OCTAGON EARTHWORKS OPEN HOUSE – SUNDAY, OCTOBER 19TH

Join us for an open house at one of the wonders of the world!

Octagon Earthworks is one of the most significant surviving remnants of the Newark Earthworks – the largest set of geometric earthworks in the world! The gigantic circle and octagon is an American Stonehenge with its many gateways and walls aligning to the rising and setting of the moon.

Since the site is leased by Moundbuilders County Club, usually much of the grounds is not accessible to visitors for safety reasons. On Open House dates, however, the entire site is open for your enjoyment.

Guided tours of the grounds will be offered at 12:15 and 4:00 PM.

Dr. Michael Mickelson of Denison University will be giving a presentation on the "Archaeoastronomy of some ancient Ohio earthworks" at 2:00 PM.

Mark Welsh, of the Native American Indian Center of Central Ohio (NAICCO), will be telling Native American stories at 3:00 PM and Carol Welsh, the Director of NAICCO, will have a display of corn husk dolls and a hands-on activity for kids of all ages beginning at 1:00 PM.

In addition, there will be flintknapping demonstrations and other activities for kids.

For more information, including directions to the site, go to http://ohsweb.ohiohistory.org/places/c08/octagon.shtml

New Archaeology Displays Installed

The Ohio Historical Center will be featuring new archaeology displays to introduce and provide a cultural context for the artifacts in its ongoing exhibition, Windows to Our Collections: Ohio’s Ancient Past. The displays consist of:

o Paleoindian Hunting Dioramas
The three scenes depict three different types of animals likely hunted by these first residents of Ohio. Caribou live in herds, so groups of hunters ambushed them as they migrated from summer to winter feeding grounds. The mastodon butchering scene shows how an entire band of Paleoindians—men, women, children, and dogs—is involved in butchering the animal and processing the meat, hide, and bones. The white-tail deer in the third model is the only animal of the three depicted in these models that still lives in Ohio. Individual hunters likely pursued individual animals in contrast to caribou hunting. The Paleoindian models represent a hunting and gathering lifestyle where relatively small groups of people moved periodically from one camp to another exploiting wide range of game animals and edible plants for their food supply. This lifestyle is characteristic of the Paleoindians (ca.15,000-9,000 years ago) and their descendants, the Archaic people (ca.10,000-2500 years ago).

o Hopewell Earthworks Models
The models show examples of Hopewell (ca. 2100-1500 years ago) geometric earthworks (Seip and Hopewell Mound Group, both in Ross County) and hilltop enclosure (Fort Ancient, Warren County). The relief models demonstrate the size and complexity of these sites and their relationship to their environments. They also demonstrate the abilities of the Hopewell people to conceive, layout and construct monumental earthen structures that were the focus of much of their ceremonial and social activities. There is also a model of the floor of the large Seip mound revealed during the excavation of the mound in the 1920s. Originally it was the site of a large building in which the Hopewell people buried deceased members of their community. At some point, they dismantled the building, covered its location and the burials with a large mound of earth. (The oval mound within the larger circular enclosure of the Seip Earthworks model.) The Hopewell people are an example of a society supported by hunting and gathering, and by cultivating several kinds of seed-bearing plants.

o Fort Ancient Village Model
This model represents a portion of a Fort Ancient culture (1100-500 years ago) village in southwestern Ohio. The figures show people doing the typical tasks of village life—cultivating corn, beans, and squash, hunting, repairing their houses, making pottery, processing hides, even the funeral of a young child. In contrast to earlier groups, the Fort Ancient people lived in more or less permanent villages with denser populations (est. 100-150 people) supported by hunting, gathering and particularly farming.

o Meigs County Petroglyphs
Petroglyphs are images engraved into stone. These particular figures had been chiseled into the rock outcrops along the Ohio River in Meigs County. Although it is impossible to determine their age, archaeologists generally assume they were made by the Fort Ancient people, based on their level of preservation. When it was evident that the spring floods and winter ice of the Ohio River, raised by the construction of 20th century dams along the river, were eroding the petroglyphs, OHS archaeologists cut them out of the stone outcrop in order to preserve them. One figure appears to represent a bear while the other is a bird. The meanings of these engravings are unknown, although it is possible they illustrate characters in legends or represent particular social groups.

