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Clay Figurine How did the area’s early inhabitants express themselves artistically? Many different materials were used for art, but in Wisconsin wood, leather, and basketry have not survived. A variety of stone, bone, and antler objects have been found. We aren’t sure of their meaning, and these items may have had ritual as well as artistic significance.

Some figurines were made from fired clay. They give us hints as to how people may have dressed and acted in the past.  This figurine shows the lower legs of an individual sitting on his/her heels. Note the “skirt” across the back. The figurine dates to the Woodland Tradition.

Link to 3D image.

3D scan courtesy Dr. David A. Anderson, Associate Professor, UWL, Dept, of Archaeology & Anthropology.

Clay figurine