April 5, 2016
MOUNDSVILLE, W.Va. – Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex in Moundsville will be buzzing with activities this April. From art exhibits, digital storytelling, making flowers, and planting sunflower seeds, to an archaeology film and lecture, there’s something for everyone in the family to enjoy. All activities are free and open to the public.
Throughout the month, visitors can create spring flowers by folding and fluffing precut sheets of colorful tissue paper at the museum’s Discovery Table and take them home. Beginning Tuesday, April 26, the Discovery Table will switch to providing sunflower seeds for patrons to plant in yoghurt cups and take home to replant in their yards.
The featured artist of the month is Melanie Murdock. Originally from Glen Dale, W.Va., Murdock lives nearby in Powhatan Point, Ohio. She works in a variety of art and craft media and teaches “paint-and-sip” classes. Her exhibit will be on display from April 6 - 30.
On Saturday, April 9, visitors can see the film Secrets of the Valley: Prehistory of the Kanawha at 1, 2 and 3 p.m. during the matinee film series. The 28-minute long documentary describes West Virginia’s prehistoric inhabitants in the Kanawha River Valley. Narrated by West Virginia native Morgan Spurlock, Secrets of the Valley was sponsored by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and is based primarily on excavations performed and artifacts found during its Marmet Locks and Dam project.
Grave Creek Mound will host an opening reception for the exhibit “Historic Marshall County: A View in Charcoal” from 2 - 4 p.m. on Saturday, April 16. The exhibit, created by students at Moundsville Middle School, features charcoal drawings of local historic buildings and locations. Joy Van Scyoc, art teacher at the school coordinated the project. During the reception, several students will talk about their drawings and Jane Klug, retired social studies teacher and past president of the Marshall County Historical Society, will discuss background history which will put the exhibit in perspective. The exhibit will remain on display through May 28.
The art of digital storytelling will be celebrated from noon - 2 p.m., Saturday, April 23. Students from California University of Pennsylvania will debut short video documentaries created in their digital storytelling class. Several historic locations in Marshall County will be showcased. A reception with light refreshments will follow.
On Thursday, April 28, at 7 p.m., the lecture series will continue with “Remote Sensing and Other Survey Technologies at Grave Creek Mound.” Staff members will team up to explain non-destructive techniques used by archaeologists to study earthworks and other archaeological sites. Technology including earth resistivity tomography and photogrammetry will be discussed, and later used during an archaeological survey at the mound in late May. These kind of techniques make it possible to study the mound without ever sticking a shovel in the ground.
For more information about activities and programs at Grave Creek Mound, contact Andrea Keller, cultural program coordinator, at (304) 843-4128 or andrea.k.keller@wv.gov or visit www.facebook.com/gravecreekmound and www.twitter.com/gravecreekmound.
Operated by the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex features one of the largest conical burial mounds built by the Adena people between 250 - 150 B.C. and ranks as one of the largest earthen mortuary mounds anywhere in the world. 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.
Admission to Grave Creek Mound Archaeological Complex is free. The Delf Norona Museum, located at 801 Jefferson Avenue, is open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday and closed Sunday and Monday. Outdoor access closes at 4:30 p.m., and may be closed all day during inclement weather.
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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