43°03'59.09"N 88°51'40.67"W
LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) reveals the remarkable layout of Aztalan, one of the northernmost expressions of Mississippian culture in North America. Situated along the Crawfish River in southeastern Wisconsin, the site preserves a fortified ceremonial center occupied between approximately AD 1000 and 1300.
The site predates the "discovery" of America by Cristopher Columbus in 1492.
Even today, the outlines of its massive earthen platform mounds, defensive walls, and carefully planned plaza remain clearly visible in the terrain.
The site covered roughly 20 acres and was enclosed by a stockade nearly half a mile in length. The original wooden palisade was reinforced by dozens of regularly spaced bastions, allowing defenders to observe and protect the settlement from multiple directions. Archaeological evidence indicates the walls were rebuilt several times during the site's occupation, suggesting the fortifications played an important role in community life.
Three major platform mounds dominate the site. The largest, located near the river, rises approximately 16 to 22 feet above the surrounding terrain and supported important ceremonial or administrative structures. Two additional platform mounds stand at opposite ends of the central plaza, connected by a carefully organized settlement layout that reflects influences from larger Mississippian centers farther south, particularly Cahokia in present-day Illinois.
Excavations have uncovered evidence of long-distance trade, agriculture, ceremonial activity, and large communal gatherings.
Artifacts from the site include shell ornaments from the Gulf Coast (The Crawfish River is a tributary to the Rock River in the Mississippi watershed, which empties into the Gulf of Mexico), copper objects, pottery, and stone tools, demonstrating connections to an extensive trade network that stretched across much of eastern North America and south to Mexico. The inhabitants cultivated maize, beans, and squash while maintaining cultural traditions distinct to the Upper Midwest.
Today, Aztalan State Park preserves one of the most important archaeological sites in Wisconsin. LiDAR highlights not only the surviving mounds but also the broader defensive and ceremonial landscape, allowing visitors to appreciate the scale and sophistication of a community that flourished along the Crawfish River more than 700 years ago.
2 comments:
Aztecs still influence this fucked up hemisphere...fact
Trump's culo smells. Fact
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