Great Serpent Mound

Largest Serpent Effigy in the World

​On Day #27 of our 30-day, 9376 mile, road trip to see more of America we visited the Great Serpent Mound in Adams County, Ohio (on State Route 73 near Peebles).

The Great Serpent Mound is a 1,348 foot long, three foot tall prehistoric effigy mound that was first mapped by Euro-Americans as early as 1815, and was documented in surveys by Squire and Davis in their book on “Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley” which was published in 1848 by the Smithsonian Museum. 

Thought to have been built between 381 BC and 44 BC, the Serpent Mound is the largest serpent effigy in the world and is made from a layer of yellowish clay and ash reinforced with a layer of rocks, and covered with a layer of soil.
 
Following the curve of the land on which it was built, the 20-25 foot wide serpent winds back and forth for more than eight hundred feet. The serpent has seven coils in total, with its head facing the cliff above a stream, and it tail ending in triple-coils. The head has an open mouth extending around the east end of a 120-foot hollow oval feature which may represent the snake eating an egg (or potentially the sun).
 
There is also conjecture that the head area of the serpent is aligned to the summer solstice sunset and that the curves in the serpent's body align with lunar events.
 
As you can see from the photos below – the Great Serpent Mound is a unique ancient artifact worth taking the time to detour for a visit. (click on any photo to start the slideshow):

If you want to learn more about the Great Serpent Mound here are a couple of links to check out:
 
https://www.ohiohistory.org/visit/museum-and-site-locator/serpent-mound
 
https://www.history.com/topics/landmarks/serpent-mound
 
https://historydaily.org/who-built-the-great-serpent-mound-and-why