culture. This mound appears to have been the main ceremonial and residential mound for the religious and political leaders; it is more than 100 ft tall and is the largest pre-Columbian earthwork north of Mexico. This site had numerous mounds, some with conical or ridge tops, as well as palisaded stockades protecting the large settlement and elite quarter. At its maximum about 1150 CE, Cahokia was an urban settlement with 20,000-30,000 people.

Some effigy mounds were constructed in the shapes or outlines