museum-CH-24.
Drawing and photograph of copper long nosed god mask from Big Mound St. Louis (height app. 3 inches; present (1956) location unknown). Williams, S., and J. M. Goggin 1956. The Long Nosed God Mask in Eastern North America. Missouri Archaeologist 18(3):3-72.
Drawing and photograph of copper long nosed god mask from Big Mound St. Louis (height app. 3 inches; present (1956) location unknown). Williams, S., and J. M. Goggin 1956. The Long Nosed God Mask in Eastern North America. Missouri Archaeologist 18(3):3-72.
Artists reconstruction of Monks Mounds and Grand Plaza. Looking towards Monks Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-3.
Front-view of the Keller figurine. Illinois State Museum-AR-999
Right-front view of the Sponeman figurine showing the cornstalk growing out of the right hand. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Right view of Willoughby figurine showing (busk ceremony?) trays. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Right rear and rear views of the West figurine showing rattlesnake rattles. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
McAdams Frog effigy pipe fashioned from fireclay. Note the shaman's rattle being held in the frog's right foreleg. Illinois State Museum-AR-1209, Illinois State Museum accession number 800/519
Artist's depiction of Julien site farmstead household feature cluster. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing storyteller. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCME-4.
Closeup of Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing a woman making pottery. Note shells used for temper to her left. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCME-3.
Closeup of Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing a woman making pottery. Note shells used for temper to her left. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCME-3.
Charred hickory nuts. Image courtesy of Fran King.
Priest-chief dressed in clothing decorated with a chiefly symbol, a cross. Watercolor painting from Dickson Mounds Museum.
Cached metate in Turner site feature. Milner, G. R. 1983. The Turner and Demange Sites. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 4. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Cached metate in Turner site feature. Milner, G. R. 1983. The Turner and Demange Sites. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 4. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Evidence of insect infestation, pieces of mud dauber nests.
A storage pit full of acorns from a site in Iowa. Image courtesy of Margo Neverett, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Metate and mano and basket of corn to be ground. Gilbert, C. M. 1980. Oklahoma Prehistory. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman.
Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing a woman tending a fire, and a man working. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-3.
Closeup of Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing a woman using a metate and mano to grind maize. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-3.
Cahokia Mounds Museum village exhibit showing a woman using a metate and mano to grind maize, another woman tending a fire, and a man working. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-3.
Maize cobs recovered from Stirling phase feature in Kunnemann Mound, Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Chert hoes and bifaces on flintknappers leather flintknapping pad. Peoples of the Past exhibit at the Illinois State Museum.
Notched chert hoe with use-polish on distal end (Calhoun County IL). Illinois State Museum-AR-954.
Notched chert hoe with use-polish on distal end with scale (Calhoun County IL). Illinois State Museum-AR-954.
Chert knife and hoes from the Cahokia site (1. Chert knife from Ramey Mound, 2.,4. Spades from fields sw of Monks Mound, 3. Notched hoe, 5. Spade from west side of Ramey Mound). Moorehead, W.K. 1929. The Cahokia Mounds. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Painting of woman using a chert hoe to tend a maize field near a Mississippian village. Note also the use of baskets by women, and the construction of a palisade in the background. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum image.
Drawing of women tending garden. Gilbert, C. M. 1980. Oklahoma Prehistory. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman.
A burned tree, one result of the favored Native American method to clear land for agricultural fields. Burning promotes new growth and will attract many different animals to this new field edge. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
The Birger figurine. Illinois State Museum-AR-996.
Profile of a smudge pit feature from the Turner site. Milner, G. R. 1983. The Turner and Demange Sites. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 4. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Evidence of insect infestation, a mud dauber nest. Freimuth, G. and W. La Berge 1976. Dating and Environmental Reconstruction from Prehistoric Mud-Dauber Nests: Some Possibilities. Plains Anthropologist 21(72):111-114.
Painting of Native Americans fishing with nets in a backwater lake. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past background painting.
An assortment of finely make chunkey stones. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMA-3.
Drawing of a chunky stone game being played in the summer. Modified after Deuel, T., 1968. American Indian Ways of Life. Illinois State Museum Story of Illinois No. 9, Springfield. (second printing, original printed in 1958)
Painting of chunky stone game being played in the winter. Illinois State Museum-AR-913.
Cahokia cord-marked cooking vessel. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum image.
Artist reconstruction of a rock-lined cooking pit, a facility unknown from the American Bottom. Gilbert, C. M. 1980. Oklahoma Prehistory. University of Oklahoma Press, Norman.
