Emmons Cemetery Site

The Emmons cemetery site is located on the top and along the slope of a section of bluff on the western bank of the Illinois River. At the time of its discovery it was owned by Merrill Emmons of Astoria, Illinois, who undertook extensive excavations of the site. The burials were in several small burial mounds located on the lower slope. The cemetery area measures about square. Eighty three burials were found at the site, most in an extended position and oriented on a north to south axis with their heads to the south, although a few were oriented east to west. Five of the burials were flexed, one was semi-flexed and one was a bundle burial. The burials contained many grave goods, including fifty five examples of Mississippian culture pottery (including some imported exotic varieties), stone ear plugs, copper and copper covered objects, marine shell objects and pearl beads. It is considered a rather rich collection of grave goods by the standards of other local sites. The site is possibly associated with two nearby village and platform mound sites, Rose Mounds and the Fiedler Site. ==Artifacts==

A variety of grave goods were found at the site, including several rare or unique objects. One such object is a type of ear decoration carved from marine shell and known as a long-nosed god maskette. Only a few of these objects have ever been found, although Illinois has had more finds than any other area. Many archaeologists now associate these items with Mississippian culture political adoption rituals and with the mythological being Red Horn from the stories of the Ho-Chunk and other plains Siouan peoples. A large collection of Mill Creek chert stone tools were also found at the site. ==See also==