|
||
|
|
|
|
A rare and early ethnographic-archaeological engraving published under the auspices of the Société de Géographie, documenting prehistoric mound structures and cultural remains along Noyer Creek, a tributary of the Mississippi in the state of Illinois. The plate synthesizes material from early 19th-century French-American exploration, likely related to the travels of Georges-Henri-Victor Collot or Constantine Rafinesque, and was meant to contribute to a comparative study of ancient American civilizations.
Figures 1–3 and 5 depict plans and cross-sections of ancient earthen fortifications along the creek. Other figures represent cultural artifacts and remains (including ceramic effigy vessels, sculpted head pots, and a cranium) attributed to Indigenous cultures of the Mississippian period. Particularly notable is figure 11, showing the outline of human footprints impressed in a riverside rock, labeled Rocher des bords du Mississippi—likely an early rendering of petrosomatoglyphs observed along the river.
