The Cane River National Heritage Area and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Grand Ecore Visitors Center in Natchitoches are hosting an exhibit this month that explores the ancient mounds and artifacts of Louisiana.
The traveling show is on loan from LSU’s Museum of Natural Science. The panels chronicle the history and artifacts of Native Americans in Louisiana, dating back 12,000 years, according to Cane River National Heritage Area interpretation director Steven Fullen.
“It ties in really well with the overall history of Louisiana from pre-history to contact with Europeans and how Natchitoches evolved into this area that exhibits a great diversity of cultures,” Fullen said.
Louisiana boasts hundreds of ancient mound sites and thousands of archeological sites, according to LSU anthropologist Rebecca Saunders. She’s curator of anthropology at LSU’s Museum of Natural Science and developed this exhibit nine years ago. She says the exhibit showcases prehistoric pottery, tools, housing and sacred monuments that are found underfoot all over the state.
“Everywhere you walk in Louisiana under foot, if you’re on reasonably high ground near a source of water, there’s probably been 10,000 or 12,000 years of Native Americans who did exactly the same thing,” Saunders said.
The exhibit will be on display at Grand Ecore Visitors Center throughout the month. The center is set on a bluff that overlooks the Red River in Natchitoches.Mounds piece
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