Some biological effects of the Mississippian diet high in ground seed (including maize) - teeth with heavy abnormal wear, calculus, and caries. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
A Late Mississippian shell tempered plate from the Illinois River valley, Dickson Mounds Museum collection. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum image.
Elite goods: Sawed or filed whelk and mussel shell from the Kunnemann Mound at the Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Mollusk shell pendants and bead blanks from the Kunnemann Mound at the Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Marginella, conus, and anculosa beads, and unmodified shells from the Kunnemann Mound at the Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Shell beads of various shapes, sizes, and quality from the Kunnemann Mound at the Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Implements used in working shell and bone - microblades and drills from the Kunnemann Mound at the Cahokia site. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Drawings of microdrills and perforators from the Lohmann site. Esarey, D. and T. R. Pauketat 1992. The Lohmann Site: An Early Mississippian Center in the American Bottom. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 25. University of Illinois Press.
Poorly finished shell beads (examples of various stages of manufacture?) from Bobby Becker site. Pauketat, T.R., M.A. Rees, and Stephanie L. Pauketat, with contributions by E.R. Hajic and B. Koldehoff 1998. An Archaeological Survey of the Horseshoe Lake State Park, Madison County, Illinois. Illinois State Museum Reports of Investigations, No. 55. Illinois State Museum, Springfield.
Graph showing the floor area of various structure types at the Julien site. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Graph of vessel type frequencies (jars, bowls, seed-jars, bottles, beakers, funnels, and stumpware) for ceramics from the Lohmann site. Esarey, D. and T. R. Pauketat 1992. The Lohmann Site: An Early Mississippian Center in the American Bottom. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 25. University of Illinois Press.
Celts from the Lohmann site celt cache. Esarey, D. and T. R. Pauketat 1992. The Lohmann Site: An Early Mississippian Center in the American Bottom. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 25. University of Illinois Press.
Three celts from the Lohmann site celt cache. Esarey, D. and T. R. Pauketat 1992. The Lohmann Site: An Early Mississippian Center in the American Bottom. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 25. University of Illinois Press.
Limestone-lined feature at the Julien site. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Drawing showing site plan of Labras Lake site, a nodal hamlet, with variation in structure sizes, houses and sweatlodges. Emerson, T. E., 1992. The Mississippian Dispersed Village as a Social and Environmental Strategy. In Late Prehistoric Agriculture: Observations from the Midwest, edited by W. I. Woods, pp. 198-216. Studies in Illinois Archaeology No. 8, IHPA.
Cultural phases defined for Emergent Mississippian and Mississippian periods in the American Bottom. Fowler, M. L., 1996. Introduction. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):3-11.
Estimates of Cahokia population through time. Modified after Pauketat, T.R., and N.H. Lopinot 1997. Cahokia Population Dynamics. In Cahokia: Domination and Ideology in the Mississippian World, edited by T.R. Pauketat and T.E. Emerson, pp. 103-123. University of Nebraska Press, Lincoln. Fig. 6.3, p.119.
Map showing locations of Cahokia, Mitchell, East St. Louis, St. Louis, and Lunsford-Pulcher sites - the major Mississippian mound centers of the American Bottom. Milner, G. R. 1983. The Turner and Demange Sites. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 4. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Evidence of Cahokia's interaction with other Native American cultures in the Midwest - sites with Ramey Incised and/or Powell Plain vessels. Kelly, J. E. 1991. Cahokia and its Role as a Gateway Center in Interregional Exchange. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp 61-80. University of Illinois Press, Urbana
Elite Corporate goods - The Mound 72 burial artifacts in situ. Illinois State Museum-CH-28.
Mound 72 burial artifacts (with labels indicating locations of chunkey stones, projectile points, rolls of copper, and shell beads) in situ. Illinois State Museum-CH-28
Mound 72 burial artifacts in situ. Illinois State Museum-CH-28.
Marine shell blanket/cape associated with main burial at Mound 72. Illinois State Museum-CH-104.
Mound 72 sub-mound1 central burial on shell bead blanket/cape. Note the possible bird head (falcon?) shape of the top of the blanket/cape. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Drawing of mound 72 submound 1 burials and some associated funerary objects. Fowler, M. L., 1996. Introduction. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):3-11.
Immolation victims from Mound 72, submound 3 - a representation of the ultimate power of the chief. Fowler, M. L. 1991. Mound 72 and Early Mississippian at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp. 1-28. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Painting of a mound top ceremony. Stirling, M.W. 1946. Indians of the Southeastern United States. National Geographic 99(1):53-94. Painting by W. Landgon Kihn.
