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Abstract
Monumental architecture is one of the defining characteristics of the Late Archaic (ca. 1700 to 1300 BC) Poverty Point culture of the Lower Mississippi River Valley. Late Archaic hunter-gatherers constructed six concentric arc-shaped earthen ridges and numerous mounds at the Poverty Point site in northeast Louisiana, some of the largest prehistoric earthworks ever erected in North America. Previous research at Poverty Point has focused primarily on determining the function and construction chronology of the ridges. Considerably less research has addressed the mounds at Poverty Point. The primary goals of this research were to establish a chronological framework for construction of the earthworks; to determine specific construction techniques used to build each of the mounds; and to determine what purposes the mounds served for the residents of the site. Soil coring and test excavations were conducted on each of the mounds to enable comparisons of stratigraphic and artifactual data from all known mounds and ridges at the site.
Stratigraphic data revealed that Mound D was originally part of the innermost southern ridge during the Poverty Point occupation of the site. The mound that currently overlies this ridge was constructed long after the Archaic Period. Stratigraphic data revealed that Mounds A, B, C, and E were all constructed in numerous stages. Regardless of the total number of stages comprising each mound, these features appear to have been constructed rapidly using a variety of construction techniques. Radiometric data indicate that Mounds A, B, and C are essentially contemporaneous with each other and with the ridges. Mound A was found to consist of two discrete sections, with the western, conical portion predating construction of the eastern, platform portion. Both sections, however, were constructed during the Poverty Point occupation of the site. Mound E did not yield reliable radiometric results, but stratigraphic similarities with Mound B suggest these features may be contemporaneous. Limited cultural remains from Mounds A, B, and E preclude determining what activities took place on these earthworks. Only Mound C yielded large quantities of cultural debris. These cultural remains suggest that Mound C may have served as a setting for ritual events.
