Cahokia Mound 72: Reinterpreting Meaning

For three decades, the mortuary features associated with Cahokia's Mound 72 have been fundamental to archaeological interpretations of Mississippian social structure, political hierarchy, religious practices, and cosmology within the Amer-ican Bottom and throughout southeastern North America. Recent osteological and isotope studies of the skeletal remains associated with Mound 72 allow us to re-examine long held interpretations of this elaborate mortuary complex. Revised demographic information, isotopic evidence for heterogeneity in diet and place of origin among individuals buried in Mound 72, raise new questions regarding the role and significance of Mound 72.