Mound E at Poverty Point National Monument
WALKING TOUR STOP 9
DRIVING TOUR STOP 2
Mound E
Mound E is the ninth stop on the walking tour of Poverty Point National Monument (second on the driving tour). It is located on the outside of the Poverty Point ridge complex. Don’t expect much, for if signage didn’t point it out, you’d most likely walk right on by and continue on to the substantially larger Mound A on the opposite side of the tour road. Even archaeologists were not sure if it was a mound until soil core samples were taken in the 1990s. Radiocarbon dating of a single piece of charcoal found on the mound puts its construction date around 1500 BC.
Mound E was built in three stages, which is not unusual with mound construction. Since the people of this time left no written history, archaeologists and anthropologists can only guess as to why a mound was built this way. It might be reasoned that people are people, regardless of time, and one theory is that when a new leader came to power, he wanted to be higher up, maybe even wanted to wipe out the history of his predecessor. Or like a sports team that constantly threatens to leave town unless a new stadium is built, the expansion of a mound over time may be for the creation of more grander temples and buildings. However, in regards to Mound E, no artifacts other than the lone piece of charcoal have been found on or in it, so its purpose is unknown.
As it stands today, Mound E has a base of 300 x 360 feet and is 13 feet tall. The base was originally much larger, but some of the mound was destroyed over time by modern-day settlers.
Walking Tour Menu
Stops 10-11: Mound A | Stop 8: The Causeway | Walking Tour Main Page
Driving Tour Menu
Stop 3: Mound A | Stop 1: The Plaza | Driving Tour Main Page
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Last updated on November 9, 2022
