September presents a chance to see a side of Indiana that was settled by ancient tribes and roamed by mastodons, giant beavers and other creatures. It is Indiana Archaeological Month, hosted by the Indiana Department of Natural Resources, and Muncie is not exempt of Archaeological discovery.
At the Kennedy Library, located on West McGalliard Road, an elk and chipmunk skull sit among arrowheads, pottery pieces and ancient tools found in regional soil.
Anthropology graduate student Adam Zajac picked pieces from the Ball State Department of Anthropology's collection that would be representative of the archaeological sites in the state. The artifacts and remains include descriptions, and the arrowheads are lined up like a timeline spanning 12,000 years, well before Europeans had set foot on Indiana ground. The descriptions expound on the characteristics, use and environment that surrounded the item. For example, elk were very common in the area thousands of years ago.
"We wanted to make the descriptions to where people who aren't in the archaeological field can learn something," Zajac said.
A hulking mastodon molar rests in the care of the anthropology department along with a plethora of cow skulls, beaver skulls, bison bones, tools and artifacts from ancient New Guinea and Arizona. Zajac said most of the artifacts are regional, found by students, professors and donors. While some donations can add to the collection of Hoosier history, some of the others brought in aren't as useful.
"People will bring bones to us and be like 'I found a dinosaur!'" junior anthropology major Khyrstin Chance said. "And then we find out it was just a deer that was hit by a car a few years ago."
ANCIENT INDIANA
"In general, people romanticize archaeology," Zajac said. "It's always cavemen in Africa or the pyramids in Egypt. People don't understand that there are a lot of neat things right where they live."
Zajac sees the potential of ancient history leading to clues on how people can deal with environmental changes in the future.
"Archaeology gives a very holistic view of history, such as how people have changed, what they ate and what they valued," he said. "Once you find the pieces, you can put together a story of how people lived in the past."
There are a number of Indian burial mounds in the region. Mounds were created for ritual purposes and are filled with spiritual artifacts, Zajac said.
Chance said not many people know of the mounds and they are mostly unmarked. Well-known mound sites in Indiana include Angel Mounds State Historic Site in Evansville, Sugar Loaf Indian Mound in Vincennes and Mounds State Park in Anderson. The construction of these mounds roughly range from 160 B.C. to 1,500 A.D., according to the individual websites.
"Earthworks and mounds contain very special information not provided by other types of sites," said Kevin Nolan, an archaeologist in the Department of Anthropology. "Many, if not most, are places where community rituals took place providing a window on aspects of the social lives of prehistoric peoples of Indiana."
HIDDEN HISTORY
Ball State recently developed a hands-on internship to find and catalogue unrecorded mounds and earthwork sites in 17 Hoosier counties. Nolan said the project began last July and will run until Spring Semester 2013. It is partnered with the Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology within the Indiana Department of Natural Resources.
This weekend, anthropology students will be at the Mounds State Park educating children about archaeology for Indiana Archaeology Month and also will host an artifact presentation. Anthropology graduate student Joseph Miller said the Hopewell culture that existed from 200 B.C. to 600 A.D. are known for its earthworks and mounds, and those that created the works of Mounds State Park were closely associated with the Hopewell.
Interested Hoosier archaeologists have laws to work around, Miller said. According to the DNR, it is illegal to dig for the intention of finding artifacts or remains, even inches, without an approved plan from the department. However, if found on the surface, then it is not in violation of the law. This is how archaeology students are able to get their field work. Zajac said students do pedestrian surveys where they receive permission from a landowner to search cornfields for artifacts that may have been pulled to the surface from plows. Conditions can be swampy or freezing, and Chance said corn rash can come with the territory.
"It's rewarding," Zajac said. "It's one thing to learn in a lecture, another to get field exposure."
Archaeology Month Events
30th annual Native American Days
When: Friday - Sunday
Where: Angels Mounds State Historic Site, Evansville, Ind.
Cost: $6 for adults, $3 for children (ages 3-12)
Artifact displays, identification
When: Saturday - Sunday
Where: Mounds State Park, Anderson, Ind.
Cost: no additional charge, gate fees apply
"Digging Through the Past: Building to the Future at Strawtown Koteewi Park"
When: 4-8 p.m. Saturday
Where: Strawtown Koteewi Park, Noblesville, Ind.
Cost: free
Artifact identification session
When: 1-5 p.m. Saturday
Where: Pendleton Historical Museum, Pendleton, Ind.
Cost: free
Archaeology Day
When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sunday
Where: McCormick's Creek State Park, Spencer, Ind.
Cost: $5 for in-state vehicles, $7 for out-of-state
Archaeology Day
When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Sept. 29
Where: The Forest Education Center, Starve Hollow State Recreation Area, Vallonia, Ind.
Cost: $5 for in-state vehicles
Provided by The Indiana Department of Natural Resources, Division of Historic Preservation and Archaeology
in.gov/dnr/historic/3674.htm
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