The Hopewell peoples were not only the most highly advanced in Ohio, but in many respects in the entire country north of Mexico. They are noted for their many mounds, usually occurring in groups, and for the peculiar earthworks or enclosures in groups, earlier in this booklet. These earthworks or enclosures are known as “Geometric Enclosures,” because they are built in geometric forms, such as circles, squares, crescents, and so forth. They differ from the fortifications in that they were used for social and religious purposes rather than for defense. Important examples of Hopewell works are the Hopewell Group, in Ross County; the Mound City Group, within Camp Sherman, Chillicothe; the Seip Group, near Bainbridge, Ross County; the great works at Newark, the Marietta works, and others. The Mound City, the Newark and the Seip Groups are now State Memorials and those at Marietta are preserved by local interests. THE INSIDE STORY OF A MOUND [Illustration: Fig. 7—Exploring the Seip Mound, Ross County, Ohio.] No doubt every reader of this booklet would like to take part in the actual “digging” of a mound. This, of course cannot be, since the actual exploration of a large Mound requires months and even years. But perhaps we can do the next best thing; perhaps we can take part in an imaginary examination of a Mound, and in that way get an idea of how it is done and of what is found. Supposing we select a Mound of the interesting Hopewell culture. The Hopewell peoples, as we have seen, were very highly advanced and this fact, therefore, might lead the reader to expect too much of the other cultures, yet if we keep this in mind we will be on the safe side. Let us imagine that our Mound is located in Ross County, in the charming Paint Creek Valley, somewhere near old Chillicothe, first capital of Ohio and ancient capital of the Mound-builders. Before us stands a mound of earth, 125 feet in diameter at its base and 25 feet in height. The field in which it stands is under cultivation but the mound itself, being too steep for farming purposes, is covered by a thicket of shrubbery and trees. An exploration party has arrived on the scene and is preparing to examine this ancient earthwork. Workmen with picks and shovels step to the edge of the Mound and begin to dig, throwing the loose earth well behind them. The “boss” explains that the entire mound is to be removed by slicing it off, as a cake might be, in five-foot sections. We note surveying instruments, cameras, notebooks, everything in readiness. Teams and scrapers are waiting to take away the loose earth after it has been carefully examined. [Illustration: Fig. 8—Burials in the Hopewell Mounds, Ross County, Ohio.]