1. The Archaeology of Ritual Elizabeth Bollwerk, Museum of Culture and Environment, CWU

2. What We Will Cover…  What is ritual?  Why is it important?  How do archaeologists find it?  Example: Archaeological evidence of Mississippian communities’ ritual activity  Activity – Material remains of our rituals

3. Ritual What is ritual?

4. Ritual  Ritual is a practice that follows a set of prescribed rules and has certain materials associated with it  These practices are often repeated

5. Why are rituals important?  Rituals are an important part of the social fabric of communities  create social connections  maintain equilibrium and social order

6. Types of Evidence  Mortuary practices  Landscapes  Structures  Iconography and ethnographic texts  Artifacts and ecofacts

7. Mississippian Tradition AD 750-1500

8.  Tennessee, Cumberland, and Mississippi River Valleys  Large platform mounds  Town plazas  Stratified social organization  Major sites: Cahokia, Moundville, Spiro, Etowah

9. Mortuary Practices  Burial configuration  Primary or secondary burial  Sex and age profiles  Studies of nutrition and disease

10. Landscapes - Cahokia

11.  AD 850 – 1100  Area of 6 square miles  Massive palisade around town: 15,000 logs  Up to 120 mounds

12. Landscapes - Cahokia

14. Landscapes - Moundville  AD 1000 – 1500  Black Warrior River, AL  3000 people, 300 acres, 24 mounds Map by Karen Carr

15. Structures

17. Cahokia’s Woodhenge

19. Iconography – Southeastern Ceremonial Complex Images courtesy of Frank McClung Museum Eagle Dancers Weeping Eye Mask Falcon Man

20. Iconography – Southeastern Ceremonial Complex

21. Artifacts – Chunkey Stones

22. Chunkey Game  Originated around 600 AD in Cahokia  Involved spiritual preparation, including ritual scratching of skin  Played in huge arenas as large of 50 acres  Associated with bird/falcon man

23. Ecofacts - Faunal Material  Faunal assemblages – collections of mammal, bird, and fish bones  For Cahokia fish were important, deer were secondary source of food

24. Ecofacts - Botanical Remains  Nuts: Hazelnut, chestnut, walnut  Seeds – goosefoot, maygrass, and knotweed  Maize (corn)

25. Activity What are the material remains of our rituals?

26. Types of Evidence  Mortuary practices  Landscapes  Structures  Iconography and Ethnographic texts  Artifacts and Ecofacts