DAAP Exhibit of Ancient Earthworks on Display Locally Starting Sept. 26

An ambitious DAAP project to virtually rebuild the Midwest's immense earthworks, structures built by ancient Native American cultures, will go on display locally, from Sept. 26, 2009, to Jan. 10, 2010.

A stunning exhibit first originated at the University of Cincinnati and employing advanced technology to detail the lost heritage of the Adena, Hopewell and Fort Ancient cultures, will soon be on display at Woodland Mound's Seasongood Nature Center in Anderson Township, in Cincinnati's eastern suburbs.
Exhibit
The EarthWorks traveling exhibit.

The exhibit, titled "EarthWorks: Virtual Explorations of the Ancient Ohio Valley," was created by a team from the UC's top-ranked College of Design, Architecture, Art, and Planning. It focuses on the Native American cultures that once flourished in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana and West Virginia - cultures that constructed geometric and animal-shaped earth works that often rivaled Stonehenge in their astronomical accuracy.

A team of architects, historians, technical experts, archaeologists and others - led by John Hancock, professor of architecture at UC - spent nearly a decade building the virtual reconstructions of earthworks from 39 sites. The electronic recreations, completed in partnership with UC's Center for the Electronic Reconstruction of Historical and Archaeological Sites, CERHAS, represent earthen architecture dating back from as early as 600 BC, stretching over miles, with walls rising to heights of 15 feet or more. Most of the earthen shapes and enclosures have been lost to plow and pavement, though a few extant examples survive, such as Serpent Mound in Adams County or Fort Ancient near Lebanon, Ohio.
Ft. Ancient
Depicted in the "EarthWorks" exhibit is Fort Ancient in Lebanon, Ohio, the largest prehistoric hilltop enclosure in the United States. The enclosure is still extant.

The "EarthWorks" reconstructions are the centerpiece within a 500-square-foot traveling exhibit designed by Hancock's architectural design students at UC but fabricated by the Cincinnati Museum Center. The virtual earthworks are experienced via a large screen by which a visitor can conduct 3-D explorations of "EarthWorks" using a touch-screen computer.

Other elements in the exhibit include a graphic timeline wall with cross cultural comparisons; a giant map wall of the Ohio River Valley (from about Pittsburgh to Louisville) indicating placement of Native American earthworks; panels with diagrams, photos and text; and 3-D topographic models of five earthwork sites.
Hopewell Village
Depicted in "EarthWorks" is a representation of a Hopewell settlement. The Hopewell lived along the river valleys of the region, tending small gardens.

UC's "EarthWorks: Virtual Explorations of the Ancient Ohio Valley" is open to the public and will be on display from Sept. 26, 2009, to Jan. 10, 2010, in Woodland Mound's Seasongood Nature Center. Woodland Mound is located at 8250 Old Kellogg Rd. Cincinnati, OH 45255.

Visit the park Web site for a listing of hours of operation. Cost to visit the exhibit is $1. For additional information, call (513) 521-7275.

Funding for the "EarthWorks" traveling exhibit was provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Additional development support over the years has come from the Ohio Board of Regents, the Ohio Humanities Council, the Ohio Arts Council, the George Gund Foundation, and in-kind donations from the University of Cincinnati.

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