Anker Site
Location inIllinois Show map of Illinois Location in United States Show map of the United States
Location	on theLittle Calumet River nearChicago,Illinois
Coordinates	41°44′01″N87°40′00″W / 41.73361°N 87.66667°W /41.73361; -87.66667
Area	4.5 acres

TheAnker Site (11Ck-21) is located on theLittle Calumet River nearChicago, Illinois. It is classified as a late prehistoric site withUpper Mississippian Huber (aka Blue Island) affiliation.^[1]

In 1958 prehistoric remains were uncovered during construction of a subdivision in suburbanChicago. A salvage operation was undertaken under the auspices of theIllinois Archaeological Survey, along with several individuals who excavated some of the burials and features on their own and shared their findings with the Survey.^[1]

Excavations at the site yielded prehistoricartifacts, a house structure,pit features,burials and animal bone. The site consisted of two parts: the village area and acemetery containing burials with richgrave goods.^[1]

A structure was defined by the presence of post molds and other features. It was 55 feet long by 13 feet wide and oval in shape. There were 3 fireplaces along the center line and 7 refuse/cache pits inside and 2 outside the structure. Charcoal in some of the post molds implies that the structure was burned.^[1]

Eight structures located at the nearbyOak Forest site ranged from 25 to 47.5 feet long.^[2] The Anker structure is significantly larger.Ceremonial structures were known to be longer than residential structures inNative American society, and therefore the Anker structure may have been ceremonial-related or religious in nature. Adog skull was placed in one of thefire pits of this structure, which also indicates it may be ceremonial in nature.^[1][3][4]

In the village area, 4 fire pits and 17 trash pits were noted. One of the trash pits included 3 reconstructableMiddle Mississippianpottery vessels, which are extremely rare in theGreat Lakes area.^[1]

Two types ofburials were noted: 9 bundle burials with fewgrave goods, and 31 extended burials, many of which contained a rich assortment of grave goods. Many of the grave goods are described below and includepipes,pottery vessels and animal bones/skulls that may have been components ofmedicine bundles.^[1]

Remains from several species were recovered from the site. The main species present weredeer,fish (especiallybowfin andcatfish) andturtle (especiallypainted turtle); also present werebeaver,raccoon,dog, unidentifiablebird bone fragments and fresh watermussels (especially Amblema costata). These remains were not modified into tools like the bone tools described in the Artifacts section below, and may be considered food remains or, in the case of the dog, the remains ofceremonial activities. Dog sacrifice and dog meat consumption was observed to have ceremonial and religious implications in earlyNative American tribes.^[1][3][4]

Artifacts recovered from the site included:^[1]

• Pottery - total of 823 sherds and 10 whole or reconstructible vessels. The pottery artifacts will be discussed in more detail below.
• Stone artifacts - including 84projectile points, 155scrapers (subdivided into 4 types based on manufacturing technique), 5drills and 59 random-flakeknives. Of the projectile points, the most numerous category was the small triangular Madison point.
• Ground stone artifacts - including 1rubbing stone, 2 arrow shaft straighteners, 2manos, 10hammerstones, 3celts and 1gouge.
• Bone andantler artifacts - including 4scapulahoes, 1 scapula scraper, 4 bone needles, 2 bone awls, 7 socketed antlerprojectile points, 2 antler flakers, 2antlerknives and numerous other artifacts, almost all of themgrave goods. Many of these are described further below.
• Shell artifacts - including 13 shellbeads, 5 shell spoons, 4 mussel shellpendants, 1 shell hoe, a unique shell maskgorget with “weeping eye” motif, and numerous other artifacts, almost all of them grave goods. Some of the shell artifacts were made with marine shell. Many of these are described further below.
• Pipes - including 4 elbow pipes, 4 disc pipes, 1 pipe with block-shaped bowl, 1 pipe with tapering base, 1 vase shaped pipe, 1 truncated cone pipe, 1bear effigy pipe, 1 human head effigy pipe and one celt-shaped pipe with incised decoration of abison with arrow inside. Almost all of these artifacts are grave goods. Many of them are described further below.
• Copper - including 2 copper ear plugs, 4 tubular copper beads, 1 disc-shaped copper bead, 1 sheet copperbangles, 5 copperserpents, 3 copper rings, 2 copper bracelet and a copper wire coil that may have been an ear plug or earring. Almost all of these artifacts are grave goods. Many of them are described further below. The copper was all made from metals originating in theUpper Peninsula ofMichigan and may have been obtained through trade. Either the artifacts could have been manufactured in Michigan and traded; or the metal was traded and the artifacts manufactured inIllinois.

