new acquisition SAVING A MISSISSIPPIAN VILLAGE

Saving A Mississippian Village

The Lyon’s Bluff site has tremendous research potential.

Lyon’s Bluff is a Mississippian mound and village situated in Oktibbeha County, in east-central Mississippi, that was occupied around A.D.1000-1650.

The site was fi rst excavated in the 1930s by archaeologist Moreau Chambers, with the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, who uncovered several house fl oors. A series of excavations took place in the 1960s and 1970s under the direction of Richard Marshall of Mississippi State University. Evan Peacock, with the Cobb Institute of Archaeology at Mississippi State University, tested the site in 2001 and 2003.

Peacock discovered that the mound had been constructed in several stages over a short amount of time in the 13th century. There was “at least one wattle and daub structure on the mound summit each time it was rebuilt,” he said. While conducting a remote sensing survey, he found fi ve structures, and two deep wall trenches from prehistoric bastioned palisades, which enclosed the mound and the main portion of the site.

Peacock also discovered two distinct midden zones, separated by an area of lower artifact density, where deposits were over six feet deep in places. Although the site seems to have been occupied continuously for at least 450 years, variability in the accumulation of artifacts may relate to differences in site use and village population levels over time. “Also, although direct evidence of contact is lacking, there is no doubt that the site was occupied at the time of the fi rst European incursion in the area.”

While they have not yet been fully analyzed, enormous amounts of extremely well preserved animal bone have been recovered from the site. This includes large bones, such as deer forelimbs, that show minimal processing, which is often taken as a sign of feasting. Changes in the density and species of animal remains could suggest that Mississippian maize farmers resorted to hunting around A.D.1200 when the Little Ice Age reduced their crop.

Many other smaller sites have been found in this area, suggesting “that the role of Lyon’s Bluff as a central place for an entire settlement system can be explored,” said Peacock.

The Conservancy has an option to purchase approximately 20 acres, including the mound and palisades, which is about half the site. “All of the factors combine to make Lyon’s Bluff an exceptionally important site, and a real jewel for the Conservancy to obtain,” said Peacock. “The research potential of the site is enormous.” —Iris Picat

Archaeologist Evan Peacock, Jessica Crawford, the Conservancy’s Southeast regional director, and landowner Larry Tabor stand on the mound at Lyon’s Bluff.

Conservancy Plan of Action

SITE: Lyon’s Bluff

CULTURE AND TIME PERIOD:

Mississippian through Protohistoric (A.D. 1000-1650) STATUS: The site is threatened by residential development. ACQUISITION: The Conservancy needs to raise $79,000 to preserve more than half the site. HOW YOU CAN HELP: Please send contributions to The Archaeological Conservancy, Attn: Lyon’s Bluff Archaeological Site, 5301 Central Avenue, Suite 902, Albuquerque, NM 87108-1530.