Discover Ohio’s Past at Archaeology Fair Oct. 4

With the reappearance this past summer of 1980s movie icon Indiana Jones, people once again want to dig deeper into archaeology. So in celebration of the Ohio Archaeology Month, the Ohio Historical Society is sponsoring two events October 4 at the Ohio Historical Center in Columbus.

At the Archaeology Fair, learn about the latest discoveries from real-life archaeologists. Topics cover a wide range of archaeological interests:

10:00 Working Together: Nautical Archaeology in Ohio.
10:45 Fort Laurens Musketball concentration: evidence of a fight or fiasco?
11:30 Discovery of the Anthony Wayne.
1:00 Pickawillany: Making sense of the first thing to happen in Ohio.
1:45 Dundee: Yesterday, Today, and Tomorrow.
2:30 The Newark Earthworks -- a wonder of the world.
3:15 Ohio's Ancient Treasures .
4:00 WWII Archaeology in the Marianas.

Browse displays, see pottery demonstrations, flint knapping demonstrations, and bring in artifacts you have found for identification. Plus see first hand all the spectacular artifacts on exhibit in Windows to Our Collections. The fair runs 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., and is free with museum admission.

In Discover Archaeology!, families work together at a "site" to find out how archaeologists use science, art and a lot of patience to learn about the past. This program runs from 9 a.m.-1:30 p.m. for ages 8 and up and requires a program fee of $5 for adults and $2 for children ages 6-12. Enrollment limited, advance registration is required.

Admission to the Ohio Historical Center is $8 for adults, $7 for senior, $4 for children ages 6-12, and free to Ohio Historical Society members and children ages 5 and under. Parking is $4 and free for members.

For more information on both events, call 614.297.2300/800.686.6124 or go online to www.ohiohistory.org/calendar.

October is Ohio Archaeology Month

Each October the Ohio Archaeological Council sponsors Archaeology Month. The poster theme this year highlights efforts in Ohio underwater archaeology.

As part of the celebration, OHS will hold an Archaeology Fair on October 4th. Another post will come out later this week listing details about that event.

Please read on for information about all the exciting events you can see in October.

Enjoy!

Linda


Celebrating our cultural heritage...

Please join us in celebrating Ohio Archaeology Month throughout the month of October 2008. The mission of this annual event is to promote awareness of Ohio’s cultural heritage as revealed through nearly 200 years of archaeological research! A series of statewide educational events designed to highlight archaeological research throughout Ohio are planned. This year, we have over 20 events planned across all portions of the state including presentations, artifact identification days, exhibits, and more. The celebration kicks off with events in Cleveland, Columbus, and Dayton, and culminates on November 1 with the Ohio Archaeological Council’s Fall Meeting in Newark. Detailed information for each event is listed below.

The 2008 Ohio Archaeology Month is a volunteer effort sponsored by the Ohio Archaeological Council. The Ohio Archaeological Council is a private, nonprofit, charitable, scientific, and educational membership organization incorporated with the state of Ohio in 1975 to promote the advancement of archaeology in Ohio through research, education, and consultation with government agencies and the public. Visit our website www.ohioarchaeology.org for more details and additions to the Schedule of Events.

The following individuals and organizations generously donated to this year’s event: The Ohio Archaeological Council, The Ohio Historical Society, The Great Lakes Historical Society, Environmental Resources Management, Inc., The Mannik & Smith Group, Inc., Boonshoft Museum of Discovery/Dayton Society of Natural History, Ohio University, Hardlines Design Company, Heritage Education & Research Services, Maritime Archaeological Survey Team, Inc., Dennis Cramer, Linda Pansing, and Linda Whitman.

