Our July 2014 visit to Cahokia Mounds continued with a stop at Woodhenge about a mile west of the Interpretive Center. Here, on the edge of the historic site, archeologists have found evidence of five circular rings constructed of numerous red cedar poles. Their interpretation is that the Mississippian people used it to mark seasons and set dates for other activities. While the eastern arc allows alignment of the rising sun with the central observation pole and the western arc would provide the same with the setting sun, there is no mention of the purpose for the poles to the north and south. Although there is no mention of this, I wonder if they might have used the entire circle as a giant protractor for laying out the city. Each successive construction included 12 more posts than the previous version. The reconstructed circle consists of 48 perimeter poles with a diameter of 410 feet.
 |
| The central pole is barely visible from outside the circle of posts |
 |
| Poles marked with white bands mark both solstices and equinoxes |
Entrance to the historic site is free, but there is a suggested donation of $7 per adult, $5 per senior, $2 per child or $15 per family.
The historic site website is http://cahokiamounds.org/.
No comments:
Post a Comment