Ancient Babylonian Gematria Numerology Evident in the Junction Group Henge Site in Chillicothe, Ohio

Ancient Babylonian Gematria Numerology Evident in the Junction Group Henge Site in Chillicothe, Ohio

The tow largest henges are 210 feet. 210 x pi = 660 feet. The sum total of the tow henges of 210 + 210 + 240 = 660.  660r for the male sun deity was a Babylonian number for the male sun deity.


       A singular group of works here represented is situated on Paint creek, two miles south-west of the town of Chillicothe. It consists of four circles, three crescents, two square works, and four mounds. The eastern enclosure is the principal one; and, in common with all the rest, consists of a wall three feet high, with an interior ditch. It is two hundred and forty feet square, the angles much curved, giving it very nearly the form of a circle. The area, bounded by the ditch, is an accurate square of one hundred and sixty feet side, and is entered from the south by a gateway twenty-five feet wide. To the south-west of this work, and one hundred and thirty feet distant, is a small mound enclosed by a ditch and wall, with a gateway opening to it from the north. The ditch dips from the base of the mound, which is but three feet high by thirty feet base. Almost touching the circle enclosing the mound, is the horn of a crescent work, having a chord of one hundred and thirty-two feet. Sixty-six feet distant, in the same direction, is still another crescent, which terminates in a mound of sacrifice, seven feet high by forty-five feet base, which commands the entire group of works. This mound was carefully opened in October, 1845. The following passages, from the notes taken on the occasion, may not be out of place here. They will prove more intelligible to the reader, after an examination of the chapters on Mounds.

The mound is composed of clay. A simple shaft was sunk from the apex, five feet square. About three feet below the surface, upon the northern side of the excavation, was found a layer of wood coals, three or four inches in thickness, which extended within range of the excavation perhaps a foot, where it was broken up and intermixed with the clay composing the mound; some fragments were found within a few inches of the surface. From this fact it was inferred that the mound had been disturbed since its erection,—with what correctness will be seen in the sequel. In this layer of charcoal was found a human skeleton, much decayed, the skull and jaws crushed. Proceeding downwards, the earth below the unbroken charcoal was homogeneous, while towards the centre of the mound it was intermixed with detached coals. About seven feet beneath the surface of the mound, and probably a little below the surface of the adjacent plain, and in the centre of the excavation, were found three skeletons, in a very good state of preservation. The earth above them was mingled with coals, and also with fragments of hard-burned clay, which were immediately recognized as portions of the "altar" peculiar to a certain class of mounds devoted to religious purposes. It was clear that the mound had been opened, and its structure broken up, to afford the rite of sepulture to the skeletons here found; and it was concluded from this fact, as well as from their well-preserved condition, that the remains were those of the later Indians, who frequently buried in the mounds. The skeletons were placed side by side, with their heads towards the east. But one circumstance weighs against the above conclusion, and that is the depth at which the skeletons were deposited. The modern Indians bury in shallow graves.

       Further examination disclosed the remains of the altar, about one third of which remained entire. Upon it were found a number of relics, clearly pertaining to the mound-builders.

       The character of the remaining works is sufficiently apparent, without further explanation. That they were not designed for defence is obvious, and that they were devoted to religious rites is more than probable. They may have answered a double purpose, and may have been used for the celebration of games, of which we can have no definite conception. It has been suggested that the enclosure A as also B and C, were occupied by structures, temples perhaps, which in the lapse of time have disappeared. Similar groups are frequent,—indeed, small circles, resembling those here represented, constitute, in the Scioto valley, by far the most numerous class of remains. They seldom occur singly but generally in connection with several others of the same description, and accompanied by one or more mounds; sometimes they are connected with long parallel lines of embankments, of which more particular mention is elsewhere made.

       This group occupies a beautiful plain forming the third terrace, upon the edge of which, at D, is a mound, formerly of considerable dimensions, but now much reduced in altitude. Upon the opposite bank of the creek, and occupying the corresponding terrace, are other works, consisting of a small circle and a number of small mounds.

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Mound City, Adena Hopewell Enclosure in Chillicothe Ohio

Mound City, Adena Hopewell Earthen Enclosure and Mounds in Chillicothe Ohio in Ross County

       Plate presents a very interesting group of works. They are situated on the left bank of the Scioto river, four miles north of the town of Chillicothe. The enclosure, designated, from the great number of mounds within its walls, "Mound City," is in many respects the most remarkable in the Scioto valley. Through the generous kindness of Henry Shriver, Esq., upon whose estate it is situated, the mounds were all permitted to be investigated; and the work will, in consequence, be often referred to in the course of this volume, particularly when we come to speak of "Mounds."

