The Mound Builders

by Robert Silverberg

In Illinois, the one-hundred-foot Cahokia Mound spreads impressively across sixteen acres, and as many as ten thousand more mounds dot the Ohio River Valley alone. The Mound Builders traces the speculation surrounding these monuments and the scientific excavations which uncovered the history and culture of the ancient Americans who built them. The mounds were constructed for religious and secular purposes some time between 1000 B.C. and 1000 A.D., and they have prompted curiosity and speculation from very early times. European settlers found them evidence of some ancient and glorious people. Even as eminent an American as Thomas Jefferson joined the controversy, though his conclusions—that the mounds were actually cemeteries of ancient Indians—remained unpopular for nearly a century. Only in the late 19th century, as Smithsonian Institution investigators developed careful methodologies and reliable records, did the period of scientific investigation of the mounds and their builders begin. Silverberg follows these excavations and then recounts the story they revealed of the origins, development, and demise of the mound builder culture.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Anthropology, Native American, Archaeology, Science

276 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1968

About the author

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Robert Silverberg is a highly celebrated American science fiction author and editor known for his prolific output and literary range. Over a career spanning decades, he has won multiple Hugo and Nebula Awards and was named a Grand Master by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America in 2004. Inducted into the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame in 1999, Silverberg is recognized for both his immense productivity and his contributions to the genre's evolution.
Born in Brooklyn, he began writing in his teens and won his first Hugo Award in 1956 as the best new writer. Throughout the 1950s, he produced vast amounts of fiction, often under pseudonyms, and was known for writing up to a million words a year. When the market declined, he diversified into other genres, including historical nonfiction and erotica.
Silverberg’s return to science fiction in the 1960s marked a shift toward deeper psychological and literary themes, contributing significantly to the New Wave movement. Acclaimed works from this period include Downward to the Earth, Dying Inside, Nightwings, and The World Inside. In the 1980s, he launched the Majipoor series with Lord Valentine’s Castle, creating one of the most imaginative planetary settings in science fiction.
Though he announced his retirement from writing in the mid-1970s, Silverberg returned with renewed vigor and continued to publish acclaimed fiction into the 1990s. He received further recognition with the Nebula-winning Sailing to Byzantium and the Hugo-winning Gilgamesh in the Outback.
Silverberg has also played a significant role as an editor and anthologist, shaping science fiction literature through both his own work and his influence on others. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area with his wife, author Karen Haber.

Reviews

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm serious - five stars for a non-fiction book about the mound builders. The author is most known for his science fiction,/ fantasy writing. It was fun to pick up indian mound references in descriptions of the mythical world of Majipoor in one of Silverberg's fantasy works, Lord Valentin'e Castle.

The Mound Builders tells the story of how myths about who built the indian mounds went viral in the 19th century. Silverberg reports on how the myths caught the public imagination and how they were gradually laid to rest by the newly emerging standards of professional archeology. Throughout, Silverberg weaves a historical structure to help readers understand the cultural traditions and their movements through time across the North American continent.

[Harrison · Rating 4 out of 5]

Robert Silverberg is a prolific sci-fi novelist whose extensive—and I mean EXTENSIVE—work has not been remembered as well as some of his contemporaries. But this work of nonfiction is a classic in itself. In gripping prose, Silverberg tells a fascinating episode in the history of science—the evolving views of the Native American mound ruins in the Southeast and Midwest. Though conquistador Hernan de Soto came across the Native Mound cultures during his devastating expedition, the English settlers who followed were too racist to believe that Native Americans had built the Mounds, instead ascribing their construction to a lost civilization (in these myths, often founded by Vikings or Jews) that was overrun by Native Americans. This racist myth devalued the cultural heritage of Native American cultures and supported an ideology of white supremacy. Gradually, a new generation of Smithsonian archaeologists undertook scientific studies to analyze many of the mounds before they were bulldozed by ignorant farmers, and from there we have a much better understanding of the incredible world of the Mound Builders before Columbus. Though this book is a bit dated and has been superseded by latter-day works such as Charles C. Mann's "1491", it's still a good read and overview on a subject that should really be taught in school.

