Aug. 16, 2013
MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. — Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville will continue its 2013 Lecture & Film series at 7 p.m., Thursday, Aug. 29, with a documentary film titled “Mysteries of the Ancient Architects.” The Camera One production explores the earthworks built by the Hopewell people along Ohio’s Scioto River. The program is free and open to the public.
Beginning more than 2,000 years ago, the enormous earthworks were constructed on a grand scale with intriguing precision. Many were designed as combinations of giant geometric squares, circles and octagons that seem to adhere to a master architectural design.
The earthworks are centralized in southeastern Ohio, but the Hopewell influence and trade networks extended throughout most of the eastern half of the United States. The people lived in small hamlets consisting of a few rectangular houses with thatched roofs and mud-daubed walls. They relied on hunting and gathering for food, and grew plants such as sunflowers, squash and maygrass.
“Mysteries of the Ancient Architects’ is a wonderful introduction to the Hopewell culture,” said David Rotenizer, site manager of Grave Creek Mound. “It is the official film of the Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, located in Chillicothe, Ohio.”
The series, held in conjunction with the Upper Ohio Valley Chapter of the West Virginia Archaeological Society, will continue at 7 p.m. Thursday, Sept. 26, with the lecture “Further Insights at a Late Woodland Occupation in Marshall County, WV: Site 46MR155,” which will give more insight into findings discovered at a prehistoric archaeological site just south of Moundsville.
Operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Grave Creek features one of the largest conical burial mounds built by the Adena people between 250-150 B.C. Exhibits and displays in the Delf Norona Museum interpret what is known about the lives of these prehistoric people and the construction of the mound. The complex also houses the West Virginia Archaeological Research and Collections Management Facility. The museum is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. It is closed on Sunday and Monday.
For more information about the lecture or other programs at Grave Creek Mound, contact Andrea Keller, cultural program coordinator, at (304) 843-4128 or email her at Andrea.K.Keller@wv.gov. Indicate in the message if you are interested in receiving information about upcoming events at the mound.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The Division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the Division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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