In outline it is nearly square, with rounded angles, and consists of a simple embankment, between three and four feet high, unaccompanied by a ditch. Its site is the beautiful level of the second terrace, and it is still covered with the primitive forest.

       The first and most striking feature in connection with this work is the unusual number of mounds which it contains. There are no less than twenty-four within its walls. All of these, as above observed, have been excavated, and the principal ones found to contain altars and other remains, which put it beyond question that they were places of sacrifice, or of superstitious origin. [The evidence in support of this conclusion will appear in a subsequent chapter on the mounds and their purposes.]

       These mounds seem placed generally without design in respect to each other, although there is a manifest dependence between those composing the central group, and between those numbered 4 and 5, and 12 and 13. From the principal mound, numbered 7 in the plan, after the fall of the leaves, a full view of every part of the work and of its enclosed mounds is commanded. This mound is seventeen feet high, with a broad base nearly one hundred feet in diameter. The long mound, No. 3, is one hundred and forty feet long, by eighty wide at the base, and ten feet in average height. Broad and deep pits, from which the earth for the construction of the mounds was taken, surround the work. The one occurring at the south-western angle, and of which a b exhibits a vertical section, is at this time eighteen feet deep, by one hundred and twenty feet in width, and over two hundred feet in length. The accumulation of vegetable deposit at the bottom is found, by excavation, to be not less than thirty inches,—a fact which may assist in an approximate estimate of the age of this monument.

The absence of an exterior ditch, as also the fact that the work is commanded from a slightly elevated terrace half a bow-shot to the left, seems sufficient to establish that it was not designed for defence. The skill, which the illustrations of a previous chapter convince us the mound-builders possessed in selecting and fortifying their military positions, is in no degree displayed in this instance. Taking in view also the character and purposes of the mounds as disclosed by excavation, we are certainly well warranted in classing this as a sacred work.

      The custom of enclosing the Adoratorios or Teocallis, upon which their sacrifices and religious rites generally were practised, was universal among the Mexicans. The open temples of the ancient Britons were embraced within parapets of earth, usually, if not always, circular in form. The "tabooed" grounds or sacred places of the Pacific Islanders, are also surrounded, if not by earthen, by stone walls or by palisades.

     One fourth of a mile to the north-west of this work is ay small circle two hundred and fifty feet in diameter, accompanied by two large mounds.

222 Burial Mound and Earthworks to Explore

Adena Hopewell Cedar Banks Works in Chillicothe Ohio in Ross County

Cedar Banks, Adena Hopewell Earthwork in Chillicothe, Ohio in Ross County

      This work is situated upon the table lands bordering the Scioto river, at a point five miles above the town of Chillicothe, and about a mile above the works last described. It consists of a wall and outer ditch, which constitute three sides of a parallelogram. The fourth side is protected by a natural bank or bluff, seventy feet high, and so steep as to admit of no ascent, except at one point where it has been gullied by the flow of water.

       The walls of this work are about six feet high by forty feet base; the ditch five feet deep by forty wide. The ditch upon the longer or eastern side is formed, for two thirds of its length, by a "runway" or water-course. It is here from eight to ten feet deep. The wall upon this side is fourteen hundred feet long. The northern and southern walls are each ten hundred and fifty feet in length, and placed at right angles to the first; the southern extending to the very edge of the bluff, the northern terminating within twenty-five feet of it. It is possible that a fourth wall originally bounded the enclosure on the west, which has been destroyed by the river, in its encroachments. There are gateways, each sixty feet wide, at the centres of the northern and southern sides. Covering the northern gateway, and two hundred feet interior to it, is an elevated square, two hundred and fifty feet long by one hundred and fifty broad, and four feet high. It is ascended from the ends by graded ways, thirty feet broad, and in all respects resembles the truncated pyramids or "elevated squares" of the Marietta Works (Plate XXVI).

       On the line of the southern embankment, and three hundred feet distant from the main work, are singular parallel walls, eight hundred and seventy feet long and seventy feet apart, connected at the ends. These walls have no ditch, and have been partially obliterated by the Chillicothe and Columbus turnpike, which passes through them. In the timbered land, where they are undisturbed, they are between two and three feet high.

