Uploaded November 2019 | Updated September 2026, 1 hour ago
Welcome to Cahokia. Centuries ago, this area was home to a Native American metropolis bigger than London.
Cahokia had astronomers who studied the stars and builders who erected vast structures. Their designs included hundreds of man-made earth pyramids and wooden solar observatories. Cahokia was one of the world’s most advanced cities circa 1250 A.D.
But most have never heard of it. All that remains today are these earth pyramids, more commonly known as the Cahokia Mounds. These were massive engineering projects that required intricate planning and meticulous attention to detail. Much of the city was destroyed by farming and construction by settlers who came to the area from Europe and elsewhere.
It’s thought that the land used to build the mounds came from the nearby burrow pits. Cahokian builders would have materials transported from here to where the earth pyramid was to be constructed.
The tallest of the pyramids that still remains today is known as Monks Mound. It was named by French monks who traveled to the area from Europe.
Welcome to Cahokia. Centuries ago, this area was home to a Native American metropolis bigger than London.
Its inhabitants included farmers, warriors, hunters, families, priests, village elders, and an elite ruling class. Cahokia had astronomers who studied the stars and builders who erected vast structures. Their designs included hundreds of man-made earth pyramids and wooden solar observatories.
Cahokia was one of the world’s most advanced cities circa 1250 A.D. But most have never heard of it.
SOURCES: WASHINGTON POST, LEGENDS OF AMERICA, WIKIPEDIA, CHEROKEEPHONEIX, CAHOKIAMOUNDS.ORG, THE GUARDIAN, NPR,
washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/daily/march/12/cahokia.htm
legendsofamerica.com/il-cahokia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cahokia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chunkey
cherokeephoenix.org/Article/index/10731
cahokiamounds.org/new-discoveries-from-cahokias-beaded-burial
cahokiamounds.org
theguardian.com/cities/2016/aug/17/lost-cities-8-mystery-ahokia-illinois-mississippians-native-americans-vanish
npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/02/10/513963490/1-000-years-ago-corn-made-this-society-big-then-a-changing-climate-destroyed-the
CREATIVE COMMONS
FLICKR / STEVE MOSES
flickr.com/photos/smoses/3391748349/in/photostream
flickr.com/photos/smoses/3391749345/in/photostream
FLICKR / PAUL SABLEMAN
flickr.com/photos/pasa/48581858101/in/photostream
FLICKR / PRAYITNOPHOTOGRAPHY
flickr.com/photos/prayitnophotography/32434956237
FLICKR / EDEN PICTURES
flickr.com/photos/edenpictures/36277923014
FLICKR / RAYMOND BUCKO
flickr.com/photos/kishka_king/7483789266
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_monks_mound_McAdams_1887.jpg
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catlin_Tchung-kee,_a_Mandan_Game_Played_with_a_Ring_and_Pole_01.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / HERB ROE
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mississippian_culture_mound_components_HRoe_2011.jpg
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mound_72_human_sacrifice_HRoe_2013.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mound_72#/media/File:Mound_72_sacrifice_ceremony_HRoe_2013.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_Woodhenge_at_Sunrise_HRoe_2017sm.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / JAMES Q JACOBS
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_Woodhenge_and_Monk%27s_Mound.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMON S / JEFGODESKY
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bird_Man_Cahokia_USA.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / CHRIS LIGHT
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chunkey_P9121106.jpg
ALL MUSIC VIA YOUTUBE AUDIO LIBRARY
Narrated by Lawrence “MasakoX” Simpson. Stock footage via Storyblocks.
Welcome to Cahokia. Centuries ago, this area was home to a Native American metropolis bigger than London.
Cahokia had astronomers who studied the stars and builders who erected vast structures. Their designs included hundreds of man-made earth pyramids and wooden solar observatories. Cahokia was one of the world’s most advanced cities circa 1250 A.D.
But most have never heard of it. All that remains today are these earth pyramids, more commonly known as the Cahokia Mounds. These were massive engineering projects that required intricate planning and meticulous attention to detail. Much of the city was destroyed by farming and construction by settlers who came to the area from Europe and elsewhere.
It’s thought that the land used to build the mounds came from the nearby burrow pits. Cahokian builders would have materials transported from here to where the earth pyramid was to be constructed.
The tallest of the pyramids that still remains today is known as Monks Mound. It was named by French monks who traveled to the area from Europe.
Welcome to Cahokia. Centuries ago, this area was home to a Native American metropolis bigger than London.
Its inhabitants included farmers, warriors, hunters, families, priests, village elders, and an elite ruling class. Cahokia had astronomers who studied the stars and builders who erected vast structures. Their designs included hundreds of man-made earth pyramids and wooden solar observatories.
Cahokia was one of the world’s most advanced cities circa 1250 A.D. But most have never heard of it.
SOURCES: WASHINGTON POST, LEGENDS OF AMERICA, WIKIPEDIA, CHEROKEEPHONEIX, CAHOKIAMOUNDS.ORG, THE GUARDIAN, NPR,
washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/national/daily/march/12/cahokia.htm
legendsofamerica.com/il-cahokia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cahokia
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chunkey
cherokeephoenix.org/Article/index/10731
cahokiamounds.org/new-discoveries-from-cahokias-beaded-burial
cahokiamounds.org
theguardian.com/cities/2016/aug/17/lost-cities-8-mystery-ahokia-illinois-mississippians-native-americans-vanish
npr.org/sections/thesalt/2017/02/10/513963490/1-000-years-ago-corn-made-this-society-big-then-a-changing-climate-destroyed-the
CREATIVE COMMONS
FLICKR / STEVE MOSES
flickr.com/photos/smoses/3391748349/in/photostream
flickr.com/photos/smoses/3391749345/in/photostream
FLICKR / PAUL SABLEMAN
flickr.com/photos/pasa/48581858101/in/photostream
FLICKR / PRAYITNOPHOTOGRAPHY
flickr.com/photos/prayitnophotography/32434956237
FLICKR / EDEN PICTURES
flickr.com/photos/edenpictures/36277923014
FLICKR / RAYMOND BUCKO
flickr.com/photos/kishka_king/7483789266
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_monks_mound_McAdams_1887.jpg
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Catlin_Tchung-kee,_a_Mandan_Game_Played_with_a_Ring_and_Pole_01.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / HERB ROE
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mississippian_culture_mound_components_HRoe_2011.jpg
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mound_72_human_sacrifice_HRoe_2013.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mound_72#/media/File:Mound_72_sacrifice_ceremony_HRoe_2013.jpg
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_Woodhenge_at_Sunrise_HRoe_2017sm.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / JAMES Q JACOBS
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cahokia_Woodhenge_and_Monk%27s_Mound.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMON S / JEFGODESKY
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bird_Man_Cahokia_USA.jpg
WIKIMEDIA COMMONS / CHRIS LIGHT
commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Chunkey_P9121106.jpg
ALL MUSIC VIA YOUTUBE AUDIO LIBRARY
Narrated by Lawrence “MasakoX” Simpson. Stock footage via Storyblocks.
