Site · United States
Serpent Mound
Adena, Fort Ancient, 300 BCE–1100 CE
Serpent Mound is a quarter-mile-long effigy of a snake with a coiled tail and an oval at the head, laid out on a bluff in Adams County, Ohio. It is the largest serpent effigy in the world and its date is disputed between about 300 BCE and 1100 CE. It lies on the rim of a meteorite impact crater.
| Country | United States |
|---|---|
| State / province | Ohio |
| Dates | 300 BCE–1100 CE |
| Status | State Memorial and National Historic Landmark |
| Managed by | Ohio History Connection with Arc of Appalachia |
| Access | Open to the public with a museum and viewing tower |
| Coordinates | 39.025, -83.43 (public site) |
What was found
The effigy itself contained no artifacts; nearby conical mounds excavated by Putnam in the 1880s held Adena burials, and Fort Ancient village debris with triangular points and shell-tempered pottery occurs on the bluff. Radiocarbon dates from the mound have been argued between Adena and Fort Ancient construction.
Rules
Nothing may be collected, dug, moved or removed at Serpent Mound; it is a protected archaeological site managed by Ohio History Connection with Arc of Appalachia, and taking artifacts, stones or samples is an offence. Federal, state and tribal law, including ARPA and NAGPRA where applicable, protect the site and its burials. This article is for study and context only and is not a collecting locality.
Elsewhere
Cite this article
Stratum Strata. "Serpent Mound" (Site). Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21. https://stratum.black/strata/sites/serpent-mound. Accessed 2026-09-21.
@misc{stratum-serpent-mound,
title = {Serpent Mound},
author = {{Stratum Strata}},
howpublished = {\url{https://stratum.black/strata/sites/serpent-mound}},
year = {2026},
note = {Site article, Stratum Strata pack 2026.09, as of 2026-09-21; sources: stratum, commons, wikidata. Accessed 2026-09-21.}
} Citations carry the pack version and the article's as-of date so they resolve to the same text later. The facts themselves belong to the sources listed below; cite those for the science.