An excavation team, comprised of research archaeologists, OU students and volunteers from the Oklahoma Anthropological Society excavated a prehistoric Indian village in western Oklahoma.The project is led by Richard Drass, research archaeologist with the Oklahoma Archaeological Survey.Drass, who has been involved with the site since 1983, said the village was inhabited by roughly 200 ancestral Wichita Indians and dates back to 1400 A.D. The village is located two miles east of Foss.Among the findings at the site were storage pits containing bison ruins and broken pots, remains of a house pattern of clay with grass impressions and human remains. Bone tools and arrowheads were also uncovered.After the artifcats have been cleaned and cataloged, they will be placed in the Oklahoma Museum of Natural History.Burial grounds were also discovered on the 40 acre site. Permission was obtained from the Wichita tribe for an anthropologist to analyze the remains. The bodies will then be returned to the tribe for reburial, Drass said.Members of the Wichita community said they were interested in what the village could reveal about the lives of their ancestors."I'm very, very excited about it." said 1995 Wichita Princess Lisa Jonathan."Not many Wichita elders are left, so maybe this sort of discovery can help better the understanding of our heritage."The village was initially discovered in 1957 when work on Interstate 40 was undertaken. Following some excavation, work on the site was postponed until 1983, when a pipeline was laid under the area.Anthropologists hope to find out about the ancient villagers' way of life, including their diet and community structure.
