Spirits of Earth

by Birmingham, Robert A.

• ISBN13: 9780299232641
• ISBN10: 0299232646
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-12-18
• Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Pr

Summary

Between A.D. 700 and 1100 Native Americans built more effigy mounds in Wisconsin than anywhere else in North America, with an estimated 1,300 mounds-including the worldrs"s largest known bird effigy-at the center of effigy-building culture in and around Madison, Wisconsin. These huge earthworks, sculpted in the shape of birds, mammals, and other figures, have aroused curiosity for generations and together comprise a vast effigy mound ceremonial landscape. Farming and industrialization destroyed most of these mounds, leaving the mysteries of who built them and why they were made. The remaining mounds are protected today and many can be visited.Spirits of the Earth: Effigy Mound Landscapes of Madison and the Four Lakesexplores the cultural, historical, and ceremonial meanings of the mounds in an informative, abundantly illustrated book and guide.

Author Biography

Robert A. Birmingham served as Wisconsin State Archaeologist at the Wisconsin Historical Society for fifteen years. He now teaches at the University of Wisconsin–Waukesha and writes from his home in Madison. He is coauthor, with Leslie E. Eisenberg, of Indian Mounds of Wisconsin (awarded the Elizabeth A. Steinberg Prize), and, with Lynn G. Goldstein, of Aztalan: Mysteries of an Ancient Indian Town.

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations	p. vii
Preface: Of Megaliths and Mounds, Recognizing a World Wonder	p. xiii
Acknowledgments	p. xxiii
Spirits of Earth: An Introduction to Effigy Mound Landscapes	p. 3
The Ancient Mound Builders	p. 42
The Effigy Mound Landscape of Madison and the Four Lakes	p. 92
Yahara Inlet and Mendota: Lake of Spirits	p. 115
Wingra: Lake of Sacred Springs	p. 147
Lake Monona: Let the Great Spirit Soar	p. 161
Waubesa: Lake of Reeds and Snakes	p. 176
Kegonsa and the Mouth of the Yahara: End to Beginning	p. 188
Landscapes of the Past, Questions and Issues for the Future	p. 201
Appendix: Selected Mound Sites Open to the Public	p. 207
Notes	p. 215
Bibliography	p. 229
Illustration Credits	p. 241
Index	p. 247
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