| Location | Biltmore Estate, North Carolina |
|---|---|
| Type | Platform mound |
| Diameter | 30 meters (98 ft) |
| Height | 2 meters (6 ft 7 in) (originally) |
| History | |
| Material | Earth |
| Founded | 400-600 AD |
| Cultures | Connestee people,Hopewell tradition |
| Site notes | |
| Discovered | 1984 |
TheBiltmore Mound is a historical and archaeological site on theBiltmore Estate inAsheville, North Carolina.
The Biltmore Mound is aplatform mound which was originally 2 meters tall and 30 meters in diameter. There are 62 postholes on the mound,[1] where ritual posts were once placed.[2] These posts were removed and the holes were filled with sediment before the mound was abandoned.[3] It originally served as a substructure for wooden buildings used as civic or religious sites by nearby settlements.[4] These buildings may have included an earthen Great House, approximately 25 meters in diameter.[5] The site is very well preserved which makes it extremely valuable to archaeologists. It was encircled by a large village[3] which has also been excavated.[6]
The site was used during theMiddle Woodland Period and is associated with the Connestee people,[7] ancestors of theCherokee.[8] It is a place of importance in Cherokee historical memory.[5] Native American presence in the area dates to as early as 8,000 BC.[9]
The mound was built over an older settlement dating to about 300 AD. The beginning of the mound's construction is dated to between 400 and 550 AD.[1] It is one of the earliest mounds in theAppalachian Summit along with the similarly agedGarden Creek Mound, both of which are in theFrench Broad River watershed. The latest phase of construction occurred between 580 and 600 AD.[1] Nine distinct phases of occupation and use have been identified by archaeologists.[10] Towards the end of the period, a large ditch was dug around the mound.[2]
It is considered to be a part of theHopewell tradition of Native American cultural networking.[2] Evidence of wide-reaching trade, including copper possibly from theOhio River Valley andmica possibly fromMacon County, has been found there.[9] The site was used intensively for ceremonial activity and communal feasting.[11] Numerous artifacts, including pottery,seashells, quartz crystals, minerals and metal items, have been found there. Large amounts of seeds and faunal remains were also deposited at the site, probably from feasting.[3]
The first modern archaeologist to report the site was David Warren, who performed an archaeological survey of the Biltmore Estate in 1984.[5] Archaeologists fromAppalachian State University began excavating the site in 2000.[9]
| Middle Mississippian |
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| South Appalachian Mississippian |
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| Fort Walton culture | |||||||||||
| Pensacola culture | |||||||||||
| Plaquemine Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Caddoan Mississippian | |||||||||||
| Upper Mississippian cultures |
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| Culture |
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