Shell Pendant   Save
A. T. Wehrle Collection
Description: This pendant was made from a conch shell. The exterior part of the shell was cut away, exposing the spiral interior. There is a bit of textile caught in the spiral and there is a drilled hole at the pointed end. The shell, which is very pale brown, dark brown, and dark reddish brown in color, has been polished. This pendant 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: A3490_000267_003
Subjects: Mississippian Culture (A.D. 900–1500); Mound-builders;
Places: A. T. Wehrle Collection