Mounds State Park

Mounds State Park is a state park near Anderson, Indiana featuring Native American heritage, and ten ceremonial mounds built by the prehistoric Adena culture indigenous peoples of eastern North America, and also used centuries later by Hopewell culture inhabitants. It is separate from (and about 79 miles northwest of) the similarly named Mounds State Recreation Area (near Brookville, Indiana). The park receives about 400,000 visitors annually.

The park is 1 of 14 Indiana State Parks that were in the path of totality for the 2024 solar eclipse, with the park having 3 minutes and 45 seconds of totality.

The term earthworks includes any structure made from the earth. In Native American studies, there are three primary types: mounds, circular enclosures, and complexes. All are found in Central Indiana and in the state park. Mounds State Park has a complex of enclosures, both circular and rectangular. There are seven enclosures and four additional earthworks, which have been divided into two groups, the northern complex and the southern complex. The Great Mound enclosure is the dominant structure in the park and the southern group.

These earthworks were created as a dedication to the Sun God and Earth Mother. The mounds were used as gathering places for religious ceremonies as well as viewing astronomical alignments.^{[citation needed]}

When working at the Anderson mounds, archeologists learned that the maps used since the late 1800s were inaccurate. Research showed that the earthworks had been misrepresented in the map. This issue is significant since it affects the context of the site. Archaeological surveys of the park have shown that people have used the land for about 10,000 years, beginning as early as 8000 B.C. and continuing through about 1400 AD.^{[citation needed]}

There are believed to be 8 circular earthworks in the park, but only 4 are visible today. This area was used for rituals and has been targeted by looters in the past, who caused significant damage to the artifacts and their stratigraphy. Estimates by radiocarbon dating suggest the rituals began around 250 B.C. Another feature of this site is the fiddle-back enclosure. Although there has been no evidence of astronomical activities here, it marks the spot where the sun sets on the summer solstice.

The Great Mound is the largest of the ten earthworks in the Mounds State Park. The Great Mound is approximately 390 feet (120 m) across and consists of a circular outer embankment 9 feet (2.7 m) high and 63 feet (19 m) wide, surrounding a 60 feet (18 m) wide ditch that is 10.5 feet (3.2 m) deep. The central platform, 138 feet (42 m) is diameter with a central mound, 4 feet (1.2 m) high and 30 metres (98 ft) in diameter. The central mound was excavated in 1968/69 and found to have three clay layers, each with ashes, showing a succession of use periods.

The complex has been dated to 160 BCE through 50 CE These dates are obtained through radiocarbon dating and some artifacts. A nearby log tomb was found with a platform pipe typical of Hopewell styles from 50 C.E. Post hole remnants were dated to 60 BCE and 230 CE. Radiocarbon dates from excavated material of the Great Mound established 160 BCE +/- 90 for the embankment. The neighboring ‘Fiddleback Mound was dated to 120 BCE +/- 70.