Pow Wow Weekend Sept. 8 - 10 at Cahokia Mounds includes Art Show and Atlatl Contest

COLLINSVILLE - The weekend of September 8-10 will be a busy one at Cahokia Mounds with an Indian Pow Wow, the Fall Indian Art Show, and an international atlatl spear throwing competition.

 

            The Annual Cahokia Mounds Pow Wow, "The Spirit of the Thunderbird," will be held at the picnic grounds on September 8, 9 and 10.  The dancing begins Friday evening, September 8 from 7 - 10 p.m.  It continues Saturday afternoon, September 9 from noon to 4 pm and again from 6 - 10 p.m., and wraps up Sunday afternoon, September 10 from noon to 4 p.m.  There will be 39 arts and crafts booths set up around the dance circle that open at 3 p.m. Friday and will be open throughout the weekend.  Northern and Southern (Plains) drums will provide the songs and beat for the dancing, which will include gourd, fancy and intertribal dancing.  Grand Entries will be held at 1 and 6 p.m. Saturday and 1 p.m. Sunday.  There will be a special area for children, "Kanati's Kids Korner," with storytelling, facepainting, and arts and crafts on Saturday from noon to 4 p.m.  Food and refreshment booths will be available.  Bring your lawnchairs or blankets, or you can sit on some bleachers or straw bales to watch the performances. The Pow Wow is sponsored by the Thunderbird Society-Eagle Lodge, and is held at the picnic grounds one-quarter mile west of the Interpretive Center.

 

            The Fall Indian Art Show will be held at the Interpretive Center Saturday and Sunday, September 9 and 10, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  Ten American Indian artists from across the nation will display and sell their works of fine art, including paintings, sculpture, metal work, ceramics, flutes, silverwork and jewelry.

 

            Behind the Interpretive Center, the World Atlatl Association will hold its international competition on Saturday and Sunday, September 9 and 10 from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.  Competitors will use modern and traditional versions of the atlatl (at-lattle), an ancient spear throwing device that was used for hunting by Indians for thousands of years before the bow and arrow were introduced about 1,500 years ago. The atlatl was also used in Europe and Asia in prehistoric times and in historic times the Eskimo, Australian aborigines, and the Aztecs still used them. (Atlatl is the Aztec word for the device).  There will be a public area where visitors can learn about and use the atlatl.

 

            Be sure to visit all three areas to experience not only ancient Indian culture but also the thriving Indian culture of today.

 

Cahokia Mounds State Historic Site, administered by the Illinois Historic Preservation Agency (www.Illinois-History.gov), is only eight miles from downtown St. Louis in Collinsville, Illinois off Interstates 55/70 (exit 6) and I-255 (exit 24) on Collinsville Road.  There is no admission charge but a donation of $2 for adults and $1 for children is suggested.  From September 5 through April 15, the site will be closed on Mondays and Tuesdays and is open Wednesday through Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.  For more information call 618-346-5160 or visit www.cahokiamounds.com.