Serpent Mound is an internationally known National Historic Landmark built by the ancient cultures of Ohio. It is an effigy mound (a mound in the shape of an animal) representing a snake with a curled tail. Nearby are three burial mounds – two created by the Adena Culture (800 BC-100 AD), and one by the Fort Ancient Culture (1000-1650 AD). The Serpent Mound has no associated burials and was likely used for ceremonial purposes.
Thousands of years ago Native Ohioans populated the landscape with mounds and massive earthworks. In the late nineteenth century, Harvard University archaeologist Frederic Ward Putnam excavated Serpent Mound, but he found no artifacts in the Serpent that might allow archaeologists to assign it to a particular culture. Based largely on the nearby presence of Adena burial mounds, later archaeologists attributed the effigy to the Adena culture that flourished from 800 B.C. to A.D. 100.This theory on the site’s origin was accepted until a 1991 site excavation used radiocarbon dating to determine that the mound was approximately 900 years old. This would suggest the builders of the Serpent belonged to the Fort Ancient culture (A.D. 1000-1500). In 2014, another team of archaeologists presented new radiocarbon dates for the Serpent suggesting it was built by the Adena culture at around 300 B.C.. More work is needed to clarify the age of Serpent Mound.
The significance of Serpent Mound and other ancient Ohio earthworks has garnered international attention. In 2008, Serpent Mound and eight other Ohio earthworks were selected by the United States Department of the Interior for inclusion on the United States’ Tentative List of sites to be submitted to United Nations Educational, Scientific, and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) for inscription on the prestigious World Heritage List. If it is eventually inscribed on the World Heritage List later this decade, Serpent Mound will join the ranks of the Pyramids of Egypt, the Great Wall of China, Pompeii, Stonehenge, and the Taj Mahal—all of which are World Heritage sites.
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Remember:
-Serpent Mound is free and is open daily, year round, from 9:00 am to dusk.
-Parking Fee is $8/vehicle.
-Special extended hours: Dawn-dusk on the solstices and equinoxes.
-Winter travelers: Park roads and grounds are not plowed in the winter, and are not accessible in bad weather. However, winter visitors are always welcome to park in front of the gate at the base of the hill and hike to the Geocache and earthwork (3/8 mile).
Message us about ANY cache issues.
Cache is placed with permission of Ohio History Connection and Arc of Appalachia.
On behalf of the AFK to Greater Cincinnati Geocaching Project, I would personally like to say "Thank You" to everyone who has participated in an "AFK" cache. Without the great feedback, favorite points and support we wouldn't be able to continually share!
- Jesse Tuttle (KingAFK)
