Ceramic Vessel   Save
Archaeology Collections, Ledger #1
Description: This medium-sized ceramic vessel has a squat, rounded body, a straight neck, and an applied rim that flares slightly beyond the neck. There are vertical, incised lines extending from the neck almost to the base. Strips of clay were added to the neck and incised to form arches. The base is rounded and mostly undecorated, except for a small section where five of the vertical lines have been joined in concentric loops. There is a small hole near the base and three chips missing from the rim. The grit-tempered vessel is very dark gray, brown, and gray in color. This piece is from Mississippian Culture. Between about A.D. 700 and 1600, people living in the central Mississippi River valley developed a lifestyle that archaeologists refer to as Mississippian. Mississippian farmers raised the same crops as their Woodland ancestors. However, they relied more and more on corn, squash, and beans. It is believed that the Mississippian people had to move to new sites, perhaps every ten years, as their soil became less fertile. Most Mississippian groups lived on single farms or in small villages, but, because their food supply could support more people, their villages grew in size and density. Some archaeologists believe the Mississippian cultures developed chiefdoms in which certain persons held a great deal of power. In many of the larger towns and regional centers, the Mississippian people built flat-topped pyramid-shaped mounds of earth that served as bases for buildings. Archaeologists believe that these buildings may have been the homes of leaders or places for public rituals. What happened to the Mississippian cultures is not clear, but there was a decline or disruption of their lifestyle beginning in some places as early as A.D. 1350. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: A4345_001955
Subjects: Mississippian Culture (A.D. 900–1500); Mound-builders; Pottery, Prehistoric;
Places: Archaeology Collections, Ledger #1