Mesa Verde is home to some of the best-preserved cliff dwellings in the United States, showcasing the ancient Puebloan culture that thrived in the region over 700 years ago.
2. Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, Illinois
Cahokia was once the largest pre-Columbian city north of Mexico, with impressive earthen mounds and evidence of a sophisticated society that existed around 1,000 years ago.
3. Chaco Culture National Historical Park, New Mexico
Chaco Canyon features monumental stone structures built by the ancestral Puebloans, aligning with celestial events and serving as a hub of culture and trade in the ancient Southwest.
4. Serpent Mound, Ohio
This effigy mound is one of the largest earthworks in the world, shaped like a serpent and believed to have been constructed by the indigenous peoples of the Ohio Valley around 1,000 years ago.
5. Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, Ohio
The Hopewell people left behind intricate earthworks, burial mounds, and artifacts that provide insights into their ceremonial practices and social organization dating back over 2,000 years.
6. Poverty Point State Historic Site, Louisiana
Poverty Point features a complex of earthen mounds and ridges built by a sophisticated society around 3,000 years ago, showcasing advanced engineering and trade networks in ancient North America.
7. Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
Monte Alban was a major center of Zapotec civilization in Oaxaca, Mexico, featuring impressive pyramids, temples, and tombs that offer a glimpse into the rich history and architectural achievements of the ancient Mesoamerican culture.
8. Serpent Mound, Ohio
Teotihuacan was one of the largest cities in the ancient world, known for its monumental pyramids, temples, and urban planning that reflect the power and influence of the Teotihuacan civilization in central Mexico.
9. Mesa Verde National Park, Colorado
The Great Serpent Mound in Ohio is a 1,300-foot-long effigy mound shaped like a serpent, believed to have been constructed by the indigenous peoples of the Ohio Valley for ceremonial and astronomical purposes around 1,000 years ago.
10. Hopewell Culture National Historical Park, Ohio
The Newark Earthworks in Ohio are a complex of geometric earthworks built by the Hopewell culture over 2,000 years ago, serving as ceremonial and astronomical structures that highlight the cultural sophistication of ancient Native American societies.