The unobtrusive and seemingly unimportant Mound 72. Illinois State Museum photo SEE ALSO Fowler, M.E. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois. Urbana.
The unobtrusive and seemingly unimportant Mound 72. Fowler, M.L., J. Rose, B. Vander Leest, and S.R. Ahler in press. The Mound 72 Area: Dedicated and Sacred Space in Early Cahokia. Illinois State Museum Reports of Investigation, No. 54. Illinois State Museum, Springfield, IL.
Portion of burnt floor (of priest-chief's temple/house?) on Monk's Mound. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-5.
Reconstruction of a portion of the east stockade at Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-52.
Evidence of organized civic construction - stockade trenches bisecting Mississippian house features. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-2.
Interpersonal violence (warfare or domestic squabble?) - Cahokia point embedded in human sacrum. Perino, G. H. 1971. The Mississippian Components at the Schild site (No. 4) Greene County, Illinois. In Mississippian Site Archaeology in Illinois: I. Site Reports from the St. Louis and Chicago Areas, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 1-148. IAS Bulletin No. 8.
Interpersonal violence (warfare or domestic squabble?) - fatal axe blow to the head Specimen from the Zimmerman site, Illinois. D. Harn, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Scalping marks. Specimen from the Zimmerman site, Illinois. D. Harn, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Defleshing cut marks on a Illinois River valley Mississippian zygomatic (cheek) bone - evidence of torture, corpse abuse, or honorable preparation of dead for burial? Specimen from the Larson site, Illinois. D. Harn, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Map of the central section of Cahokia, showing the convergence of axes at the southwest corner of Monks Mound and Mound 72, which bears witness to the planning of the layout (according to solstice events) of many mounds. Fowler, M. L., Archaeological Research Laboratory, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. SEE ALSO Fowler, M. L., 1997 The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Drawing of the inferred sun circle construction technique. Wittry, W. L., 1969. The American woodhenge. In Explorations in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by M. L. Fowler, pp. 43-48. . Illinois Archaeological Survey, Bulletin No. 7.
The organized layout of Cahokia - line map of celestial orientations from Monks Mound and Mound 72. Rolingson, M.A. 1996. Elements of Community Design at Cahokia. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):84-96.
Reconstruction of woodhenge at Cahokia. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMB-1.
Painting of woodhenge within early downtown Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-89.
The bird man tablet from Cahokia. Illinois State Museum-CH-38.
Children running in a village. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-5.
A reconstruction of Cahokia as it appeared during the Stirling Phase. Illinois State Museum-CH-85
Comparison of residence size for mound centers vs. outlying (rural) sites through time. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.

Technology

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Stumpware vessel in situ at the BBB Motor site, American Bottom. Emerson, T. E. and D. K. Jackson 1984. The BBB Motor Site (11-Ms-595). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 6. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Graph showing the difference in suspension hole location for fine vs. typical marine shell beads. The data show that not all marine shell beads were particularly well made. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Painting of downtown Cahokia as it may have appeared at ca. A.D. 1000. Shown are major mounds, the woodhenge, palisade, Grand Plaza, Horseshoe Lake and associated wetlands, and water-filled borrow pits. Illinois State Museum-CH-83.
Reconstruction of summer house at Cahokia site. Part of the thatch may have been removed in the summer for better ventilation. Illinois State Museum-CH-63.
Excavation of a cedar post from the Cahokia woodhenge. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-3.
Cahokia Mounds. E.K. Schroeder, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Some possible classes of projectile point cross-sections.
Closeup of painting of downtown Cahokia as it may have appeared at ca. A.D. 1000. Shown are major mounds, the woodhenge, palisade, Grand Plaza, Horseshoe Lake and associated wetlands, and water-filled borrow pits. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMG-4.
Plan map of East St. Louis Stone Quarry Cemetery. Milner, G. R. 1983. The East St. Louis Stone Quarry Site Cemetery. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Some primary types of flaking patterns found on projectile points.
An example of a simple post construction house (Cahokia Tract 15B house 34 floor plan, looking west). Illinois State Museum-AR-1050.
Cahokia Tract 15B House 35 with large (special purpose?) internal features148 and 149. Illinois State Museum-AR-1058.
Interior of house with a central hearth. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-251.
Large (special purpose?) feature (F 159) inside post-wall Houses 42 and 53. Illinois State Museum-AR-1059.