      About one third of a mile south of the principal work, is a truncated pyramid, and a small circle, Fig. 9: the former is one hundred and twenty feet square at the base, and nine feet in height; the latter is two hundred and fifty feet in diameter, and has an entrance from the south, thirty feet wide, The sides of the pyramidal structure correspond to the cardinal points. The circle has a ditch interior to the embankment; and has also a broad embankment of about the same height with the outer wall, interior to the ditch, upon the side opposite the entrance. This feature, which is found in many of the smaller circles, is illustrated by the plan, and by the section b a. This group is so disposed as to command a fine view of the river terraces below it; and the headland upon which it is situated seems to have been artificially smoothed and rounded. The spot is well chosen. The "elevated square" has been excavated, but was found to contain no remains. Upon the edge of the table land, both above and below this peculiar group, there are various inconsiderable remains, consisting of small, low terraces, and little mounds and circles.

       It is difficult to determine the character of this group of works. The principal enclosure partakes of the nature of a defence; but the broad gateways and the regular terrace embraced in the walls, are features hardly consistent with the hypothesis of a military origin. The long parallel lines, found in connection with this and other works, are entirely inexplicable in their design and purposes. The most plausible suggestion concerning them is, that they were devoted to the celebration of certain games; they may, however, have been connected with religious observances. It has been suggested that the gully or "wash" towards the river was originally a graded way to the water, and that its present.

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High Banks Adena Hopewell Enclosure in Ross County, Ohio

High Bank Adena Hopewell Enclosure in Ross County, Ohio

      The beautiful group here represented is situated on the right bank of the Scioto river, five miles below the town of Chillicothe, near the road from that place to Jackson. It occurs at a place where the river has cut its way up to the third terrace, which in consequence here presents a bold bank, rising seventy-five or eighty feet above the water. This point is generally known as the"High Bank," and gives its name to these works. The third terrace here spreads out into a beautiful, level plain of great extent. The principal work consists of an octagon and a circle; the former measuring nine hundred and fifty feet, the latter ten hundred and fifty feet, in diameter. The coincidences, in the dimensions, between this and the "Hopeton Works,"will be at once observed. The octagon is not strictly regular; although its alternate angles are coincident, and its sides equal. The circle is a perfect one. In immediate connection with the work are two small circles, which are shown in the plan, each measuring two hundred and fifty feet in diameter.

lAerial photo of the Highbank earthworks from the 1990s.      

      The walls of the octagon are very bold; and, where they have been least subjected to cultivation, are now between eleven and twelve feet in height, by about fifty feet base. The wall of the circle is much less, nowhere measuring over four or five feet in altitude. In all these respects, as in the absence of a ditch and the presence of the two small circles, this work resembles the Hopeton Works already alluded to. There are no mounds, except the small ones covering the gateways of the octagon. About half a mile to the southward, and connected with this work by lines of embankment, much reduced but still traceable, is a small group of works, partially destroyed by the river. A fourth of a mile below this subordinate group, on the bank of the terrace, is a large truncated mound, thirty feet in height. It does not fall within the area exhibited on the map.

       At various points around this work are the usual pits or dug holes, some of which are of large size. To the left of the great circle, on the brow of the terrace, is an Indian burial place. The construction of a farm road down the bank disclosed a large quantity of human bones, accompanied by a variety of rude implements. A short distance below this point, on the same bank of the river, is the former site of an Indian town.

       A number of small circles occur about a hundred rods distant from the octagon, in the forest land to the south-east. They measure nearly fifty feet in diameter, and the walls are about two feet in height. It has been suggested that they are the remains of structures of some kind, and also that they were the bases of unfinished mounds. There are no indications of entrances or passageways, a circumstance which favors the latter hypothesis. Similar small circles occur within or in the immediate vicinity of several other large works.

222 Adena Hopewell Burial Mound and Earthwork Sites!

Ancient Adena Hopewell Fortification Located North of Chillicothe Ohio in Ross County

Ancient Adena Hopewell Fortification Located North of Chillicothe Ohio in Ross County

       This work, unlike those just described, occurs upon the high table-land bordering the Scioto river bottoms, on the west bank of that stream, twelve miles above the city of Chillicothe. It consists of a single wall and ditch, cutting off a high promontory, formed by the declivity of the table land, and the bank of a wide and deep ravine. These banks are not far from one hundred feet in height, and at most points are absolutely inaccessible. It has a single gateway, opening towards a copious spring, at the head of the ravine just mentioned. The wall is four feet high, and the ditch of corresponding depth. There are no mounds within this enclosure, nor in its immediate vicinity; but a number of natural elevations are discernible, which an unpractised eye might mistake for works of art. In this instance, they may have subserved some of the purposes of the mounds. The water flowing through the ditch has formed deep gullies at the points where it terminates. The soil is here clayey and hard. The level at the foot of the promontory upon which this work stands, is the first or latest-formed terrace of the Scioto; indicating that the river, at one period, swept along where the Ohio canal now passes. 

