Earlier research concluded that earthen mounds on what is now the Louisiana State University campus in Baton Rouge were built 5,500 to 6,000 years ago, but LSU geology professor Brooks Ellwood claims bone fragments scarred in a super-heated fire suggest the mounds could be 11,300 years old.
     Researchers found what appeared to be tiny remnants of mammal bones surrounded by high concentrations of reed and cane material. Because reed and cane burn too hot for cooking, the material may have been used for incineration.
     Native American mounds have increasingly attracted the interest of researchers, but it wasn't until the past 30 or 40 years that archaeologists realised how old they were. Many are scattered along or near the Mississippi River, with several in Louisiana, including those at the Poverty Point World Heritage Site in the northeastern part of the state. Baton Rouge is on the Mississippi River about 120 kilometres west-northwest of New Orleans.
     Little is known about the people who built the mounds. Ellwood speculates they were descendants of Clovis people, the Paleo-American culture known from their distinctive stone points. What researchers find remarkable about sites like the LSU campus mounds and Poverty Point is that people at the time didn't have agriculture, livestock, or metal tools. If Ellwood's calculations are correct, the age of the mounds could provide important clues about humans throughout the Americas.
     Researchers at LSU have long tried to preserve the mounds from further deterioration, and the university is exploring options to further protect them. The latest findings may lead to more support for a plan.

Edited from The Advocate (19 January 2020)