The ICT tract excavations at the Cahokia Mounds site showing overlapping house outlines. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-4.
Cahokia Tract15B House 35 with large (special purpose?) internal features148 and149. Illinois State Museum-AR-1058.
Excavation ofTract 15B houses with Moorehead mound. Illinois State Museum-AR-1039.
Mississippian walltrench structure with a central fireplace.
A multi-room structure -evidence of specialized (civic or religious) activities at the Robinson'sLake site? Milner, G. R. 1982. The Robinson's Lake Site (11-Ms-582): ASmall Late Bluff Settlement. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 SiteReports, Vol. 10. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Line drawing of engravedbeaker with cross-and-circle motif recovered from near winter solstice poleof Circle 2, Cahokia Tract 15A. Wittry W.L. 1996. Discovering andInterpreting the Cahokia Woodhenges. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchersof Cahokia: Woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. WisconsinArchaeologist. 77(3/4):26-35.
Photograph ofthe excavation/destruction of Big Mound in St. Louis in the Spring of 1869(contra 1870 date on photo). Williams, S., and J. M. Goggin 1956. The LongNosed God Mask in Eastern North America. Missouri Archaeologist 18(3):3-72.
Dimensions ofMississippian structures from the Radic Site. McElrath, D.C., J.A.Williams, T.O. Maher, and M.C. Meinkoth 1987. Emergent Mississippian andMississippian Communities at the Radic Site. American Bottom Archaeology,FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 17, No. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Drawing of type 2 excavating tool (spade-like) from the Julien site. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 7. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Polished hoes and hoe fragments from the Lohmann site. Esarey, D. and T. R. Pauketat 1992. The Lohmann Site: An Early Mississippian Center in the American Bottom. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports Vol. 25. University of Illinois Press.
Drawing illustrating the morphological and decorative changes in ceramic assemblages from the Late Woodland through the Mississippian Sand Prairie phase. Modified after image provided by Milner, G.R. SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Map showing location of Mill Creek chert quarries in southern Illinois.
Examples of projectile point types from Mound 72, Cahokia. Fowler, M.L., J. Rose, B. Vander Leest, and S.R. Ahler in press. The Mound 72 Area: Dedicated and Sacred Space in Early Cahokia. Illinois State Museum Reports of Investigation, No. 54. Illinois State Museum, Springfield, IL.
Reconstruction of temple mound construction using baskets. Interpretation and Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984. Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin.
Monks Mound covered in snow, Cahokia Mounds Museum. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMB-4.
Reconstruction of temple mound construction using baskets. Interpretation and Exhibits Branch of the Texas Parks and Wildlife Department 1984. Caddoan Mounds: Temples and Tombs of an Ancient People. Texas Parks and Wildlife Department, Austin.
Metacarpals cut to remove diaphyses for some type of artifact or ornament (left: elk grooved and cut; right: deer cut and polished). Illinois State Museum-AC-40.
Charred fabric from the floor of Feature 3-5 in the Kunnemann Mound, Cahokia. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Closeup of tree bark (inner bark from basswood) being twisted to make a cord. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Tree bark (inner bark from basswood) being twisted to make a cord. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Closeup of harvesting wetlands resources - cutting cattails for making house wall mats. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Harvesting wetlands resources - cutting cattails for making house wall mats. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Mat weaving in reconstructed palisaded village Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Chert axe being used to cut a tree. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Groundstone axe being used to notch a pole for house construction. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
A flintknapper using a pressure-flaker to remove very small flakes from a projectile point. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Thatching a Mississippian-type house. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Kiln being used to fire pottery. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Men excavation a trench for stockade pit with chert hoes. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit (Illinois State Museum-M-113).
Variation in marine shell bead workmanship. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Some terms used to describe stone projectile points.
Pottery fragments exhibiting Cahokia derived stylistic and technological characteristics. Brain J. P. 1991. Cahokia from the Southern Periphery In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by James B. Stoltman, pp. 93-100. Monographs in World Archaeology No. 2 Prehistory Press, Madison.
Cahokia (Merrell Tract) wall-trench house excavation in progress showing refuse pits within the house. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-1.
Experimental archaeology - fleshing and butchering a carcass with stone tool to understand carcass processing and use-wear patterns on tools. Image courtesy of E. White, Ancient Lifeways Institute.
Mississippian Village scene showing a variety of implements and facilities in use. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-1.
Closeup of Mound 72 main burial projectile point grave goods in situ. Illinois State Museum-CH-25.
Mound 72 main burial projectile point grave goods in situ. Illinois State Museum-CH-25.
