Renewed interest in the secrets of Aztalan

[Lionel]

When Robert Birmingham stands on the heights of the ancient Mississippian village that once existed here, it doesn't take much for him to see the thatch-roofed homes, the smoky fires, or the comings and goings of the people who once called this place home. Birmingham has an advantage; he's the state archaeologist and an expert on Aztalan, located just outside Lake Mills. But he believes that a new master plan for the state park, approved last summer and already being put into place, will help protect the site's haunting and remote nature. "You can transport yourself a thousand years into the past," said Birmingham, co-author of a soon-to-be published book about Aztalan. "It can be very powerful. Right now this is a mysterious and powerful place. And what we heard from a lot of people was, 'Don't mess with it.' "

From a young princess wrapped in a shroud of beads to human bones cracked open for their marrow, the site of the ancient city on the banks of the Crawfish River is home to mysteries that both intrigue and frustrate after all these centuries. First inhabited in 800 A.D., the village has been slow to give up answers to the many questions it poses.

View: Full Article | Source: Wisconsin State Journal