Mound D
This low circular mound was located on the south bank of Cypress Creek about 150 feet east of Mound A ([Fig. 1]). It was perched at the very edge of the floodplain overlooking the creek channel. In recent years the channel had been migrating laterally and had begun to encroach on the north edge of the mound. The average diameter of Mound D at the base was about 60 feet, and its highest point was at a relative elevation of 100.6 feet, or about 2.5 feet above the surface of the surrounding floodplain ([Fig. 9]). A shallow depression about 12 feet across in the top of the mound marked the location of the usual pothole. This pothole had originally been only 5 to 6 feet in diameter, but had been considerably enlarged at the surface of the mound by recent erosion.
Excavation of Mound D was begun shortly before the end of the 1958 field season. It was dug, like the other mounds, by the quadrant method; but, because there was not enough time for thorough excavation, only the southwest quadrant was carried down to the sub-mound level in 1958. The other three quadrants were taken down to the 98-foot level, however, where a circular zone of dark, organically stained soil, 19.8 feet in diameter, clearly outlined the location of a house structure (House No. 4) similar to those at Mounds B and C. During the final work at Harroun in February, 1959, the entire northwest quadrant was exposed, excavated, and recorded. Only the peripheral ring of post molds was exposed in the other two quadrants.
The southwest quadrant of the mound was excavated in 0.5-foot levels; all other portions were taken down in 1.0-foot levels. Horizontal plans were recorded at all levels and photographs were taken. Vertical walls 1.5 feet thick were preserved across the mound along the W100 and N100 lines ([Fig. 9]), and trenches three feet wide were extended north, south, and west of the mound in order to obtain complete vertical profiles. Excavation and recording methods were generally the same as previously described for the other mounds.
Fig. 9
HARROUN SITE:
41 UR 10
MOUND D AREA
CYPRESS CREEK
STRUCTURE OF MOUND D
The structure of Mound D was clearly indicated by the vertical cross sections ([Fig. 7]). An old humus-stained surface underlying the marginal portions of the mound was sharply defined at an average elevation of 98.0 feet. No artifacts or cultural refuse were found in the floodplain below this surface. Prior to construction of the mound a shallow, circular pit had been excavated in the surface of the floodplain to an average depth of 1.5 feet. The sides of the pit sloped sharply downward, and the floor was approximately level. An embankment of yellow-brown sand, possibly composed of back-dirt from the pit, was mounded up about 1.5 feet high and four to six feet wide around the perimeter of the pit. This light sand zone contained a few artifacts but little or no charcoal.
A hard-packed house floor about 0.2 feet thick lay on the bottom of the pit. This floor zone was composed of compact sandy clay which contrasted sharply with the overlying mound fill. Charcoal, ash, and burned clay daub were found in quantity in the floor zone, but only a few artifacts were recovered. Just above the house floor was a 1-foot thick layer of dark gray-brown sand containing several charred poles and a large amount of charcoal, ash, and burned clay daub. Above that was the sandy fill making up the bulk of the mound. A mantle of surface humus from 0.2 to 0.8 feet thick covered the mound.