by Charles Mike Sutton, Harrisburg, Illinois
April 2016 Central States Archaeological Journal
Rarely in today’s times do we hear of a “killer” artifact being found close to our home. Conflicting emotions churn within us, as we yearn to get a glimpse of the relic and hear firsthand the events of the discovery.
And that’s exactly what happened when I heard of a shell dipper or “drinking cup” that had been found by a logger in southeastern Illinois. While dragging logs, he mistakenly thought he had uncovered a football, somehow lost in the riverside woods. But his next pass offered a different perspective, and he stopped just before crushing it with a timber skidder. The artifact was discovered at a Hopewell site near the mouth of the Wabash River, about four miles north of Illinois Highway 141, in 1999.
The cache discovery took place on an elevated region above the Wabash floodplain known locally as the “Dog Town Hills.” Situated on these hills and their eastern flank is the well-known Wilson Group and Village Site (#77000491), listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977. The site represents a Hopewell mortuary and village complex of the Middle Woodland period and is attributed to the Crab Orchard Tradition (Caldwell and Hall, 1977). The Wilson group, named after Ethel R. Wilson, consists of intermediate burial mounds perched on a north–south ridge that parallels the river. The small community of Rising Sun and the 2,000-year-old village site lie comfortably nestled between the river and the mound crest.
Likely to be a rare Hopewellian artifact, the logger’s extraordinary find left me burning to get a closer look. Being from a neighboring county, it was practically found in my backyard. Who isn’t passionate about seeing a newly discovered relic, especially from a hunting ground once known to collectors? The elusive glimpse I longed for finally came during a phone call. I must say, it was a gym of perfection that looked so surreal most would have questioned its authenticity.
Figures 1–3. The Hopewellian Marine Dipper.
The use of whelk shell from the Gulf of Mexico was widespread in prehistoric Midwest societies. These shells sometimes traveled a thousand miles or more to be utilized in gorgets, beads, and ceremonial objects. Early observers noted these “dippers” were used in the consumption of the ceremonial “black drink,” a beverage prepared from the leaves of yaupon holly (Ilex vomitoria). The drink induced vomiting and was used in purification ceremonies to remove spiritual and physical contamination. Among some Native American groups, this ritual was practiced daily.