An assortment of finely made Cahokia points. Image courtesy of B.W. Styles, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Mississippian projectile (dart) points from Cahokia. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMA-4.
Mississippian projectile (dart) points from Cahokia. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMA-4.
Microdrills from the Powell Mound. Modified after Yerkes, R. W. 1991. Specialization in Shell Artifact Production at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp. 49-64. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Microdrills, blades, and cores from the Powell Mound (left: microblades; center: microcores; right: microdrills). Yerkes, R. W. 1991. Specialization in Shell Artifact Production at Cahokia. In New Perspectives on Cahokia, edited by J. B. Stoltman, pp. 49-64. Monographs in World Archaeology, No. 2. Prehistory Press, Madison.
Wood and hide-working tools - scrapers. Illinois State Museum-AC-47.
Wood and hide-working tools - scrapers. Illinois State Museum-AC-47.
Mound 72 woodhenge area showing celestial relationships between Mounds 72 and 96. Fowler, M. L. 1996. The Mound 72 and woodhenge 72 Area of Cahokia. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):36-59.
Mound 72 woodhenge area showing celestial relationships between Mounds 72 and 96. Fowler, M. L. 1996. The Mound 72 and woodhenge 72 Area of Cahokia. In The Ancient Skies and Sky Watchers of Cahokia: woodhenges, Eclipses, and Cahokian Cosmology. Wisconsin Archaeologist. 77(3/4):36-59.
Mound 72 relative to layout of Cahokia axes. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
1933 Dasche Reeves aerial photo of central Cahokia area (Monks Mound at top with Grand Plaza in middle) with arrows pointing to faint light lines that indicate the former location of a wooden palisade. Anderson, J. 1969. A Cahokia Palisade Sequence. In Explorations in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by M. L. Fowler, pp. 89-99. . Illinois Archaeological Survey, Bulletin No. 7.
Cahokia stockade trench running through a residential area - likely evidence of the imposition of elite directives on those with less status. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMD-2.
Reconstruction of part of the Cahokia stockade. Illinois State Museum-CH-52.
An artist's reconstruction of fortified Cahokia site during the Stirling phase. Illinois State Museum-CH-85.
Cahokia stockade trench running through Mississippian house No. 4 - likely evidence of the imposition of elite directives on those with less status. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Stockade reconstruction at Cahokia showing bastions - a likely indication of the stockade's defensive function. Illinois State Museum-CH-52.
Stockade reconstruction at Cahokia showing bastions - a likely indication of the stockade's defensive function. Illinois State Museum-CH-52.
Mound volumes for main areas of Cahokia. Kelly, J. E., 1996. Redefining Cahokia: Principles and Elements in Community Organization. Wisconsin Archeologist 77(3/4):97-119.
Drawing of chert hoe from Marge site showing location of luster on facets of tool face. Fortier, A.C. 1996. The Marge Site: Late Archaic and Emergent Mississippian Occupations in the Palmer Creek Locality. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI 270 Site Reports, Vol. 27. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Cache of digging implements (chert hoes) on a Julien site house floor. Milner, G. R. 1984. The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. IDOT University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Hunter butchering a deer. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-2.
Village reconstruction with hunter butchering a deer in front of sweatlodge. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-2.
Closeup of woman preparing deer hide in front of Mississippian house. Fowler, M. L., 1997 The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Painting of woman preparing deer hide in front of Mississippian house. Fowler, M. L., 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Food preparation in front of a house. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-592.
Reconstruction of other village activities Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-1.
Flint knapping tool kit (punches, pressure flakers, abraders, and percussion stones) and debris. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-606.
Enlarged view of teeth with heavy abnormal wear, calculus, and caries. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Teeth with heavy abnormal wear, calculus, and caries. Image courtesy of M. Carter, Illinois State Museum-RCC.
Shell spoons with scalloped edges. Illinois State Museum-AC-45.
Bone tools (deer ulna punches probably used for leather-working). Illinois State Museum-AC-39.
A deer metapodial punch. Illinois State Museum-AC-42.
An antler tine used to remove pressure flakes. Illinois State Museum-AC-37.
Deer mandible (jaw) tools used to shell corn. Illinois State Museum-AR-819.
Freshwater mussel shells used to form hoe blades. Illinois State Museum-AC-46.
Bone fishing hook. Illinois State Museum-AC-44.
Photograph showing Cahokia Mound 72 main burial shell bead blanket/cape. Fowler and Illinois State Museum image.
