Topics
Defining Adena
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Archaeologist Martha Otto, former curator at the Ohio Historical Society, talks about how to characterize the Adena culture (800 BC to AD 100).
Gardening
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Which plants were domesticated by the Hopewell, how they were grown, and how gardening may have affected the landscape, filmed at the Fort Ancient garden.
Ceremonial Gatherings
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An overview of the ways the geometric earthworks may have been used, and how gatherings there were probably multi-purposed.
A Hopewell Settlement
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Two houses surround a yard in which objects (flint, squash, hearth, textiles, basket) introduce topics about the daily life of the earthwork builders.
Fire
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The role of fire in the builders' treatments of deposited items, burials, and the burning down of buildings before mounds and eathworks were raised.
Burning Things
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Comparative religion scholar Dr. David Cave discusses the meaning of community ritual burning of meaningful objects across cultures.
Hopewell Hilltops
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The nature and variety of Hopewell hilltop enclosures, suggesting how and why they were built.
Precious materials
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An overview of the use and trade of precious materials used in making artifacts associated with the earthworks: copper, obsidian, mica, pearls, and flint.
Water
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Aspects of water hold deep meaning in many cultures, suggesting possible intentions behind the water engineering of Adena and Hopewell sites.
Shadows and Time
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The nature and probable meanings of solar observations in the Fort Ancient culture, with Andrew Sawyer, curator at SunWatch Village, Dayton.
Earth, Soil
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Architectural historian and Project Director John Hancock explains how the earthwork builders understood “earth” itself as an architectural element.
Effigies
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Exploration of the Great Serpent Mound and other effigies now attributed to the Fort Ancient culture, compared with effigies from elsewhere in the Americas.
Textiles
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An explanation of the variety and complexity of Hopewell textiles, with a demonstration by Dr. Kathryn Jakes of how plant fibers were obtained from stems.
Music
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Ethnomusicologist Robert Templeman emphasizes that the builders’ music (panpipes, rattles, rasps, drums, and voices) differed in sound and purpose from what we know today.
Sacred Landscape
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Archaeologist Dr. Mark Seeman discusses the relation between the hills and valleys of the Ohio River landscape and the formations of the earthworks and mounds.
Reincarnation
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Archaeologist Dr. James Brown explains how the earthworks may have been scenes of ritual adoption and the spiritual reincarnation of revered ancestors.
The Cosmological Plan
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Dr. James Brown suggests that the geometric earthworks were understood as the cosmos on earth, allowing potential enemies to meet within a common order.
Elaboration and Ritual
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Dr. David Cave explores the reasons for the great size and elaboration in ritual grounds and preparations, across cultures.
Naming these Cultures
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Historian Dr. Geoffrey Plank urges caution in using the common archaeological categories to define ancient groups, beliefs, or practices.
Deposits
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A discussion of the practice, and examples, of Hopewell interment of precious objects and materials in the earth.
Hopewell Interaction Sphere
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Dr. Robert Hall describes the nature of the trade networks and other influences that spread Hopewell ideas far across the continent.
World Renewal
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Archaeologist Dr. DeeAnne Wymer explains why some Hopewell deposits suggest the traditional ceremonies of world renewal, still celebrated by many Native American tribes.
Light and Shadow
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Archaeologist Dr. Gwynne Henderson of the University of Kentucky talks about the aesthetic power of light and shadow in earthwork design.
Agricultural Practices
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Archaeologist Bret Ruby explains how the land for miles around earthworks was probably marked by extensive farm fields.