The Midwestern office of the Archaeological Conservancy was excited to host special Conservancy members ‘Anasazi Circle‘ from all over the country recently during an exciting tour of earthwork sites in Ohio. Each year this group convenes for a workshop and tour weekend in a location of significant archaeological import. The Anasazi Circle consists of very generous donors who commit every year to contribute $2,500 or more during a calendar year in order to help insure we are always able to protect those archaeological in greatest need.
Even though chilly fall weather hit Ohio early we had a great time with this extraordinary group of Conservancy members. We started the Anasazi Tour Weekend in Columbus with an introductory presentation by Dr. Jarrod Burks. Jarrod accompanied us to our site visit to Hopewell Culture National Park which consists of a few different sites around Chillicothe and was the site of one of our first successes, where some of the most impressive prehistoric earthworks in the world are located.
Mound City is a totally reconstructed complex that contains 23 mounds enclosed within a 13 acre walled area. Park Archaeologist Brett Ruby gave us a behind the scenes look at the collection and curation facility at the park and got to see many of the impressive artifacts that have been recovered from the sites including decorative copper figures, effigy pipes, shells, and projectile points. We also got to visit one of our newest preserves, the Junction Works.
We concluded the tour with a trip to the Great Circle and the Octagon Earthworks in Newark, Ohio where Brad Lepper, of the Ohio History Connection, gave us an exciting tour of this massive site. This geometric complex was built by the Hopewell between 250 AD to 500 AD and is very well preserved as a state park.
Despite the bluster and the wind we all had a fantastic time together touring this magnificent archaeological central complex.
– Josh McConaughy, Associate Director Midwest Regional Office
Learn more about our week long Tours we do in the Area: Moundbuilders of Ohio