Marine shell beads in matrix as recovered from East St. Louis Mounds cemetery (from Yale University Peabody Museum). Kelly, J. E., 1994. The Archaeology of the East St. Louis Mound Center: Past and Present. Illinois Archaeology 6(1 and 2):1-57.
A valued item - a disk bead necklace. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-287.
Finely made shell beads from the East St. Louis Cemetery Mound (from Yale University Peabody Museum). Kelly, J. E., 1994. The Archaeology of the East St. Louis Mound Center: Past and Present. Illinois Archaeology 6(1 and 2):1-57.
Finely made shell beads from the East St. Louis Cemetery Mound (from Yale University Peabody Museum). Kelly, J. E., 1994. The Archaeology of the East St. Louis Mound Center: Past and Present. Illinois Archaeology 6(1 and 2):1-57.
Finely made shell beads from the East St. Louis Cemetery Mound (from Yale University Peabody Museum). Kelly, J. E., 1994. The Archaeology of the East St. Louis Mound Center: Past and Present. Illinois Archaeology 6(1 and 2):1-57.
Mississippian pottery sequence. Milner, G.R., T.E. Emerson, M.W. Meher, J.A. Williams, and D. Esarey. 1984. Mississippian and Oneota Period. In American Bottom Archaeology, edited by C.J. Bareis and J.W. Porter, pp. 158-186. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A salt pan. Pans like this were used by Mississippians to extract salts from mineral springs in southern Illinois. Illinois State Museum image.
Beaver effigy pot (front view). Illinois State Museum image.
Human effigy pot. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-397.
A common Mississippian implement - the Powell plain vessel. Milner, G. R. 1984 The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. IDOT University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Drawings of Ramey Incised pottery and decorated rims from Julien site. Milner, G. R. 1984 The Julien Site. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Reports, Vol. 7. IDOT University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Close-up of reconstructed granary with food stored in jars. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-4.
Reconstructed granary with food stored in jars. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-4.
Ceramic pots used as storage Cahokia Mounds Museum.
Front view of West Figurine with snake body, turban, and rattles shown. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
White specs visible in this sherd are diagnostic of shell-tempering. Illinois State Museum collection.
Closeup of fishing with nets in a floodplain lake. Jefferies, R. W. 1987. The Archaeology of Carrier Mills. Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale and Edwardsville.
Fishing with nets in a floodplain lake. Jefferies, R. W. 1987. The Archaeology of Carrier Mills. Southern Illinois University Press, Carbondale and Edwardsville.
Painting of moundbuilder carrying basketload of earth to top of mound under construction. Illinois State Museum-AR-945.
Kunnemann Mound excavation showing complex stratigraphy and submound features. Pauketat, T. R. 1993. Temples for Cahokia Lords: Preston Holder's 1955-1956 Excavations of Kunnemann Mound. Memoirs of the University of Michigan Museum of Anthropology, No. 26. Ann Arbor.
Horizontal basket loads of sediment from mound construction visible in Monks Mound Trench 2 profile after slump on east face of mound. M. Wiant, Illinois State Museum-RCC. SEE ALSO McGimsey, C.R., and M.D. Wiant 1984. Limited Archaeological investigations at Monks Mound (11MS38): Some Perspectives on its Stability, Structure and Age. IHPA Studies in Illinois Arch, No. 1.
Another view of basket loading in Monks Mound 1984 slump. M. Wiant, Illinois State Museum-RCC. SEE ALSO McGimsey, C.R., and M.D. Wiant 1984. Limited Archaeological investigations at Monks Mound (11MS38): Some Perspectives on its Stability, Structure and Age. IHPA Studies in Illinois Arch, No. 1.
Tilted basket loads of sediment from mound construction visible in Monks Mound Trench 1 profile after slump on east face of mound. M. Wiant, Illinois State Museum-RCC. SEE ALSO McGimsey, C.R., and M.D. Wiant 1984. Limited Archaeological investigations at Monks Mound (11MS38): Some Perspectives on its Stability, Structure and Age. IHPA Studies in Illinois Arch, No. 1.
Closeup of tilted basket loads of sediment from mound construction visible in Monks Mound Trench 1 profile after slump on east face of mound. M. Wiant, Illinois State Museum-RCC. SEE ALSO McGimsey, C.R., and M.D. Wiant 1984. Limited Archaeological investigations at Monks Mound (11MS38): Some Perspectives on its Stability, Structure and Age. IHPA Studies in Illinois Arch, No. 1.