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Maps of Bural of Adena Hopewell Burial Mounds Earthworks at Chillicothe, Ohio, Paint Creek and the Great Miami River

 Maps of Adena Hopewell Earthworks at Chillicothe, Ohio, Paint Creek and the Great Miami River

Earthworks found around Chillicothe, Ohio.  None of the earthworks were preserved, with the few that did survive until the 20th century being destroyed by the Ohio Historical Society.  Map from Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, 1848.

Chillicothe, Ohio (Ross County) Mounds and Earthworks Map
      Exhibiting a section of twelve miles of the Scioto valley, with its ancient monuments, will serve to give some general conception of the number of these remains. The enclosures are here indicated by dark lines, the mounds by simple dots. Within the section represented, it will be observed that there are not less than ten groups of large works, accompanied by a great number of mounds, of various sizes. Within the enclosure designated by the letter E are embraced twenty-four mounds. The enclosures D, H, I, K, have each about two and a half miles of embankment; and Hand K enclose but little less than one hundred acres each. It is proper to observe, to prevent misconception, that there are few sections of country of equal extent which embrace so large a number of ancient works. The fertile valley of the Scioto river was a favorite resort of the ancient people, and was one of the seats of their densest population. 

Earthworks located west of Chilliocthe, Ohio along Pant Creek.  Spuce Hill and the Seip mound and earthwork can still be explored.

Valley of Paint Creek Earthworks Map

    Enlarged planPLATE III, No. 1, exhibits a section of six miles of the Valley of Paint Creek, a tributary of the Scioto river. The village of Bourneville is ten miles west of Chillicothe. Within this limit are embraced three works of extraordinary size, besides several smaller ones. The works, designated by the letters A and B, have each upwards of two miles of heavy embankment, and contain not far from one hundred acres. The stone work C has an area of one hundred and forty acres, enclosed within a wall upwards of two and a fourth miles longs 

The Great Miami Valley Earthwork Map

PLATE III, No. 2, presents a section of six miles of the Great Miami valley, included principally within the limits of Butler county, Ohio. Not less than seven enclosures, of considerable size, occur within these bounds. The work indicated by the letter G contains ninety-five acres. 

Not far from one hundred enclosures of various sizes, and five hundred mounds, are found in Ross county, Ohio. The number of tumuli in the State may be safely estimated at ten thousand, and the number of enclosures at one thousand or fifteen hundred. Many of them are small, but cannot be omitted in an enumeration. They are scarcely less numerous on the Kenhawas in Virginia, than on the Scioto and Miamis; and are abundant on the White river and Wabash, as also upon the Kentucky, Cumberland, Tennessee, and the numerous other tributaries of the Ohio and Mississippi.

Nor is their magnitude less a matter of remark than their great number. Lines of embankment, varying in height from five to thirty feet, and enclosing areas of from one to fifty acres, are common; while enclosures of one or two hundred acres area are far from infrequent. Occasional works are found enclosing as many as four hundred acres The magnitude of the area enclosed is not, however, always a correct index of the amount of labor expended in the erection of these works. A fortified hill in Highland county, Ohio, has one mile and five-eighths of heavy embankment; yet it encloses an area of only about forty acres. A similar work on the Little Miami river, in Warren county, Ohio, has upwards of four miles of embankment, yet encloses little more than one hundred acres. The group of works at the mouth of the Scioto river has an aggregate of at least twenty miles of embankment; yet the entire amount of land embraced within the walls does not probably much exceed two hundred acres.

The mounds are of all dimensions, from those of but a few feet in height and a few yards in diameter, to those which, like the celebrated structure at the mouth of Grave Creek in Virginia, rise to the height of seventy feet, and measure one thousand feet in circumference at the base. The great mound in the vicinity of Miamisburgh, Montgomery county, Ohio, is sixty-eight feet in perpendicular height, and eight hundred and fifty-two in circumference at the base, containing 311,353 cubic feet.

222 Burial Mound and Earthworks Sites in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, West Virginia and Michigan. 
 SEE THE MOUNDS AND EARTHWORKS THAT THE OHIO HISTORICAL SOCIETY DOES NOT WANT YOU TO SEE!