Knoll Spring Site
Location	in the Sag Valley,Palos Hills, inCook County nearChicago,Illinois
Coordinates	41°45′00″N87°42′00″W / 41.75000°N 87.70000°W /41.75000; -87.70000
Location inIllinois Show map of Illinois Location in United States Show map of the United States

TheKnoll Spring site (11Ck-19), aka Au Sagaunashke village, is located in the Sag Valley,Palos Hills, inCook County,Illinois, near the city ofChicago. It is classified as a late prehistoric site withUpper Mississippian Huber affiliation.^[1]

Surface collections took place from 1964 through 1967. Excavations took place in 1966 and results were published in 1971.^[1]

Excavations at the site yielded prehistoricartifacts, pit features,burials, plant remains and animal bone (analysis of the animal bone was not included in the site report).^[1]

A total of 33 features were identified at the site, of which 32 were ofUpper Mississippian affiliation. Some of the feature were classified asfire pits, and the remainder were classified as refuse pits. Feature 26 was noted as a deep roasting pit similar to those found at the Zimmerman site in Illinois.^[1][2] Similar deep roasting pits have been found at theGriesmer site in northwesternIndiana,^[3] and theMoccasin Bluff,^[4]Schwerdt and Elam sites in southwestMichigan.^[5][6] No plant remains were located at Knoll Spring, but at Griesmer the carbonized remains ofwhite water lily (Nymphaea tuberosa) tubers were recovered and at Schwert and Elam, the carbonized remains ofAmerican Lotus tubers were recovered from similar roasting pits.^[3][5][6]

A few post molds were noted, but their presence was random and the excavators could not detect the outline of a house pattern.^[1]

Two burials were present, and grave goods were included in each. Burial 1 had a stonegraver, and Burial 2 was interred with acopper ornament.^[1]

The carbonized remains of cultivated plants were recovered at Knoll Spring. Features 8 and 14 each yielded 7 kernels of Eastern 8-rowmaize, and Features 11 and 14 together yielded 3 fragments of thecommon bean, indicating agriculture took place at the site. In addition, 13 fragments ofhickory nut shell and 2 fragments ofblack walnut shell were recovered, as well as two seed ofCarex sp.^[7]

Artifacts recovered from the site included:^[1]

• Pottery – total of over 1,120 sherds, of which 1,015 were assigned to the Au Sagaunashke component (aka Huber or Blue Island). The pottery artifacts will be discussed in more detail below.
• Chipped stone artifacts – includingprojectile points,scrapers,gravers, knives andpunches/awls. Of the projectile points, the most numerous category was the small triangular Madison point.
• Ground stone artifacts – including ahammerstone, a ground stone ball, ametate and pittedanvils.
• Shell artifacts – several fragments of marine shell were present, including one that was possibly used as a spoon.
• Bone andantler artifacts –scapulahoes, antler flakers, a hoe formed from a mammal pelvis, a piece of worked antler that may have been used as a scraper, and rib bones incised with designs that may have had ceremonial purpose.
• Metal artifacts – included amusket ball,brass strip,copper tube,ironprojectile point, and 5 other metal artifacts thought by the researchers to be early European trade goods. However, when the site was first excavated, there was limited archaeological knowledge of the details of early artifacts from the period of first European contact (c. 1600-1750). Subsequent investigators have determined these objects were intrusive from later time periods.^[8]
• Claypipe fragment – this was the only pipe fragment found at the site. The interior of the bowl is conical and was stained from smoking. It was decorated with incised lines.

Archaeologists often findpottery 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.

Huber pottery is characterized by shell-tempered, smooth 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 the lip to the shoulder. A minority also have punctate decoration, mostly in combination with the trailed lines. Rarely, surfaces are cordmarked or smoothed overcordmarking. The top of the lip is either plain or decorated with fine to wide notching.^[3][9]

Of the Au Sagaunashke component pottery: 18% of the sherds hadcordmarked surfaces; fine-to-medium incised line decoration was present on some sherds; 84% of the lips were notched, with wide-notching being the most common. Some of the rims were sharply everted but most were slightly everted.^[1]

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. Late Huber pottery has predominately smooth surface finish; fine-line incised decoration; and unnotched lips. A minority also have punctate decoration, mostly in combination with the trailed lines.^[4][3][10]

In the Au Sagaunashke component assemblage, 18% of sherds arecordmarked, compared to only 1% atHuber and 23.5% atHoxie Farm. Fine-line decoration is present on almost all of the Au Sagaunashke Component decorated sherds; the percentage of fine-line incised sherds is 13% atHoxie Farm and 45% atHuber. Only 16% of the Au Sagaunashke Component lips are unnotched, compared to 49% atHuber and 20% atHoxie Farm.^[1][10]

This combination of traits indicates that the Au Sagaunashke Component is intermediate in time between theHoxie Farm andHuber sites, with Hoxie Farm coming first, Au Sagaunashke Component second and Huber last. The only exception to this would be with respect to the fine-line incising, which is a very late trait. The reason for this may be bias due to the smaller sample size; the Au Sagaunashke Component was composed of only 1,015 sherds compared with 6,077 sherds from Huber and over 12,000 sherds from Hoxie Farm.^[1][10]

The Knoll Spring site assemblage resembles that of other Huber (Blue Island) sites in theChicago Area, including Huber,Hoxie Farm, Oak Forest,Palos and Anker. This cultural group was one of theNative American tribes first encountered byEuropean explorers andfur traders in the 1600s, based on the presence of European trade goods at Oak Forest and Palos, but the specific tribal affiliation is unknown. The initial researchers at Knoll Spring believed they had established an association of Huber pottery with early European trade goods, but subsequent investigators have determined these objects were probably intrusive, later period artifacts.

• Charles M. Slaymaker III and Charles M. Slaymaker Jr. (1971), "Au Sagaunashke Village: The Upper Mississippian Occupation of the Knoll Spring Site, Cook County, Illinois",Illinois Archaeological Survey (Bulletin 8):192–250

• Mississippian culture
• Archaeological sites in Illinois
• Cook County, Illinois

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