NEW STUDY OF ANCIENT DNA REVEALS POPULATION HISTORY OF NORTHEASTERN NORTH AMERICA

In a paper published in the September 2008 issue of the American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Beth Allison Schultz Shook and David Glenn Smith present the results of a study of mitochondrial DNA, or mtDNA, recovered from ancient human remains from a number of sites in northeastern North America. When compared with the mtDNA from contemporary populations, these data reveal important clues about the relationships between the ancient and modern groups.

Shook and Smith examine "how mtDNA patterns have changed throughout prehistory and across geographic space within the Northeast." They studied mtDNA from two ancient populations: Late Archaic (circa 850 BC) groups from southern Ontario (including both the Glacial Kame and Red Ocher cultures) and Mississippian/Late Prehistoric (circa AD 1150) groups from both western Illinois (the Orendorf site) and southern Ontario (Great Western Park site).

Shook and Smith also included genetic data from other studies to increase their sample of ancient mtDNA. The additional sites included Norris Farms, an Oneota (Mississippian) site from Illinois, and Ohio's Hopewell Mound Group (circa AD 200).

They compared the ancient mtDNA to the mtDNA of the following modern Native American groups: Manitoulin Island Ojibwa, Northern Ontario Ojibwa, Turtle Mountain Chippewa, Minnesota Chippewa, Wisconsin Chippewa, Cheyenne, Cheyenne/Arapaho, Sisseton/Wahpeton Sioux, and Mohawk.

Shook and Smith determined that there were close similarities between the people of the Hopewell Mound Group and the people from the Mississippian/Late Prehistoric sites of Great Western Park, Ontario, and Orendorf and Norris Farms in Illinois. This indicates relatively strong regional continuities in populations from the Hopewell through the Mississippian in this broad region. One conclusion you might draw from these data is that whatever brought about the end of the Hopewell culture, it did not involve the movement of new groups of people into the Northeast.

When Shook and Smith compared the ancient mtDNA to the mtDNA of modern groups, they found that the people of the Hopewell Mound Group, as well as the Mississippian people from the Orendorf site, were most closely related to the Cheyenne/Arapaho and the Sisseton/Wahpeton Sioux.

Shook and Smith also point out that "seven of nine Hopewell haplogroup A haplotypes," distinctive variations of the mtDNA, seem to represent lineages "that might now be extinct." In other words, attempts to link particular ancient groups with modern groups will be complicated by the fact that some ancient groups may have no living descendants.

Shook and Smith conclude with the observation that their results suggest that "some ancestors of present day Native Americans in northeastern North America have been in that region for at least 3,000 years." Nevertheless, they also observe that "the genetic structure of the Northeast has changed significantly" over time. One reason for this is that ancient as well as modern people often traveled through the region for purposes of trade and pilgrimage and, in the process, they may have met and married folks from far-off places resulting in the transfer of genes from one group to another.

Another way in which the genetic structure of the region changed is through the loss of genetic variability through extinction. The arrival of Europeans in the Northeast introduced foreign diseases that killed many thousands of Native Americans. Entire villages and even tribes may have been lost in the deadly wake of the Four Horsemen of the Post-Columbian apocalypse.

Shook and Smith caution that their study is limited by small sample sizes and the use of only one genetic marker. Their tantalizing results underscore the "need for additional genetic analysis of prehistoric populations in the Northeast to help differentiate between these varied causes and to further illuminate the pattern of genetic change in the Northeast."

__________

The article by Shook and Smith is entitled, "Using Ancient mtDNA to reconstruct the population history of northeastern North America." It appears in the American Journal of Physical Anthropology Volume 137, pages 14-29.

If you'd like more information about the Late Archaic cultures, the Hopewell culture, Hopewell Mound Group, the Late Prehistoric Period, and other aspects of ancient Ohio, then check out Ohio History Central, an online encyclopedia that includes information about Ohio's natural history, prehistory, and history: http://www.ohiohistorycentral.org/time_period.php?rec=1

World Heritage in the United States of America

Ohio has a total of 12 sites up for nomination to the World Heritage List. If all are accepted, Ohio will have far more World Heritage sites than any other state.

Go to the following link for a look at a new publication presenting all the sites on the 2008 U.S. Tentative List:

http://www.georgewright.org/us_tentative_list.pdf