The non-pottery artifacts found at an archaeological site can provide useful cultural context as well as a glimpse into thedomestic tasks performed at a site;ceremonial orreligious activities;recreational activities; andclothing orpersonal adornment.^[5]

At Anker, the vast majority of these items were grave goods recovered from the numerous burials present at the site.^[1]

Some of the most prominent and diagnostic non-pottery artifacts are presented here in more detail:^[1]

Material	Description	Image	Qty	Function / use	Comments / associations
Chipped stone	Small triangular points (aka Madison points)		84 total projectile points; most were small triangular points	Hunting/fishing/warfare	Also known as “arrowheads”; are thought to be arrow-tips forbows-and-arrows. The usage of the bow-and-arrow seems to have greatly increased after A.D. 1000, probably as a result of increased conflict.[6][7] At Anker, 41 were located in a single burial with an arrow shaft straightener.
Chipped stone	Large leaf-shaped blade		1	Domestic function / cutting applications	Typical ofUpper Mississippian sites, particularly Huber andOneota (Orr focus); present atMoccasin Bluff inMichigan where they are referred to as "ovate bifaces"[5]
Chipped stone	Rough triangular humpback blades		13 complete, 8 fragments	Domestic function / woodworking	Reported from other Huber sites but not fromOneota; present atMoccasin Bluff inMichigan where they are referred to as "thick steep-edge" scrapers[5]
Chipped stone	Drills		4 double-pointed (pictured); 1 tapered to point	Domestic function / processing wood or hides	The double pointed type is common inUpper Mississippian contexts[5]
Stone	Sandstone abrader aka arrow shaft straightener		2	Domestic function / straightening arrow shafts for bows-and-arrows	Typical atUpper Mississippian sites; one of the Anker specimens was found with a burial
Antler	Antlerprojectile points; socketed		7	Hunting/fishing/warfare	Common atUpper Mississippian sites, especially Fisher; 3 of the Anker specimens were found in burials[8]
Stone	Gouge		1	Domestic function / woodworking	This artifact is not usually found inUpper Mississippian contexts; it commonly occurs in earlier archaeological periods; the one at Anker was associated with a burial
Bone	Beamer		1	Domestic function / hide-working tool	Commonly found at Fisher and Langford sites;[8] the specimen at Anker was associated with a burial
Bone	Scapulahoes		4 (2 with elk scapula, 2 with indeterminate large mammal scapula)	Domestic function / Agricultural-horticultural or general digging tool	Common at Fisher andOneota sites;[8] they may have been used to dig out the pit features or graves present at Anker.
Bone	Scapula knife or scraper		1	Domestic function / cutting applications	This artifact has been found at the Fisher/Huber Griesmer site in Northwestern Indiana, just to the east of Chicago;[8] and other sites in the Midwest, especially Illinois, and is variously defined as a "knife", "scraper", "spade" or "celt"; the specimen at Anker was associated with a burial
Antler	Knives		2	Domestic function / cutting applications	Associated with a burial
Bone	Bone cylinders or dice / game pieces		8	Entertainment function	These have been found at Fisher, Huber, Langford and Oneota (especially Grand River focus and Lake Winnebago focus) and may have been used in a gambling game.[8] Gambling was noted to be a popular pastime among the early Native American tribes.[4] The specimens from Anker were associated with a burial.
Stone	Elbowpipe fragment		4	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Common at sites inIllinois; the Anker specimens were associated with burials
Stone	Disc pipe fragment		4	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Common at sites in Illinois; the Anker specimens were associated with burials
Stone	Rectangular block-shaped pipe fragment		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Common at sites in Illinois; the Anker specimens were associated with burials
Stone	Bear effigy pipe fragment		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Associated with a burial. Effigy pipes are not common among Upper Mississippian cultures; this item may have been obtained through trade. They are common at Whittlesey sites in northern Ohio, and have been reported from the Late Woodland Dumaw Creek site (also associated with a burial) in Michigan.[8][9]
Stone	Human head effigy pipe		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	This unique artifact was associated with a burial and is typical of Iroquoian pipe designs from Ontario and New York State
Stone	Celt shaped pipe with incised decoration depicting bison and arrow		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Incised decoration is on both sides; very unusual for sites in this area. Associated with a burial.
Bone	Pipe stem made of human bone		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / pipe smoking	Associated with a burial
Bone	Rasp (musical instrument) made of human bone		1	Ceremonial-Recreational function / entertainment or use at ceremony	Associated with a burial; bone rasps have been found at Huber, Whittlesey and Fort Ancient sites, usually from animal, not human, bone[5]
Antler	Birdfigurine with socketedpedestal		1	Art work / Decorative and/or Ceremonial application	Associated with a burial.Copperspangles were found neard the artifact that may have originally been suspended from the tail. May have been decorative or might have hadspiritual or magical significance. The historicMenominee were observed to use a carved wooden bird during ceremonies to kill people withsorcery.
Bone	Wolfmandiblependant		2 sections	Personal Adornment and/or Ceremonial application	Associated with a burial; may have been part of amedicine bundle
Bone	Snakevertebraenecklace		1	Personal Adornment and/or Ceremonial application	Associated with a burial; there was acopper hair pipe and 2mussel shells next to it that were probably originally part of the same necklace
Copper	Serpenteffigy		5	Personal Adornment and/or Ceremonial application	Similar copper serpent figurines have been found at other sites in theAmerican Midwest region: severalOneota Orr focus sites inIowa;[10] theFifield Site in northeasternIndiana just east ofChicago;[8] theSummer Island site in Michigan;[11] and the Madisonville site inOhio.[12] The Orr focus sites, Madisonville and Summer Island all have earlyEuropean trade goods associated, indicating these figurines were still being made at the time of European contact. The Anker specimen was associated with a burial.
Shell	Maskgorget with "weeping eye" motif		1	Art Piece / Religious application	This sherdpendant with the “weeping eye” motif is also indicative of a late prehistoric to earlyHistoric time placement. The weeping eye motif on shell mask gorgets has been observed at several Middle Mississippian sites, and theDumaw Creek site inOceana County,Michigan.[9] A sherd pendant with this motif was recovered at theFifield site in NorthwesternIndiana, just east ofChicago.[8]

