Hopewell Culture Obsidian: A Long Trip to Ohio
Where the Hopewell got obsidian, and how it reached Ohio. This excerpt uses part of the first paragraph and the next four paragraphs. It leaves out the rest of the page, which covers how obsidian is used and viewed today.
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Obsidian is a unique material. It is naturally formed glass, a type of igneous rock. It forms only when lava cools very quickly, so it is found only where there are volcanoes. You might wonder, “What is obsidian doing in the Scioto River valley in Ohio? There are no volcanoes here!” That is a reasonable question. The nearest volcano is over 1,500 miles away, in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming.
Obsidian is naturally occurring glass that is jet black, but it can also be brown, tan, or green. The obsidian found in the earthworks in the Scioto River Valley seems to be only black. The obsidian artifacts found in Hopewell Culture National Historical Park came from two places. One is Obsidian Cliff in Wyoming, inside Yellowstone National Park. The other is Bear Gulch in Idaho, just west of the National Park boundary. We know this from scientific studies. These studies compare the elements found in the obsidian in Ohio to different possible source sites in North America. They use techniques like x-ray fluorescence (XRF), which measures the chemicals in rocks, minerals, sediments, and liquids. All the matches from Ohio obsidian artifacts can be traced back to the Yellowstone region.
In the vast land between Ohio and Wyoming, there is hardly any obsidian except at Hopewell sites. This leads archeologists to believe that the material was not traded down-the-line. Instead, it was carried directly to the Scioto Valley. It was likely brought to Ohio in one of two ways. Ancient people may have made quests to the source, as a religious experience like a pilgrimage or vision quest. Or people from faraway lands may have carried it with them. They came to take part in the ceremonial events at the earthwork complexes in the Scioto River Valley. Either way, the journey from Yellowstone to Ohio was a life-changing event for those who completed it.
Obsidian is a strong material, yet it can be easily shaped by chipping away flakes. This process is called knapping. The obsidian found in the earthworks in the Scioto River Valley was shaped into large, detailed spear points. The largest obsidian spear, found in Hopewell Mound Group, is over 17 inches long and six inches wide. These spear points were not for hunting or everyday use. They were ceremonial. They were likely only displayed or used during religious events. Four out of five of the obsidian spear points at Mound City were found broken, alongside other ritual artifacts and human remains. These spear points were broken on purpose. They were likely ritually destroyed before they were buried.
Archeologists believe that for the ancient people in the Scioto River Valley, obsidian was strongly connected to the spiritual world. The material is formed from volcanic activity deep in the earth. It rises up to the surface and is taken from a place surrounded by natural wonders.