A woman hoeing the back of a feline serpent - the Birger figurine. Illinois State Museum-AR-997.
A woman with a snake - the West figurine. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Woman with maize (?) stalk growing from her right hand - the Sponeman figurine. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Close up of Sponeman figurine face. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A woman carrying plates (for the busk corn ceremony?) - the Willoughby figurine. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Drawing and photo of Willoughby figurine with squash (?) vines and flowers, and maize ceremony (?) plates labeled. Jackson, D.K., A.C. Fortier, and J.A. Williams 1992. The Sponemann Site 2 (11-MS-517): The Mississippian and Oneota Occupations. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 24. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Woman grinding maize (on a platform of maize?) - the Keller figurine. Illinois State Museum-AR-998.
Mississippian house with thatched roof, and wattle and daub walls. Illinois State Museum-Dickson Mounds Museum-449.
Superimposed wall trenches of a wall trench house. Illinois State Museum-AR-1039/1121.
Plan view and cross-section of wall trench house from the American Bottom Radic site. Note the posts set into a trench and the dug out floor. McElrath, D.C., J.A. Williams, T.O. Maher, and M.C. Meinkoth 1987. Emergent Mississippian and Mississippian Communities at the Radic Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 17, No. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Plan view and cross-section of wall trench house from the American Bottom Radic site. Note the posts set into a trench and the dug out floor. McElrath, D.C., J.A. Williams, T.O. Maher, and M.C. Meinkoth 1987. Emergent Mississippian and Mississippian Communities at the Radic Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 17, No. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A piece of a mud dauber nest with twig impressions - likely evidence of insect infestation of Mississippian houses. Freimuth, G. and W. La Berge 1976. Dating and Environmental Reconstruction from Prehistoric Mud-Dauber Nests: Some Possibilities. Plains Anthropologist 21(72):111-114.
Reconstructed Mississippian house showing frame. Summer homes may have had thatch removed for better ventilation. Illinois State Museum-CH-64.
Mississippian house with wattle and daub walls, and a thatched roof. Little or no evidence for wattle and daub walls exists for Mississippian houses in the American Bottom. Illinois State Museum-CH-62.
Schematic diagram of bell-shaped storage pit and arrangement of food used by the Hidatsa. Illinois State Museum-SAE-433 from Wilson, G.L. 1917. Agriculture of the Hidatsa Indians: An Indian Interpretation. University of Minnesota Studies in the Social Sciences, No. 9.
A cached, crushed jar in a storage pit. Emerson, T. E. and D. K. Jackson 1984. The BBB Motor Site (11-Ms-595). American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 6. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Possible remains of a corn crib at Cahokia Tract 15B (Feature 110) - evidence of community and/or elite storage of food? Illinois State Museum-AR-1043.
Reconstructed granary and part of an American Bottom Mississippian village scene from the Cahokia Mounds Museum exhibit. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMF-4.
Monks Mound covered with snow looking to the north northeast. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMB-5.
Twin Mounds and the Grand Plaza - examples of Mississippian infrastructure. Cahokia Mounds Museum slide series VPCMC-1.
Mound 59 Cahokia, an example of a conical mound. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
An example of a ridge topped mound - Mound 72, Cahokia. This unobtrusive mound has yielded some of the best evidence of trade, social stratification, and corporate identity at Cahokia. M. Fowler and Illinois State Museum image.
An example of a ridge topped mound - Mound 86, Cahokia. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Featherstonaugh's drawing of Monk's mound looking to the north showing conical mound on the southeast corner of the third terrace. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Powell Mound stratigraphic exposure in 1931 excavation showing mound construction zones. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Planview map of Mitchell site. By 1969 the only remaining portion of the site was found between Mound A and the school house. Porter, J. W., 1969. The Mitchell site and Prehistoric Exchange Systems at Cahokia: AD 1000+/- 300. In Explorations in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by M. L. Fowler, pp. 137-164. Illinois Archaeological Survey, Bulletin No. 7.
Activities in the Grand Plaza, Cahokia. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Activities in the Grand Plaza, Cahokia. Fowler, M. L. 1997. The Cahokia Atlas: A Historical Atlas of Cahokia Archaeology. revised edition. University of Illinois, Urbana.
Flintknappers manufacturing and repairing chert hoes and creating of a concentration of lithic debitage outside of the village. Illinois State Museum Peoples of the Past exhibit.
Schematic cross-section of a temple mound illustrating that most mounds were added to over time.
Mississippian wall trench structure with a central fireplace.
