<span>Answer: Toltec Mounds is one of the largest archaeological sites in the Mississippi River valley. The site encompasses about 100 acres and originally included 18 total mounds. We do not know what the Native people called themselves, as they did not have a form of writing. The people seem to have left the area around 1050 A.D. and although we do not know exactly why they built the mounds, they did leave some clues behind.
The mounds were built in a large rectangle shape, known as the ceremonial plaza. Although many of the mounds didn’t survive to our modern time, the ones remaining are quite massive. As we approached the largest mound, Mound A, our guide pointed out that it sits at 49 feet tall. In our times, that may not seem to be much, but they didn’t live in a time with tractors and a backhoe. All the dirt that was relocated was done by hand and possibly a bowl. It would take a great deal of time and effort to form just one mound, let alone 18.
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