WELCOME MOUND — SETZLER 



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The bodies were usually interred extended on their backs with per- 

 sonal belongings and ceremonial and political paraphernalia, and were 

 surrounded by log and bark structures. The ceremonial objects 

 buried with the deceased individual were probably regarded as con- 

 tributing to his welfare in after life. 



Figure 1 — Map showing concentration of Adena sites in the Ohio River Valley region. 



Welcome Mound 



Erecting a tumulus as large as Welcome Mound was a considerable 

 undertaking for these people. It measured about 110 feet in diameter 

 and 14 feet at the highest point (plate 1). The hundreds of tons of 

 dirt were composed of both the thin mantle of topsoil and surrounding 

 humus and a loose gravelly soil, interspersed with water-worn pebbles 

 ranging in size from a marble to elliptical biconvex pebbles 4 to 5 

 inches across. The composition was comparable to that found in 

 the Natrium Mound, a mile to the south (Solecki, 1953, pp. 327, 

 382, 390). Such a mixture made it difficult for us to dig with shovels 

 and trowels. 



In contrast to some of the other large Adena mounds which con- 

 tained the remains of many more bodies (Bache and Satterthwaite, 



