Wikipedia

Mound

For other uses, seeMound (disambiguation).

Amoundis aheapedpile ofearth,gravel,sand,rocks,ordebris.Most commonly, mounds are earthen formations such ashillsandmountains,particularly if they appear artificial. A mound may be any rounded area oftopographicallyhigherelevationon any surface. Artificial mounds have been created for a variety of reasons throughout history, including habitation (seeTellandTerp), ceremonial (platform mound), burial (tumulus), and commemorative purposes (e.g.Kościuszko Mound).

Grave Creek Mound,inMoundsville, West Virginia
Kościuszko Mound,Kraków,Poland

Archaeology

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North American archaeology

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Main article:Mound Builders

In thearchaeologyof theUnited StatesandCanada,a mound is a deliberately constructed elevated earthen structure orearthwork,intended for a range of potential uses. In European and Asian archaeology, the word "tumulus"may be used as a synonym for an artificial hill, particularly if the hill is related to particularburialcustoms.

While the term "mound" may be applied to historic constructions, most mounds in the United States are pre-Columbian earthworks, built byNative Americanpeoples.[citation needed]Native Americans built a variety of mounds, includingflat-topped pyramids or conesknown as platform mounds, rounded cones, and ridge or loaf-shaped mounds. Some mounds took on unusual shapes, such as the outline of cosmologically significant animals. These are known aseffigy mounds.[1]Some mounds, such as a few inWisconsin,have rock formations, orpetroformswithin them, on them, or near them.

While these mounds are perhaps not as famous asburialmounds, like their European analogs, Native American mounds also have a variety of other uses. While some prehistoric cultures, like theAdena culture,used mounds preferentially for burial,[2]others used mounds for other ritual and sacred acts, as well as for secular functions. The platform mounds of theMississippian culture,for example, may have supportedtemples,the houses ofchiefs,council houses,and may have also acted as a platform for public speaking. Other mounds would have been part of defensive walls to protect a certain area. TheHopewell cultureused mounds as markers of complex astronomical alignments related to ceremonies.

Mounds and related earthworks are the only significantmonumentalconstruction in pre-Columbian Eastern and Central North America. peoples.[citation needed]

Mounds are given different names depending on which culture they strive from. They can be located all across the world in spots such as Asia, Europe and the Americas. "Mound builders" have more commonly been associated with the mounds in the Americas. They all have different meanings and sometimes are constructed as animals and can be clearly seen from aerial views.

India

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Kankali Tila

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Main article:Kankali Tila
General view of the excavations in January 1889 at Kankali Tila, Mathura

Kankali Tilais a famous mound located atMathurain the Indian state ofUttar Pradesh.AJainstupawas excavated here in 1890-91 by Dr. Fuhrer.[3]

Archaeology elsewhere

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Mound known as Structure 101 located at theYarumelaarcheological site in Honduras.

Mound, as a technical term in archaeology, is not generally in favor in the rest of the world.[citation needed]More specific local terminology is preferred, and each of these terms has its own article (see below).

Mound types

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See also

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Animals

References

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  1. ^National Park Service(August 30, 2015)."Effigy Moundbuilders".National Park Service.RetrievedAugust 30,2015.
  2. ^Smith, C. R. (March 9, 2000)."An Introduction to North America's Native People: Adena".Cabrillo College.RetrievedAugust 30,2015.
  3. ^Smith, Vincent Arthur (1901).The Jain stupa and other antiquities of Mathura.Retrieved14 November2015.
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