The Mounds

Mound A

For adventurous climbers there is the 63 foot high Mound A, approximately the height of a six story building.  At the top, the plaza outline is visible as well as the original ditch outline marked by a fence.  Beyond the ditch were agricultural fields of corn, beans and squash.  On the horizon were forests abounding in wild game.  The site lies within the Etowah River Valley, which has sandy soil that could be tilled with primitive hoes and digging sticks.  To the south lies the Piedmont Physiographic Region with its different plants and animals.

The great temple that housed the chief and his family stood on top of the mound.  Here the chief presided over ceremonies that took place in the plaza below.  On the south side of the mound is a lower platform that was probably an unfinished section when Etowah was abandoned.  The top of the mound was farmed in the 1800's causing erosion of its top layer.  Except for the stairway ramp in 1994, the mound has not been excavated

Mound B

Like Mound A, Mound B was a temple platform for a lesser chief and has never been completely excavated.  A test pit dug on the west side of the base revealed burials and trash pits with the remains of deer, turtles, plants and fish.  In addition remains of a large building, possible a council house, were found here.

Mound C

The burial mound has been completely excavated and rebuilt.  The 350 burials found here told scientists much about the burial and ceremonial practices, classes of people, dress, diet, diseases and trade patterns.  This mound was built in layers with changes in temple structures, fences and burial practices.  These date from the earliest at the center to the most recent in the outer layers.  Near the edge, the famous marble figures were found.  most of what we know of the people of Etowah came from Mound C.