156. Great Serpent Mound. Adams county, southern Ohio. Mississippian. c. 1070 CE Earthwork/effigy mound.

• Context
  • Many mounds were enlarged and changed over the years, not built in one campaign
  • Effigy mounds popular in Mississippian culture
  • Associated with snakes and crop fertility
  • There are no burials associated with this mound, though there are burial sites nearby
• Theories
  • Influenced by comets? Astrological phenomenon? Head pointed to summer solstice sunset?
  • Theory that it could be a representation of Halley’s Comet in 1066
  • Rattlesnakes as a symbol in Mississippian iconography; could this play a role in interpreting this mound?