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Wikipedia Article
Way back in July 2011, I had the opportunity to check out the Chucalissa Indian Village in Memphis.
Chucalissa means "abandoned house" in the Choctaw language. The name makes perfect sense, as it has been occupied, abandoned and re-occupied several times from AD 1000 to around the 16th century, just before the arrival of Hernando DeSoto. Though the mounds remain, the inhabitants are gone, and their culture is still studied and re-studied to this day. Artifacts have been found here by chance throughout the 20th century, as pottery has been found intact, and trash and tools from former inhabitants have been uncovered.
We know about how they hunted - through spears and a spear-tossing tool known as an atlatl, which not only lets the user throw it farther than with human hands alone, but also lets the spear spin numerous times like a bullet in a rifle. It's really nice and the spear covers several yards.
There is a mound here where the chief of these people lived, and there is also a museum and gift shop here as well alongside numerous informative signs. It's a pretty nice place to check out, as a lot of the souvenirs are replicas of Indian artifacts or books on Native American tribes. It's pretty nice.
There's still a lot to be known about the Chucalissa - some which may be lost forever to history. Where's Indiana Jones when you need him...?
Way back in July 2011, I had the opportunity to check out the Chucalissa Indian Village in Memphis.
Chucalissa means "abandoned house" in the Choctaw language. The name makes perfect sense, as it has been occupied, abandoned and re-occupied several times from AD 1000 to around the 16th century, just before the arrival of Hernando DeSoto. Though the mounds remain, the inhabitants are gone, and their culture is still studied and re-studied to this day. Artifacts have been found here by chance throughout the 20th century, as pottery has been found intact, and trash and tools from former inhabitants have been uncovered.
We know about how they hunted - through spears and a spear-tossing tool known as an atlatl, which not only lets the user throw it farther than with human hands alone, but also lets the spear spin numerous times like a bullet in a rifle. It's really nice and the spear covers several yards.
There is a mound here where the chief of these people lived, and there is also a museum and gift shop here as well alongside numerous informative signs. It's a pretty nice place to check out, as a lot of the souvenirs are replicas of Indian artifacts or books on Native American tribes. It's pretty nice.
There's still a lot to be known about the Chucalissa - some which may be lost forever to history. Where's Indiana Jones when you need him...?
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