Buffalo Rock State Park & Effigy Tumuli - Effigy Tumuli

Effigy Tumuli

The Effigy Tumuli earthwork consists of five animal sculptures as tribute to ancient Native American tradition, mound building. The five animals that are depicted are a 685-foot-long (209 m) water strider, a 650-foot-long (200 m) turtle, a 770-foot-long (230 m) catfish, a 340-foot-long (100 m) frog, and a 2,070-foot-long (630 m) snake which is measured from head to toe. The water strider, catfish, and frog are built from mounds of dirt, grass, shrubbery, and exposed earth, while the turtle and snake use the geographic landscape to their advantage. The turtle's shell is formed as a mound with rock that dips into the river. The snake curves and dips down into the river 90 feet (27 m) down . Effigy Tumuli is one of the largest artworks in the country and must be seen from an aerial view in order to view the massive artworks. The site was owned by Ottawa Silica Company, who had an interest in art, and commissioned the sculptures to Michael Heizer in 1983 who used heavy equipment to finish the project 2 years later in 1985. Visitors can walk a trail through the site (which is 1.5 miles (2.4 km) long), and are invited to climb upon the artworks and read interpretive signs and maps to help visualize what they are looking at. As of Summer 2010, visitors can no longer visit the Effigy Tumuli. The trails leading to the depictions are closed off to protect visitors from stray gunfire from a nearby gun range, which has wounded several hikers.