Two thousand years ago, Ohios Hopewell culture created amazing gigantic monuments, such as the Newark and Fort Ancient earthworks and gathered a variety of exotic raw materials from the ends of their world, from which their artisans crafted magnificent works of art. What can we learn about this ancient American Indian culture based on these extraordinary objects? You might be surprised at just how much they reveal about these ancient Ohioans. As part of the Ohio History Connection’s celebration of Archaeology Month, I will be offering visitors to the Ohio History Center a guided tour of the Following in Ancient Footsteps exhibit focusing on a selection of what I consider to be the ten most spectacular artifacts of the Hopewell Culture.

My choices for “most spectacular” Hopewell artifacts may not agree with yours, or anyone else’s, and if I give this tour again I may not select the same ten artifacts, but I hope you’ll join me for a look at this endlessly fascinating ancient culture through the prism of ten special objects and the stories the science of archaeology allows us to tell about them. What: The Top Ten Masterpieces of the Hopewell Culture Where: Ohio History Center When: Saturday, October 25th, 2014 What time: 2:00 3:00 PM Brad Lepper