Drawing of wall trench houses at the Radic site illustrating that many houses were rebuilt several times. McElrath, D.C., J.A. Williams, T.O. Maher, and M.C. Meinkoth 1987. Emergent Mississippian and Mississippian Communities at the Radic Site. American Bottom Archaeology, FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 17, No. 1. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A multi-room structure - evidence of specialized (civic or religious) activities at the Robinson's Lake site? Milner, G. R. 1982. The Robinson's Lake Site (11-Ms-582): A Small Late Bluff Settlement. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 10. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Drawing of wall trench and post configuration. Milner, G. R. 1982. The Robinson's Lake Site (11-Ms-582): A Small Late Bluff Settlement. American Bottom Archaeology FAI-270 Site Reports, Vol. 10. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
A shell bead. Illinois State Museum-AC-38.
Projectile point shoulder shapes.
Photograph of the excavation/destruction of Big Mound in St. Louis in the Spring of 1869 (contra 1870 date on photo). Williams, S., and J. M. Goggin 1956. The Long Nosed God Mask in Eastern North America. Missouri Archaeologist 18(3):3-72.
Various Woodland and Mississippian building floor plans. Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Stumpware vessel from ISM Cahokia excavations. Illinois State Museum-AR-856.
Reconstruction of an open-sided shelter, for use as a summer house, or field house near agricultural fields. Illinois State Museum-CH-61.
Frequencies of vessel shapes and temper for Cahokia tracts 15A and 15B ceramics. Vogel, J.O. 1975. Trends in Cahokia ceramics: Preliminary study of the collections from tracts 15A and 15B. In Perspectives in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 32-125. IAS Bulletin No. 10.
Vessel form by temper type for Cahokia Tracts 15A and 15B. Vogel, J.O. 1975. Trends in Cahokia ceramics: Preliminary study of the collections from tracts 15A and 15B. In Perspectives in Cahokia Archaeology, edited by J.A. Brown, pp. 32-125. IAS Bulletin No. 10.
Volunteers washing artifacts from Cahokia excavations. Illinois State Museum-CH-58.
Building the infrastructure tying the physical world to the supernatural - a woodhenge.
Building the infrastructure tying the physical world to the supernatural - a woodhenge.

Maps

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Animation showing retreat of Laurentide Ice sheet (white areas are ice, blue areas represent proglacial lakes). E.K. Schroeder, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Illinois Quaternary Deposits. Lineback, J.A.1979. Quaternary Deposits of Illinois. (a 1: 500000 map).Illinois StateGeological Survey, Champaign, Illinois. SEE ALSOhttps://www.isgs.uiuc.edu/isgsroot/isgshome/fra3.htm
Illinois Quaternary Deposits. Revised afterLineback, J.A. 1979. Quaternary Deposits of Illinois. (a 1: 500000map).Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, Illinois. SEE ALSOhttps://www.isgs.uiuc.edu/isgsroot/isgshome/fra3.htm
Shaded relief map of the American Bottom and surrounding area. Modified after the State shaded relief map, Illinois State Geological Survey.
Illinois Bedrock Geology. Illinois State Geological Survey.
Wetlands estimates for the Cahokia Mounds area of the American Bottom based on GLO documents and historical data on flooding in the 1850's and in 1844. J.S. Oliver (Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory), & G.R. Milner (Penn State Univ.). SEE ALSO Milner, G.R. 1998. The Cahokia Chiefdom: The Archaeology of a Mississippian Society. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington.
Organized layout of Cahokia. E.K. Schroeder, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
Map showing the midwestern sources of galena, and Mississippian sites from which galena has been recovered. Image courtesy of the Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois.
Glacial Boundaries in Illinois. Illinois State Geological Survey.
Table listing the locations of sites where long-nosed god masks have bee recovered in the midwest. Hall, R. 1991. Identity and Interaction Models of Cahokia Mississippian. In Cahokia and the Hinterlands, edited by T. E. Emerson and R. B. Lewis, pp. 3-34. University of Illinois Press, Urbana.
Locations of Mississippian sites in the American Bottom. E.K. Schroeder, Illinois State Museum-RCC, GIS Laboratory.
End Moraines of the Wisconsin episode inIllinois.
Physiographic Divisions of Illinois. Leighton, M. M., G. E. Ekblaw, and L. Horberg 1948. Physiographic Divisions of Illinois. ISGS Report of Investigations, No. 129. Illinois State Geological Survey, Champaign, Illinois. SEE ALSO https://www.isgs.uiuc.edu/isgsroot/isgshome/fra3.htm