Archaeologists often find pottery to be a very useful tool in analyzing a prehistoric culture. It is usually very plentiful at a site and the details of manufacture and decoration are very sensitive indicators of time, space and culture.^[13]

Most of the pottery conforms to the Huber Ware classification which is characteristic of theChicago area in the late prehistoric toProtohistoric/earlyHistoric periods (approx. A.D. 1400-1680s). Although the Huber tradition was well known by archaeologists for decades following the original excavations at theHuber site, a formalizedtypology was not developed until Charles Faulkner devised one in his 1972 report on theGriesmer site in northwesternIndiana, just to the east ofChicago.^[12][8]

Huber pottery is characterized by shell-tempered, plain surface pottery with globular vessel shape and restricted orifices with everted rims. Some vessels also have strap handles. Decoration (when present) usually consists of vertical or obliquely applied incised lines generally running from just below the lip to the shoulder. Rarely, surfaces arecordmarked or smoothed over cordmarked. The top of the lip is either plain or decorated with fine to wide notching. A minority also have punctate decoration, mostly in combination with the trailed lines.^[12][8]

The 1958 excavations recovered 823 sherds, almost all of it Huber ware. Surfaces were primarily plain and decorated with medium- to wide-trailed lines on the shoulder area. Most of the lips were notched. Rarely, punctates accompanied the incised lines.^[1]

However, some of the whole or reconstructible pots recovered were obviously trade ware from outside theChicago area. These vessels were characteristic of types found on theMississippi River near theArkansas area:^[1]

• One was decorated with nodes over the entire body of the vessel
• One had a narrow, straight neck and globular body; it was decorated with a black painted design and wavy black band was painted over a redslipped surface
• One was a red slipped vessel with afrog effigy at the mouth
• One was a slightly squat, globular vessel decorated by a white band on one side and a white oval surrounded by red band on the other side, with a human head effigy at the mouth

Following Faulkner'stypology,^[8] this is the proportion of the pottery types at the site:^[14]

• Huber Plain - 75%, characterized by a plain surface
• Huber Trailed - 4%, characterized by a plain surface decorated with fine incised lines
• Huber Bold - 6%, characterized by a plain surface decorated with wide lines, possibly finger-trailed
• Huber Cordmarked - 12%, characterized by a cordmarked surface
• Fisher - 1.5%
• Other types - 1.2%