[Eric · Rating 3 out of 5]

There are more myths & legends about this bit of history than actual knowledge, but this book from 1970 does a good job of outlining what is myth and what is actually known as of the writing of the book. The myths he is talking about are those created by the white English speaking people after the area was settled by Americans, so maybe 300 years after the collapse of the last organized society of the descendants of the mound builders. It appears he tried to probe the oral history of the Cherokee, Creek, and related tribes, but got nowhere. So he relied on the writings and research in English of the 19th & 20th century as his main sources. Oh well. Parts of it are quite amusing, and I can use the info to plot some adventure vacations. I will recommend this book to a number of history buff friends. If he had been able, or inclined to probe French or Spanish sources, he would have gotten a very different, certainly broader perspective.

[Christan · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up in Chillicothe, Ohio, the heart of the Adena Mound Builders culture. I have visited almost all of the Ohio mounds described in the book. I especially loved Serpent Mound. The book was interesting and informative, but I disagreed with Silverberg’s conclusions. So would I recommend it? Yes, but only as a basic primer on the Mound Builders. A better book is waiting to be written.

[Paul Lunger · Rating 4 out of 5]

With "The Mound Builders", Robert Silverberg goes into an explanation of the myth as well as the scientific fact behind this group of people who created some of the most stunning pieces of archaeology in the US. Across over 200 pages, this book examines the discovery of the mounds & the search for their origins. It also describes how each subsequent discovery led to more questions as well as the realization of just how important they were to the native peoples of the states in which they were located. The book itself is decently researched & as someone who lives in an area where a good # of them are found I found this book very enjoyable. It's a must read for anyone with an interest in the mound building culture as well as of the native peoples of the Upper Midwest as well as Mississippi Valley.

[Carl · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book along with 1491 by Charles C. Mann was my first up close information about the Mound Builders primarily my interest was with those pre-Native Americans that lived in North America. The Silverberg book is more dated in writing and publication but in some ways more readable than 1491. The two of them together give a very clear if uncertain view of the Native American mound builders who, what, when, and where. It is mind blowing to consider the vast amount of time and peoples that occupied North America prior to the arrival of explorers and colonizers from the old world (primarily Europe and the United Kingdom) I think we ( the invaders ) have a very prideful and distorted understanding of our value to the greatness of America.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Outdated (it's from 1970) but offers a basic outline of antiquarian and archaeologists attempting to understand the material culture and landscape of prehistoric North American cultures.

[Nathan · Rating 3 out of 5]

A good survey of the history of archeological efforts to find out about the ancient Hopewell, Adena, and Mississippian mound-building cultures who lived in and around the Ohio region in America.

[Mike Luoma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent survey of the history of the Native American mounds of the Midwest up to its time.

[Jake Sohngen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great book about the history of the Native-American people and the evolution of archaeology through the past few centuries.

[Kevin · Rating 3 out of 5]

not bad. some incredible self-anthro as the author digests the innumerable mistaken builders (an example: the mounds were built by scandanavians that landed in 1100 and left behind after indians flourished). of the countless mounds left across america, most were bulldozed for farm or development, some became sideviews on golf course, and a few made it into state land preserves. best part, he describes the germination of the mormon religion from joe smith's absurd interpretation of the mounds of upstate ny.

[Lynzee · Rating 3 out of 5]

Most of this book relates numerous theories about "Mound Builders" up to the last few chapters. Even though it is important to know the process of discovery and follow the trail, I prefer reading the most current known information on a topic. The book may be useful and interesting to others. I did learn quite a bit at the end.

[Karl · Rating 2 out of 5]

Honestly when I picked up the book, I was expecting fiction. The rating is because of that. It was interesting for what it was, which is a pretty in depth history of Mound Builders and if I had signed on for that, I would definitely have rated it higher.

[Bill Tillman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah well a great ref book, did not give it enough time and will have to check it out again when the time comes.

[BRT · Rating 5 out of 5]

First non-fiction book of Robert Silverberg's that I've read. Just as entertaining, enthralling, and enjoyable as his fiction plus educational!

[Kaida46 (deb) · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good overview of the Hopewell and Adena civilizations and the earthworks attributed to their civilizations.