Oral traditions and mounds, owls and movement at Poverty Point: An archaeological ethnography of multispecies embodiments and everyday life

Research at the Poverty Point World Heritage Site reveals that its monumental earthworks may represent a horned owl, aligning with oral traditions of a Muskogee-identified community. The study suggests that ancient peoples cultivated perspectival embodiments through everyday life in owl-shaped villages, challenging conventional ontological frameworks by emphasizing sensory and bodily perspectives intertwined with land. Contemporary descendants' return to the site reactivates shared multispecies sensory fields, described as 'Owl's teachings,' highlighting deep Indigenous histories of connection. This work advocates for an archaeology rooted in Native American and Indigenous studies, exploring how mounds can inspire resurgent possibilities through historical entanglements.

Bloch, L. (2019). Oral traditions and mounds, owls and movement at Poverty Point: An archaeological ethnography of multispecies embodiments and everyday life. Journal of Social Archaeology, 19(3), 356–378. https://doi.org/10.1177/1469605319846985