The trends in certain pottery traits are very time-sensitive and can be used as indicators of relative age. Based on information on other Huber sites in the area, archaeologists have determined early Huber pottery is more likely to havecordmarked surface finish; wide-trailed decoration; and notched lips. Early Huber sites have also been observed to have significant amounts of Fisher Ware as well. Late Huber pottery has predominately smooth surface finish; fine-line incised decoration; and unnotched lips.^[14]

In the Anker site assemblage, 12% of sherds are cordmarked (more than any other Huber site exceptHoxie Farm), and 59% of decorated sherds have wide-line decoration. Also, 74% of the lips are notched, and there is a small presence of Fisher Ware in the assemblage. This combination of traits indicates a relatively early time placement for Anker within the Huber sequence. The researchers who excavated the site estimated the range of occupation to be approximately A.D. 1400–1500.^[1]

Huber ware (and Huber culture) are often mentioned together with Fisher. Both Fisher and Huber areUpper Mississippian cultures which existed in the southernLake Michigan region in the states of northernIllinois andIndiana and southwestMichigan. Both have shell-tempered pottery but Huber is predominantly plain surface with fine-line decoration and Fisher is predominantlycordmarked surface with wide-line decoration.^[15][5]

The relationship of Huber and Fisher both with each other and with otherUpper Mississippian cultures in the area has long been a matter of debate and speculation among archaeologists. James Griffin, upon examining the artifacts from the original 1929 excavations at the Huber site, felt that Huber was a Component of theOneota Aspect based on the form and design of the pottery, close to the Orr and Lake Winnebago foci, and that Fisher was part of a separate focus. Since that date, we’ve obtained a great deal more information and now we know that Fisher is the older of the two and Huber is the one that survived to the Historic period, based on the association of Huber pottery with early Historic European trade goods at several sites.^[8][5]

Nevertheless, both Fisher and Huber coexist at the same sites seemingly at the same time.Hoxie Farm,Griesmer andMoccasin Bluff are examples of this.^[8][5][14]

Most archaeologists now believe that both Fisher and Huber are taxonomically-related phases within theOneota tradition. The relationship between the two is time-related in that Huber is derived from Fisher; but there are also late Fisher sites likeFifield, where Fisher pottery is associated with late prehistoric artifacts, so it is possible that Fisher also survived until theProtohistoric or earlyHistoric period.^[15][8][5]

The Anker site is unique among Huber sites in the amount of trade goods and ceremonial/religious items present. The site may have been a ceremonial or trade center; or there may have been a migration of peoples coming from the lower portion of theMississippi River to interact with the Huber Culture population and perhaps settle in the area.^[1]

The Anker site is a site belonging to the Huber tradition (aka Blue Island) and is considered to be closely related to theOneota Orr focus. The site is unique among Huber sites in the large amount of trade goods, mostly from the lowerMississippi River area but also from northernMichigan and theIroquoian area ofOntario andNew York State. This could mean either extensive trade networks or movements of people.^[1]

The structure present at Anker is larger than other Huber period houses noted at theOak Forest site^[2] and therefore may be aceremonial structure. The fact that adog skull was placed in one of the pits supports that possibility. Also, many of thegrave goods may be interpreted as parts ofmedicine bundles or otherwise have spiritual or religious implications.^[1] The presence of thegorget with "weeping eye" motif and the trade vessels from theMiddle Mississippian area suggest that the Anker residents participated in or at least had knowledge of theSoutheastern Ceremonial Complex.

Based on the animal bone found at the site, and the presence of scapula hoes, it is thought that the site was occupied at least during the summer months. It may have functioned as a religious/ceremonial center in the settlement pattern of the Huber culture, while other sites such asOak Forest served as semi-permanent residential areas.^[1][14]

There are no radiocarbon dates available for the site, but based on the artifacts present, the researchers believe the site was occupied from approximately A.D. 1400 to 1500. The specificNative American tribe represented by the remains is unknown; however,Miami,Illinois or a ChewereSioux group are possibilities.^[1][16]

• Elaine A. Bluhm; Allen Liss (1961),The Anker Site, IN Chicago Area Archaeology

• Mississippian culture
• Archaeological sites in Illinois
• Cook County, Illinois
• Miami tribe
• Illinois Confederation

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